4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[Ain't Nobody Here]

Our rhubarb is doing reall well (despite being ignored for years ) and has loads of stalks. It's now got some large, rather triffid like , what looks like flowers sprouting. I've looked on t'internet and it says I should cut them off. Obviously I don't trust t'internet but I do trust you lot . Is that what I should do ?

[Lewis]

I've neve seen ous flower, but Google seems to say chop them off.

[Couperwife]

we have some too

 

I just pull/break/cut them off

 

have you made anything nice with the roobarb yet?

 

cathy

x

[Redwing]

Yes, the advice seems to say break or cut them off.

 

Shame, they sound cool

[Mrs Frugal]

My FIL told me to chop them off and put them on the compost heap too .

[Valkyrie]

The flowers look like dock/sorrel when they are allowed to carry on. My rhubarb has done that this year so I snapped the heads off. Now all I'm left with is a couple of leaves and not enough to pull and scoff.

[ali-s]

I came on here to ask the very same question, one of my plants has a huge flower stalk.

 

I'm going to go and get rid of the flower now

[Ms Marple]

Cut it off quick. Wise words from my mum- the rhubarb expert in our family. It will come back. She sorted mine out yesterday!! It was going to flower and seed - not what we want apparently.

Edited May 3, 2009 by Guest

[Jules.]

Mmmm rhubarb

[Valkyrie]

[bluekarin]

I cut mine off too. Why does it do that I wonder? Not enough nutrients in the soil?

[Valkyrie]

Perhaps it's the warmth - we had an early bout of heat and a long dry spell. I transplanted mine last year and it is only 2 years old now, so nothing to do with age. It had a lot of manure on it this year - probably thought it was in heaven after being starved!

[chickencam]

We have a few flowes on ours, we haven't taken them off this year and our patch is now huge after being moved a couple of years back. It is old established rhubarb. We have frozen loads for winter puds

[eggypeggy]

Some people leave them, some cut them off, it's up to you. I always get rid of mine as soon as I see them, the theory being it'll stop the plant putting energy into creating flowers and seeds and put more energy into stem making!

 

I think it's the dry spell, plants often send up flower seed pods in 'drought' in order to reproduce in case they die off.

 

Enjoy your roob.

[chickencam]

We cut ours off last night after reading this thread.

[mostin]

Mine has done that this year too . It was an enormous and really weird looking. I rang my mum and she said I should chop it off, so I did what I was told .

 

Isn't it odd that it's happened to us all this year. I too wonder if it's the weather conditions?

[Ain't Nobody Here]

They look triffid-like don't they . Wouldn't fancy letting them get any bigger and actually flower .

[BocBoc]

I chopped mine off too at the weekend - funny how there seems to be loads of flowers this year. My rhubarb plant is yonks old - I've lived in the house for five years and it was in the garden when I moved in - first year I've had flowers though

[Guest]

Off with their heads!!!

 

MIne too have flowered for the first tim - funny that!

 

Louise

[Aga n Chickens]

All of my rhubarb has sent flower spikes this year. One plant is on it's 3rd spike and the largest clump has had 5 flower heads cut off already and I can see another 3 forming.

 

It's a bit catch 22....cut off the flowers and you encourage more to grow, leave the flowers on and it takes the energy from the plant and the shortens the growing season.

 

Is this happening all over the UK ?

 

Has the 'Yorkshire Rhubarb Triangle' been affected

 

I had a glut of stems early in the season to make the chutney, and had planned to make up a few of the other recipes posted on the 'all things nice' area, but there might not be enough rhubarb left to try them out this year

 

Christine

[mostin]

I am certainly not getting as much off my rhubarb this year as usual . It's so weird how we are all being affected this year.

[Lewis]

 

I feel left out I want mine to have a flower now!