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Dividing rhubarb - when to do it?

iamjowilsoniamjowilson Posts: 67
in Fruit & veg
I have a large mature rhubarb plant which I’d like to divide. I’ve read that this should be done in spring, when the ground warms up before the new shoots emerge. My plant already has new shoots - does that mean it’s now too late? I’m in the se and we’re likely to have frosts this week. I’m confused. The biggest shoot is already 10-15cm tall.

Posts

  • robairdmacraignilrobairdmacraignil Posts: 782
    January and February is when I read it was supposed to be divided and usually the shoot buds are still dormant then. My aunt had some rhubarb in her garden on a west of Ireland island that was starting to sprout around new years day and she said when it had done that before the early shoots died back before starting to grow again later in the year. I think the danger is if you try to divide it when it has established leaves sections will dry out before the roots have settled. If you really want to try dividing some of it I would say to use a spade to slice off shoot buds which might be less developed if you can find some and leave the main bulk of the plant undisturbed so at least some of it will survive. If you use the spade to cut down into the crown in a fairly vertical line you should have a good chance of getting some root with the shoot bud. Made a video clip of my efforts to divide an established rhubarb crown last year. I think it is better to divide it by slicing pieces off  rather than lifting the whole plant before dividing it like I tried to do initially. The crown I was dividing was too firmly rooted to lift in one piece and I got a good number of new plants and the existing crown regrew just as vigorous as the neighboring ones I did not take pieces off.
    https://www.youtube.com/user/sustainableveg/videos
  • iamjowilsoniamjowilson Posts: 67
    Oh thanks - and did the pieces you sliced off survive?
  • iamjowilsoniamjowilson Posts: 67
    There’s shoots all over it - it’s too late for this one this year unless it dies back, right?
  • robairdmacraignilrobairdmacraignil Posts: 782
    iamjowilson said:
    Oh thanks - and did the pieces you sliced off survive?

    Yes. Once they had a piece of root and a leaf bud they grew away fine when replanted. Obviously it is better not to harvest off the small new plants in the first year.

    Pictures do look like it is a bit far into sprouting compared to when I would normally try dividing but if you are determined to make a couple of more plants I would try slicing off the section on the top right of the photos and the one at the bottom just near the conifer leaves. The leaves on these bits have not really folded out yet and they might grow if you can plant them straight away. As said above if you leave the main crown of the plant untouched it should still grow away fine even if you are not successful with the divisions. Make sure to top up the area with some compost if you dig out those sections to prevent frost getting at the deeper roots. Growth looks very strong so I would be surprised if they died back at this stage.
    https://www.youtube.com/user/sustainableveg/videos
  • SuesynSuesyn Posts: 664
    My rhubarb came from my mums garden and she just chopped a bit off and I took it home and replanted it. I think that was in the summer months and it grew with no problem,although I think I left it for a couple of seasons before pulling any. Maybe some varieties are more delicate but I have never lost a rhubarb plant and have moved them whenever I felt like it, although I probably wouldn't do it if frost was likely. 
  • iamjowilsoniamjowilson Posts: 67
    Thanks both, this one does seem to be a bit of a beast (no idea what it is because it came with the house). It starts early and goes on producing and producing vigorously over the summer and well into the autumn! I’ll chop those bits off and see how they go. 👍🤞
  • Joyce GoldenlilyJoyce Goldenlily Posts: 2,933
    I thought you were supposed to lift rhubarb roots in the autumn, when it had died back. Leave the root on the surface of the soil to let the frost get to it, then split off the strong outer sections in the spring to plant, throwing away the old tired central section. After planting the new pieces you should not crop from them for two ears. With size of your clump I would be inclined to wait until the autumn then split the clump in half, leaving half in situ to crop next year and divide the other half.
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