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Garden Gate:  Rhubarb  |
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bybiddie
True Blue Farmgirl
267 Posts
susan
upstate
ny
USA
267 Posts |
 Posted - Apr 17 2006 : 1:15:05 PM
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I am inheriting my mom's rhubarb and someone gave me some to start. Okay... Help! I figure it needs sun - what type of soil is best? Can I put it as part of my herb garden? Can I transplant my mom's rhubarb even if it's just coming up? I love rhubarb and really want to make sure I do everything right!
Thanks gals.
Lovin' my life |
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theherblady
True Blue Farmgirl
510 Posts
Jan
Glasford
Illinois
USA
510 Posts |
Posted - Apr 17 2006 : 1:25:10 PM
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Susan-The best time to transplant is when it is first coming up..I have mine in full sun at the edge of the herb garden...Dont plan on cutting it the first year tho~~I have heard you can kill it that way...We moved and I brought some with me to the new house...This will be its second year and I am really looking forward to having some!
I posted the bestest rhubarb apple pie recipe here ...not sure when.. but check the archives.
Good Luck!
Jan |
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Jana
True Blue Farmgirl
482 Posts
Jana
Eau Claire
Wisconsin
USA
482 Posts |
Posted - Apr 17 2006 : 2:16:04 PM
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Susan,
Rhubarb can grow in just about anyplace. I live where there is sandy loam, rather acid soil, but thats just here. You can feed it if you want, but too much will make the leaves really big and you won't get much stalk. Keep it well watered until established. After that, you probably won't have to intentionally need to water it.
One plant would make a great center to an herb garden, I think. Count on a fully grown plant having a diameter of about 4 feet.
When you do harvest from your plant, make sure you leave at lest of the stems (I leave the big, thick ones on the bottom). Don't cut back stems in the fall, just let them die off and if you want to clean up anything thats left, do it in the spring.
Jana |
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Destiny~
True Blue Farmgirl
195 Posts
Dar
west
TX
USA
195 Posts |
Posted - Apr 17 2006 : 2:22:36 PM
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When I was growing up the rhubarb was growing around our outhouse. After the outhouse was torn down mom moved the rhubarb, it didn't survive. Must have been something in the soil. |
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ali2583
True Blue Farmgirl
404 Posts
Alison
Winnipeg
Manitoba
Canada
404 Posts |
Posted - Apr 17 2006 : 3:15:33 PM
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Every place I've lived has always had rhubarb, it's kind of second nature to me. I've had it growing in both clay-like and sandy soil. In fact, my current rhubarb bush is half buried under my hollyhocks, and it still does well.
There's not really much you can do to ruin rhubarb. Just give it water and some good sun and it should be fine.
Hope that helps!
"God's gift to you is life. What you choose to do with that life is your gift to God" |
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sonflowergurl
True Blue Farmgirl
349 Posts
Katee
Tampa 'Burbs
FL
USA
349 Posts |
Posted - Apr 17 2006 : 3:36:36 PM
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Mmmm! I need to get some rhubarb....someday. Can it grow in a big pot? I am probably going to have more of a patio garden until we own our own place...someday down the road.
Katee
The end will justify the pain it took to get us here.
"Looking Toward the Son"---- http://sonflowergirl731.blogspot.com
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Alaska farm girl
True Blue Farmgirl
123 Posts
dorothy
skagway
Alaska
USA
123 Posts |
Posted - Apr 17 2006 : 7:15:01 PM
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| Rhubarb needs LOTS of room..4x4 ft. is a good sq. I've been told NOT to cut it but twist the stems out.Not sure why you're not supposed to cut it.My boss at the show garden also says keep the seed stems from growing.It makes the plant stop producing.The leaves can be poisonous to animals(remember,goats eat everything)! It goes well with strawberries.I cut up the stems and freeze em till they can be used.Also, rhubarb is a great stopper-upper,you know,like if you have the runs,it works the opposite! |
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Alaska farm girl
True Blue Farmgirl
123 Posts
dorothy
skagway
Alaska
USA
123 Posts |
Posted - Apr 17 2006 : 7:26:06 PM
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| Oh Boy,I need to review BEFORE I send. The leaves of rhubarb are poisonous to humans too!! Also,NEVER cook rhubarb in a copper pot,it has potassium oxalate in it which makes it bad for humans if cooked in copper. Rhubard Liqueur is very tasty! |
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junebug
True Blue Farmgirl
2421 Posts
Sue
West Plains,
Mo.
