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Seeds In A Cup®A LITTLE SEED. A NEW BEGINNING.

GROW SOMETHING WONDERFUL

Rhubarb

Rheum rhabarbarum

Your guide to planting, growing, and getting to know this plant.

THE PLANT NOTEBOOK

Rhubarb care, from seed onward.

Botanical name
Rheum rhabarbarum
Common names
Pie Plant
Family
Polygonaceae
Genus
Rheum
Species
R. rhabarbarum
01

Start growing

Extremely hardy. Needs a cold winter dormant period. Don't harvest the first year.

02

Growing with your kit

Start your rhubarb crown in a Seeds In A Cup® planter to establish a strong root network before moving to a permanent garden spot.

03

Propagation

By crown division or seeds.

04

Seasonal growth & harvest

Harvest stalks in spring; dies back in winter.

05

Growing conditions

Cold climate highlands with rich, acidic soil.

06

Weather & tolerances

Extreme cold tolerance; low heat tolerance above 85°F.

07

Pests & plant health

Rhubarb curculio (snout beetle).

08

Plant safety

Stalks are safe. Leaves contain high oxalic acid and are toxic to humans and pets.

09

Botanical features

A perennial herbaceous plant with large leaves and thick red/green fleshy stalks.

10

Varieties

‘Victoria’, ‘Valentine’, ‘Crimson Red’.

11

Garden & everyday uses

Tangy culinary vegetable used like a fruit in pies and crumbles

12

Native range & distribution

Native to Central Asia and Siberia.

13

Conservation

Least concern.

14

Name origins

Latin ‘rha barbarum’ (Rha is the Volga river; Barbarum meaning foreign).

15

History

Used as a powerful medicine in China for 5,000 years before becoming a dessert staple in Europe.

Grow rhubarb in a cup.