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Rhubarb rhubarb rhubarb

Ferdinand2000Ferdinand2000 Posts: 537
in Fruit & veg
I've put in a pair of rhubarb plants (clumps? roots?) from my good local nursery this spring, in the hope of rhubarb next year.

There's a Victoria, and a Timperley Early. 

Looking at the two a month later, the Timperley is going like gangbusters, but the Victoria seems to have stopped.

Can anyone reassure me? 

The raised bed was very well prepared and they get a good watering every few days at present.

One more - do I just leave the rhubarb stems to rot whilst not harvesting for the first season? Or do I need to cut them?

Thanks

Ferdinand


“Rivers know this ... we will get there in the end.”

Posts

  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    Give them a chance,  they’ll be rooting.  Leave the stalks to rot down then remove.
    you may find you’ll need to put one in each box rather than the two.
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • Joyce GoldenlilyJoyce Goldenlily Posts: 2,933
    Timperley Early can be a bit miffy. It took me 4 years of patience with mine before I dared pull a single stem. This year it has finally looked stronger and produced a few more stems. Victoria is a much more robust variety. I would hesitate to pull more than a single stem or two next year, they take 2 or 3 years to establish.
    Cut out any flower heads should they appear. Leave the leaves and stems until they are completely brown and shrivelled before removing in the autumn. Cover the crowns with a big pile of well-rotted farm manure and leave for the winter.
  • Ferdinand2000Ferdinand2000 Posts: 537
    Thanks for the advice, all.

    Both seem to be moving ahead now.
    “Rivers know this ... we will get there in the end.”
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