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Janet · 15-06-2012, 10:28 PM posted to uk.rec.gardening

In article ,
says...

On Thu, 14 Jun 2012 08:30:15 +0100, "Bob Hobden"
wrote:

Nick wrote

Rob G wrote:

A discussion has arisen over the colour of rhubarb stems. Is the
concentration of the red colour related to variety, environment or the
weather ?

Er, yes?

I believe primarily the first, but probably the others, plus the
age of the plant and the stems. The truth is rarely pure and
never simple (Oscar Wilde).

I agree, on our last allotment we had a few different varieties of rhubarb
(from other plotholders) and one always had thinner redder tastier stems. I
have no idea what variety it was but it was certainly the best of the bunch.

This is a good moment to ask about the oxalic acid and soluble
oxalates. I read somewhere that even when turning green, the stems
don't contain the unhealthy concentration found in the leaves. 1), is
this true? and 2), is there a degree of greening in the petioles which
indicates unsafe levels?

AIUI the leaves always contain more than the stems; but older stems
contain more oxalates as the growth matures. So people trying to avoid
oxalates shouldn't eat rhubarb picked after July.

Janet