22. Rhubarb "Champagne"

I've always wanted to grow rhubarb in a tub. This has encouraged me :o)

I frequently got first in the rhubarb class with sticks grown in another pot. The judge has to break a stick to find out if the red goes right through the stem. Mine were not always the longest but I had more red than the competition. However the judge decided we all needed new plants and he brought some the third and final year he was coming. As I did not have anywhere to put mine I stuck it in a pot I had been growing potatoes in. It seems to be happy and I give it a top dressing of farmyard manure in April. I grow lots of veg in pots as it cuts down on bending to weed now that the knees and back take exception to that task. I had potatoes in the bag too as I had run out of pots. I cook on a coal Esse so it was no problem to heat the poker and make nice holes in the bottom of the pot. It sits on the soil so I think I could just have cut off the bottom entirely because Rhubarb does not need to be rotated around the plot. Champagne is not as easy to find as other rhubarbs but it is lovely and red and seems to need less sugar than green rhubarb. It makes good Rh & Ginger jam too. .

Thanks for this. I'll have to try and get a red variety.

If you know anyone locally who grows rhubarb they will probably give you a crown as it does have to be split up regularly to stop it taking over the garden. Happy gardening.