Rhubarb offers edible leaf stalks loaded with a unique tart or sour flavor. It's a great complement to sweet strawberries or it can be featured in sweetened jellies, pies and jams.
Here are a few tips on how to harvest rhubarb:
• Is your rhubarb plant new or is it established? If newly planted, rhubarb should not be harvested the first year. Delaying will help the plant, which tends to be long-lived, establish itself. Wait a year or two before you begin to pick the stalks.
Related: Learn more about growing rhubarb.
• Check if the rhubarb is “ripe." The first step is to make sure the plant is ready to be harvested. This is relatively easy to do. The best time to harvest is from spring to early summer—usually April to June in the northern climates that rhubarb favors. The best stalks to harvest should stand at least 10 to 15 inches long, with a width of 1 to 2 inches.
You may keep harvesting from a fully established plant for roughly 8 to 10 weeks. On plants that have been in the garden for fewer than four years, limit picking to three weeks or fewer. for rhubarb established more than four years and 1 to 3 weeks for less.
Although stalks can be picked into early fall, it's best to stop sooner. This will ensure the plant gathers the energy to survive winter and grow anew come spring.
The bottom line is to leave some stalks behind at the last harvest—preferably a third to near half of the plant—to help your rhubarb recover. This way you can have a bountiful yield from the same plant for many years to come!
• How to harvest: Gently grab near the base of the desired stalk and slowly pull and twist. It is as simple as that! Sometimes the stalk may be resistant to break away and you might need a pair of gardening shears to cut it at the base. Make sure to cut the leaves off the top of the stalks and discard them; they are toxic and should never be consumed.
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