USA
2421 Posts |
Posted - Apr 18 2006 : 04:53:27 AM
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Walmart sells a bag of three rhubarb starts for less than $4. I got one the other day cuz someone keeps mowing down the rhubarb here, so this year it's getting it's own bed! Any yes, don't harvest the first year, not good, too bitter. The second year you will have great tasting rhubarb that does need a lot of room to grow. I posted a muffin recipe on my sage flower blog using rhubarb, I'd LOVE the apple rhubard recipe mentioned above?
www.sageflowerfarm.blogspot.com
www.herbalfarmstead.blogspot.com
www.countrypleasures.motime.com |
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theherblady
True Blue Farmgirl
510 Posts
Jan
Glasford
Illinois
USA
510 Posts |
Posted - Apr 18 2006 : 05:36:02 AM
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I founnd the rhubarb/apple pie recipe! Click on the word "kitchen" at the section heading on the forum....On page 16 "Need a rhubarb pie recipe" is the pie recipe..and on page 19 "Rhubarb-whats your favorite way to use it?"
I thought about my post all night last night and I see someone else mentioned it.....Be sure to PULL the rhubarb not cut it...Get as low as you can on the stalk and pull upward and it comes right out..Make sure the plant is established before you pull it....
Jan |
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asnedecor
True Blue Farmgirl
1054 Posts
Anne
Portland
Or
USA
1054 Posts |
Posted - Apr 18 2006 : 06:51:42 AM
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A good recipe I found is rhubarb/fig conserve. A very sweet jelly. Our neighbors have a fig tree and we have the rhubarb - so after a gift of figs from them I made the conserve and gave them a couple of jars. It was very good. Also rhubarb sauce is mine and DH's favorite, along with rhubarb strawberry pie. I got my rhubarb start from my dad. He just took a chunk off of his plant one spring and gave it to me. I have had a huge rhubarb plant ever since - that was 4 years ago. I do find if you purchase a plant from some of these garden centers, make sure it has been watered or keep moist properly. I bought one - before I went to see dad - and it was so dry it never grew.
Anne
"Second star to the right, straight on till morning" Peter Pan
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Edited by - asnedecor on Apr 18 2006 06:52:37 AM |
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bybiddie
True Blue Farmgirl
267 Posts
susan
upstate
ny
USA
267 Posts |
Posted - Apr 18 2006 : 2:01:17 PM
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What a treasure of knowledge this forum is! Where else can you find out how to grow something, where to grow it, when to pick it and the best recipes to use!!! I will have to print out all this info and tape it in my recipe/gardening book! Thanks a bunch to you all - you're the greatest!
Lovin' my life |
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brightmeadow
True Blue Farmgirl
2045 Posts
Brenda
Lucas
Ohio
USA
2045 Posts |
Posted - Apr 18 2006 : 2:47:04 PM
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I was so glad to read this topic! Two of my four plants just came up this weekend - they were the tiny ones last year. The big one (last year) grew to 5 feet tall and had a center spike with thousands of seeds on it. I don't remember Grandma's rhubarb growing that tall so I was wondering if you're supposed to cut that seed stalk off when it starts making its appearance.
I am worried about that big one - I had DH tilling the garden with the tractor last week and I am afraid he might have gotten too close. Also we put a heavy load of leaf mulch on the garden last fall and I am wondering if we killed the big rhubarb plant - I expected it to be the first one up, not the last. Did I smother it?
I suppose I'll give it another week and hopefully it will show up.
Otherwise, should I divide the ones I currently have or go to the garden store and get a few more plants?
