On May 8, 3:13*pm, Stewart Robert Hinsley
wrote:
In message
,
"Cat(h)" writes





On May 8, 11:45*am, Stewart Robert Hinsley
wrote:
In message , Mary Fisher
writes

"the_constructor" wrote in message
newsZGdnbwWLsCgh7_VnZ2dnUVZ8sijnZ2d@plusnet.. .
Last year I was given a rhubarb plant which I planted in the garden.
Prepared a plot and dug in a bag full of compost.

Over the last couple of weeks, the rhubarb has shot up... probably because
it has got a little warmer.

I have a couple of questions:

1. * *I was told that you are not supposed to eat the first harvest.....
Is this correct * * ?

I've never heard that, we dined on ours on Tuesday and are still here ....

A reason for not harvesting rhubarb in its first season (as opposed to
the first leaves of the season) would be to allow the plant to establish
properly - too aggressive harvesting would weaken the plant. It sounds
as if his plant is sufficiently established that at least light
harvesting wouldn't be a problem.

That was how I understood the OP, and that would have been my
response, based on the advice I got in the garden centre where I
bought mine some years ago. *There is now way I could have harvested
my rhubarb their first year.
Now, I can just keep pulling.
I was also told to stop harvesting from July onwards, due to the
higher levels of toxins which are supposed to build up in the plant
from then on in the season. *Although I seem to recall some people
here rubbishing that. *That being said, I generally have had my fill
of rhubarb by July, and there would be more exciting fruits in the
garden by then :-)

I don't know about toxicity later in the season - there have been people
who have said that they've eaten late rhubarb and survived - but I find
that later on in the year rhubarb becomes rather fibrous.

Giving the plant a chance to recover doesn't do any harm either.


Very true. The toxicity stories might just be to put manners on the
gluttons :-)

Cat(h)