When Should You Pick Rhubarb?

Rhubarb has been used for centuries for medicinal purposes and folk healing. Though most of us know it as a pie filling, it has many uses. The edible stalks of the rhubarb plant are high in vitamins A and C, calcium and fiber. Additionally, a single cup of diced rhubarb contains only about 26 calories. Rhubarb can also be used by fair-haired individuals to add golden tones to hair color. Although the oxalic acid in the leaves is toxic to humans, this does not render them useless. Rhubarb leaves make an effective organic insecticide against leaf-eating pests such as aphids, slugs and cabbage caterpillars.

Instructions

1. 

   Examine the rhubarb plant's stalks beginning about the first week in May. The picking season is considered to extend from late May through late June or early July.

2. 

   Harvest the stalks when they are 12 to 18 inches long. Some stalks will be thicker than others. Generally speaking, extremely thick stalks are stringy and somewhat tough. The color will range from green to dark red.

3. 

   Twist the stalk at the soil line while tugging gently so that it pulls away from the center of the plant. Do not cut the stalks. They are not ripe if they do not pull away from the base easily.

4. Take only about a third of the stalks at any one picking. More will quickly grow to replace them. Pick only the largest stalks and leave the others to keep on growing, extending the harvest period.

5. 

   Remove flowers as soon as they appear on top of the flower spikes. Producing seeds takes a lot of energy that the plant could better spend on growing more stalks for you to enjoy. Once the plant goes to seed, the stalks will become bitter.

Tips & Warnings

• Clean rhubarb stalks by wiping them with a moist cloth. The stalks will split if you wash them in water.

• Store your picked rhubarb in the refrigerator, where it will keep for several days. It can also be frozen by cutting the stalks into 1- to 2-inch pieces and placing them into plastic sealable food bags.

• Never eat rhubarb leaves, which are toxic.