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
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theherblady
True Blue Farmgirl
510 Posts
Jan
Glasford
Illinois
USA
510 Posts |
Posted - Apr 19 2006 : 06:40:05 AM
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I would certainly not divide the little ones from last year..You may not be able to use them this year if you start dividing them already...I would look for the big one to appear..Maybe brush away the mulch if danger of freezing is past and check if it is coming up...or if it is that thick, maybe it cant come up due to the heavy mulch-
I pull out the seed stalks before they get too big. Or if I cant pull them, at least bend them over-
Jan |
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ladybugsmom6
True Blue Farmgirl
128 Posts
Tami
Horicon
WI
USA
128 Posts |
Posted - Apr 19 2006 : 09:20:21 AM
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I too love rhubarb! my grandma always made the best strawberry rhubarb jam. now that i am the mom, i have taken her recipe and make mine without sugar, but honey instead...oh so good.
sooo... i planted a cutting last summer, can i harvest this year??i also had to dig up my plant as it was emerging so my dh could roto-till, is it going to be ready to (sorry not cut, but) pull this year??
i have always cut, i never heard of pulling!
-Tami
now ladybugsmom7, the newest farm girl Danielle elizabethwas born March23, Danielle Elizabeth |
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theherblady
True Blue Farmgirl
510 Posts
Jan
Glasford
Illinois
USA
510 Posts |
Posted - Apr 20 2006 : 07:46:32 AM
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Tami-DH is going to have to roto-till around the rhubarb!..Did you dig it up this year? If so- I wouldnt pull any stalks this year...I guess it would depend on how large and sturdy it is...I transplanted mine after we moved last spring so I am hoping to get some this year!
Jan |
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ladybugsmom6
True Blue Farmgirl
128 Posts
Tami
Horicon
WI
USA
128 Posts |
Posted - Apr 20 2006 : 08:43:24 AM
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Jan, it was a digging from last summer, I brought it home and planted it in july. this spring i tookit out of the ground, he roto tilled, i put it back. it was out for two hours, then back into the same spot. did i goof terribly?
my dh is a wonderful carpenter, loves power tools. but he is a city slicker! no idea what is a good plant and what is a weed! it had to come out or i would have lost it!!
-Tami
now ladybugsmom7, the newest farm girl Danielle elizabethwas born March23, Danielle Elizabeth |
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theherblady
True Blue Farmgirl
510 Posts
Jan
Glasford
Illinois
USA
510 Posts |
Posted - Apr 20 2006 : 10:47:28 AM
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Ummmmm~~ I dont think I would pull it then...I would let it be...in the same spot for a year to let it get established...You never want to pull all of it so it will take a while for it to get full enough to pull. Most recipes take about 4-5 cups which is about 4-6 good size stalks . Maybe you can get a few pieces of wood to put around it or something to mark it and assure he doesnt till the rhubarb. Just till around it next time~~
Good Luck
Jan |
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brightmeadow
True Blue Farmgirl
2045 Posts
Brenda
Lucas
Ohio
USA
2045 Posts |
Posted - May 05 2006 : 3:51:43 PM
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I am SOOOOO excited! We went away for a few days, and when I came back, my two rhubarb plants that I thought had been rototilled were poking their little heads up!! Yes!!!! I have four plants now!
I planted these two years ago, this will be my first year to harvest the stalks. What are the rules? Pick no more than half the stalks, or is it OK to cut them all? Will they keep coming back, like asparagus?
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
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ali2583
True Blue Farmgirl
404 Posts
Alison
Winnipeg
Manitoba
Canada
404 Posts |
Posted - May 05 2006 : 9:32:26 PM
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Rhubarb will *always* come back, no matter how much you pick it!
I'm very surprised this year, my rhubarb is actually outgrowing my hollyhocks. This is a first, since hollyhocks grow like bad weeds.
If anyone wants a good recipe for dessert...cut up enough rhubarb and strawberries to fill 2/3 of a loaf pan. Sprinkle w/ some white sugar and toss. Make a crumbly topping of 1/2 c. brown sugar, 3/4 c. a.p. flour, and 1.4 c. cold butter. Bake 350F for 25 min. It's plenty for two people, make sure you have some vanilla icecream too.
"God's gift to you is life. What you choose to do with that life is your gift to God" |
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Phils Ann
True Blue Farmgirl
1095 Posts
Ann
Parsonsburg
Maryland
USA
1095 Posts |
Posted - May 18 2006 : 10:52:48 AM
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Has anyone grown rhubarb in the south? In the site www.rhubarbinfo.com/rhubarb-growing.html, I read that rhubarb wilts when temps. are in the 90's, so plant in some shade. This is our 3rd year with trying, the plants look happy (in afternoon shade in flower border), and I'm hoping... Thanks for the yummy recipes, everybody!
