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RHUBARB GUIDES

close-up of the purple, red and yellow stems from a rhubarb plant with green leaves growing from soil outside

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Rhubarb is a recurrent veg grown for its colourful and tasty stem that can be harvested from March until June .

“ Rhubarb is great , as you may put it in the ground and blank out about it and save money , rather than buying it from the shop , ” share Garden Designer Humaira Ikram .

wilted rhubarb plants with big green leaves growing in rows with dead brown leaves around them on the ground and green plants and trees in the background

“ Rhubarb industrial plant also look so architectural and pretty . ”

As a perennial , the stems and foliage of a rhubarb flora naturally die back in late autumn as the plant enters its wintertime quiescency , in fiat to produce new maturation the following spring .

Pruning rhubarb is fairly unsubdivided if you follow a simple process for cut back the plant life :

a rotted rhubarb plant with purply-brown stems and red and brown leaves that have wilted and died back

This summons is explained in more deepness below .

When To Prune Rhubarb

pieplant should be cut back after the current season ’s increase has turned subdued and decease back .

Here in the UK , this is generally around October to November , but can be after in milder parts of the country .

1) Cut Back Dead Foliage

Once the pieplant ’s stalks and foliage have died back , they can be dispatch from the plant , exit the develop top of the plant open to the colder temperatures they demand to receive over winter .

This can either be done by cutting the stems close to the substructure of the industrial plant with a sharp and uninfected span of secateurs or a knife , or by pulling them lightly aside from the crown .

“ The advice I would give whenever you are removing rhubarb leaves is to assay and twist the stalk away from the base and not cut or snap them off unless they are too tough , ” shares Dan Ori , a Horticultural Consultant .

a large rhubarb plant with big frilly green leaves and small rounded flower buds that are pink and white in colour growing from one of the stems

“ This will help prevent rot and damage to the crown . ”

If not removed , the dead foliage will start to weaken and rot which can precede to problems such as disease and crown rot .

2) Remove Flowering Stems

Although not that unwashed , rhubarb plants can sometimes bloom during the summer month , especially after periods of labored rain .

These flowering stems which will eventually set seeded player if not removed can take precious vigor away from the plant and cause it to break .

To remove the inflorescence stalks , simply cut the stem at the base of the works with a clean and sharp knife .

3) Dispose Of Old Foliage

With pieplant , only the root word are edible , so there can often be some vexation as to whether the leaves can be safely added to a home compost pile .

However , during the decay operation of composting , the oxalic acid in the leaf degenerates – meaning they are perfectly safe to compost at home.2Are rhubarb entrust secure to put in the compost pile?(n.d . ) . Iowa State University . Retrieved April 27 , 2023 , fromhttps://hortnews.extension.iastate.edu/faq/are-rhubarb-leaves-safe-put-compost-pile

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