The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Growing => Vegetables => Topic started by: alang on April 06, 2020, 06:56:02 pm

Title: Planting rhubarb
Post by: alang on April 06, 2020, 06:56:02 pm

Sorry if it's a fruit. I'm never sure which it is.

Question is. I've wanted to get a rhubarb crown for ages now and i'm seeing quite a few of them appearing on evilbay.

When is the best time of year to buy and plant one? I know about soil prep so that's not an issue.

Title: Re: Planting rhubarb
Post by: macgro7 on April 06, 2020, 07:50:31 pm

Winter. I just divided one last week.
It's the easiest thing to grow in the world!
Plant it once and have it for lifetime!

Title: Re: Planting rhubarb
Post by: alang on April 06, 2020, 08:11:30 pm

So buying and planting a crown now would be useless?

Title: Re: Planting rhubarb
Post by: RCTman on April 06, 2020, 09:04:26 pm

Go ahead , buy and plant it will be fine.

Title: Re: Planting rhubarb
Post by: macgro7 on April 06, 2020, 11:41:20 pm

It'll be fine ! Just make sure its watered during the first year at least. After that it will grow huge massive roots size of large carrots that will keep it growing for years!

Title: Re: Planting rhubarb
Post by: alang on April 07, 2020, 06:20:25 pm

Cheers

Time to start looking for some rhubarb on evilbay  :excited:

Title: Re: Planting rhubarb
Post by: alang on April 09, 2020, 05:24:21 pm

I am seeing on evilbay that some sellers are offering rhubarb 'bulbs'. I've heard of seeds and crown but never rhubarb bulbs. Any ideas?

Title: Re: Planting rhubarb
Post by: macgro7 on April 10, 2020, 04:37:32 pm

Shall I just you a couple? We only eat them a couple of days a year really lol but love growing them.

Title: Re: Planting rhubarb
Post by: alang on April 10, 2020, 04:56:16 pm

So bulbs are actually a thing then? As i said earlier  i've only ever seen rhubarb plants come as seeds and crowns.

So do these bulbs produce the stems like those mentioned above?

Title: Re: Planting rhubarb
Post by: macgro7 on April 10, 2020, 05:06:42 pm

No idea. I have some crowns available - 2 varieties. Dont remember their names but one has been growing for about two months now. The other one I just sprouting back after the winter.

Title: Re: Planting rhubarb
Post by: cloddopper on April 19, 2020, 01:21:37 am

Grow your own from certified seed it's cheaper as most of the seeds will germinate and give you rhubarb  towards the end of this years season . Champagne or Victoria are decent seeds to use . Think my 18 seeds cost me £ 1.35 eight years ago . Every one became a decent crown ready for planting out .

Plus & a big plus at that is that you will not be importing  pests in a crown into your garden . It also gives you time to make up a deep well manure bed for the baby plants when they are about six inches high .
 PS
 Split & move the crown after every fifth year after  last harvest to a new deep manured site  ..it helps to prevent crown rot & stops disease build up like honey fungus .

 If you don't move to new  well manured ground after 5 yrs  the plant may live to 10 yrs old but you wont get good crops.