Ann
There is a Redeemer. |
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dargaonfly1054
True Blue Farmgirl
257 Posts
Georgette
Nicholville
NY
USA
257 Posts |
Posted - May 21 2006 : 06:45:28 AM
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When I bought my house in Nicholville New York, I inherited a fairly large patch of rhubarb. I made a pie yesterday and one is in the oven as we speak. It was soooo good!!! Rhubarb is a very good thing!!!
"We need the tonic of wildness, to wade sometimes in marshes where the bittern and the meadow-hen lurk..." Thoreau |
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Alaska farm girl
True Blue Farmgirl
123 Posts
dorothy
skagway
Alaska
USA
123 Posts |
Posted - May 21 2006 : 09:17:17 AM
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| Yesterday I was working in the alley and an older couple came down it on thier bicycles. I asked if they were" alley touring" and they said they were looking for an abandoned rhubarb plant. I thought they just wanted to see what a huge one looked like and said they could go in the yard and look at mine. They really only wanted some to make a pie! They were seasonal workers from Florida(originally from N.D.), and missed rhubarb! I gave them some stalks and promised to dig up a little plant to put in a pot for them to have outside their motorhome.Hope they can harvest from it before fall! P.S.,I found 3 great planting containers at the scrap metal dump!! |
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GaiasRose
True Blue Farmgirl
2552 Posts
Tasha-Rose
St. Paul
Minnesota
2552 Posts |
Posted - Jun 10 2006 : 11:45:08 AM
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Rhubarb always makes me think of the show on NPR "Prairie Home Companion"....Be-bop a re-bop a rhubarb pie....
I just got some from my MIL, and it started to rot because she left it in a plastic bag too long before she brought it up here....well, we threw it in the woods....just threw it....i didn't want it being rotten and contaminating my garden....well it rooted itself and is doing famously! You can't kill it. I swear.
~*~Brightest Blessings~*~
Tasha-Rose |
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asnedecor
True Blue Farmgirl
1054 Posts
Anne
Portland
Or
USA
1054 Posts |
Posted - Jun 11 2006 : 07:34:31 AM
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Just made a wonderful apple/rhubarb crisp. Here is the recipe if any of you are interested -
Apple-Rhubarb Crisp
1 1/2 pounds Granny Smith apples
1 pound rhubarb, rinsed
1 orange (about 1/2 lb.)
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
About 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup pecans
1/2 cup granulated sugar
6 tablespoons (3/8 lb.) butter or margarine, in chunks
1 cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1. Peel and core apples. Cut into 1-inch chunks.
2. Trim and discard coarse ends and any bruised spots from rhubarb. Cut rhubarb into 1-inch pieces.
3. Grate 1 tablespoon peel from orange. Cut orange in half and ream 1/4 cup juice.
4. In a shallow 3-quart (9- by 13-in.) casserole, combine apples, rhubarb, orange peel, orange juice, brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and 2 tablespoons flour. Mix well.
5. In a food processor, combine 3/4 cup flour, pecans, and granulated sugar; whirl until nuts are finely ground. Or mince nuts with a knife and mix with flour and sugar in bowl. Add butter and whirl or rub mixture with your fingers until it forms fine crumbs. Squeeze crumbs into lumps and scatter over apple-rhubarb mixture.
6. Bake in a 375° oven until topping is well browned and juice bubbles at edges, about 40 minutes (35 minutes in a convection oven).
7. Meanwhile, in a chilled bowl with a mixer on high speed, whip cream until it holds soft peaks; add powdered sugar and vanilla. Serve, or cover and chill up to 4 hours; whisk before serving.
8. Let crisp cool 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature. Spoon into bowls; top with whipped cream.
Yield: Makes 8 to 10 servings
Anne in Portland, OR
"Second star to the right, straight on till morning" Peter Pan
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ali2583
True Blue Farmgirl
404 Posts
Alison
Winnipeg
Manitoba
Canada
404 Posts |
Posted - Jun 11 2006 : 08:24:38 AM
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I'm making strawberry/rhubarb crisp tonite! Maybe I'll throw some apples in too!
"God's gift to you is life. What you choose to do with that life is your gift to God" |
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Garden Gate: Rhubarb |
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Rhubarb
