Rheum 'Victoria'

Rheum 'Victoria': Pie-Worthy Stalks Since Queen Victoria

Giant leaves, thick red-blushed stalks and a whole lifetime of pie in one plant. 'Victoria' is the reason your grandmother's freezer was always full. BRING ON THE CRUMBLE.

Plant Characteristics:

• Botanical Name: Rheum rhabarbarum 'Victoria' (also listed as Rheum × hybridum)
• Common Name: Rhubarb
• Height: 60–100 cm (2–3.3 ft) in leaf, taller when in flower
• Spread: 90–120 cm (3–4 ft)
• Flowers: Tall, branched stalks of small cream flowers. Most growers cut them off to keep the plant producing.
• Bloom Time: Late spring to early summer (May to July)
• Foliage: Very large, deep green leaves on thick stalks that are green with red toward the base
• Features: Edible stalks, long-lived, cold hardy, leaves are toxic and must not be eaten

Where to Plant: Give it a permanent spot at the edge of the vegetable garden, since it stays in the same place for many years and doesn't rotate with annual crops. It also works as a bold foliage plant at the back of a sunny border. It needs a proper winter chill, so cold gardens suit it well.

Companion Plants: Give rhubarb its own corner of a moist bed in sun or part shade, with low plants that won't crowd the big leaves. Isotoma fluviatilis carpets the edge at 3 to 5 cm with tiny blue stars from June to September. Heuchera FYRE WING™ 'Amber' adds amber foliage at 28 cm. Spigelia 'Little Redhead' brings scarlet and yellow star-tipped tubes at 30 to 55 cm in June and July. Molinia 'Moorflamme' adds a fine clump at about 60 cm that turns orange-red in fall.

Plant Care: Plant in full sun to part shade, in deep, rich, moist but well-drained soil. Avoid low spots where water sits, because a soggy crown can rot. Set the crown so the buds sit right at the soil surface. Space plants about 90 cm (3 ft) apart. Water deeply during dry spells, especially in the first year. Every spring, spread compost or well-rotted manure around the plant, keeping it off the crown itself. Skip the harvest in the first year and take only a few stalks in the second. After that, harvest from late spring into early summer by pulling and twisting stalks from the base rather than cutting. Snap off flower stalks as they appear. Divide the clump about every five years when it gets crowded or production drops. Always throw the leaves on the compost, never in the kitchen.

History: 'Victoria' was introduced in 1837 by Joseph Myatt, a market gardener and plant breeder at Deptford, near London, and named in honour of Queen Victoria, who came to the throne that year. Nearly two centuries later, it's still one of the most widely grown rhubarbs around.

Final Thoughts: Eat the stalks, never the leaves, and snap off the flower stalks to keep it producing. PLANT IT ONCE, BAKE FOREVER.