Rhubarb Harvest and Winter Storage

Last fall we moved one rhubarb plant and split the roots into several plants before re-planting them in their new spot. This year they are doing marvelously and thriving! Splitting older rhubarb plants is actually good for them and gives them a fresh start so that they don’t go to seed and put their energy into flowering instead of producing their yummy stalks for us. I love how with so many types of perennial plants, you only need one plant to start with and then you can easily propagate them!

rhubarb plants

If you have never tried rhubarb, it is the stalks that you eat, not the leaves.

my hand for comparison to show the size of the plants

To harvest them, you simply cut them at the base where they are connected to the rest of the plant, and then cut off the leaf, which is not edible. I usually don’t take more than a third of the stalks at one time so that the plant can keep growing without too much disruption. I did actually just read that twisting and pulling the stalk off the plant is better than cutting because it doesn’t leave a “wound” on the plant, and it causes the plant to focus on growing more stalks rather than healing the cut. So I will be trying that next time I harvest!

rhubarb stalks

To store the rhubarb for using later, I peel it and chop it just as I would for use in a recipe, and then I put it in bags for freezing, all ready to go for adding to whatever dish I will be making. That way I can have rhubarb saved up for using all winter. We have a chest freezer because I tend to prefer that method for a lot of my food storage because it’s so easy and effective.

There are a lot of wonderful dessert recipes out there for rhubarb, but its tangy and tart taste can also be used in savory dishes as a replacement for lemon flavoring. It is actually much more versatile than many people realize! One of the ways I love to use it is in the soup recipe which can be found HERE .

July is pretty much the latest that I will harvest rhubarb and then I let is rest until next spring. It’s another reminder that tomorrow (August 1st) is the cross quarter mark halfway between summer solstice and fall equinox. I hope you enjoy these last few weeks of summertime to their fullest!

Love and blessings from the sanctuary!

Jean