"Wilson" wrote in message
...
sometime in the recent past Val posted this:
"JoeSpareBedroom" wrote in message
...
Upstate NY, zone 6. I have a rhubarb plant which is too big for the spot
where I planted it last year. This was obvious at the time I planted it,
but what's new? Anyway, I'd like to move it, and maybe divide it & give
some to a friend. It's just now showing some growth, maybe 3-4" high.
Good time to move it? What about dividing it? I haven't lived with the
plant for enough years to really tell how it grows. Single crown? Split
it like a hosta? Are they pretty rugged plants?

I see your moving the rhubarb question was answered. Do you know NOT to
cut the stalks when harvesting but grab them down at ground level and
twist them off. I have no idea why but it's better for the plant, or so I
was taught. My grandparents had 100 total acres of blackberries,
raspberries and rhubarb they grew for market. The rhubarb harvesters were
never allowed to cut/trim the stalks until after they'd been twisted off.
I have no idea if this is true or just some old tale they insisted on
when harvesting.

Val
I was taught by my grandfather and we basically give the stalk a firm tug
making sure to be in line with the way the leaf is growing. This separates
it at the ground level so you have the broad white end on the stalk with a
small bit of that brown filmy skin. You can't hurt it, but it gets rather
crowded at the base of the plant if you keep leaving bits of stalk on the
crown.

If you remove the seed stalks when discovered and keep picking it, you can
still have nice, edible fruit well into August. And it's not woody or
stringy or anything. It's just that most folks let it go to seed and then
the plant stops growing new stalks and the old stuff gets tough. IMHO

--
Wilson N45 W67


Mine sticks out into the "lane" where I need to mow, so to avoid mangling
it, I'm constantly harvesting and watching for seed pods. Looked pretty good
all the way into September.