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Winter jobs: how to force rhubarb for tender early stems

Pot on: terracotta rhubarb forcers  - http://www.gapphotos.com
Pot on: terracotta rhubarb forcers - http://www.gapphotos.com

It seems too early in the year to be daydreaming about vegetable plot delicacies – tender little morsels belong to spring and summer and we are still in the sturdy vegetable season: parsnips, swedes and the odd carrot if you’re feeling fancy. 

And yet here we are, perhaps six or eight weeks away from tender, sweet and glistening stems of rhubarb, if we play our cards right. And it’s a particularly easy game to play, harnessing the turn of the year and the upwards thrust of life as we head towards spring. At its simplest, all you need to do is exclude light from the rhubarb clumps that are currently stirring: literally upend a plastic dustbin or a terracotta forcing pot over one and wait. 

You can do a more considered and thorough forcing if you’d like and if you have the materials to hand. The first step is to weed all around and then water deeply. Next, apply a thick mulch of something moist and nutritious, such as well-rotted manure or garden compost. This will help to make the plants a little warmer than the outside world and will also be in place to feed up the plant and help it to recover after the exhausting forcing process. 

Then you can pack loosely around the plant with straw before covering, again to help with the warmth that will drive that tender pink growth. You could also cover the bin or forcing pot with bubble wrap or old carpet. Peek inside after a month and a half, and pull stems when they are 9-12in (23-30cm) long. 

Once all stems are pulled, remove the cover and leave the rhubarb plant alone. Don’t force it next year: forcing takes a lot out of the plant and it needs at least a year of normal growing to recover.