Giant Victoria Rhubarb Organic - Ferme de Sainte Marthe seeds

The Giant Rhubarb Victoria Variety is a highly productive variety with large green stalks of excellent flavour. Sowing in April-May or August-September for a first harvest after 2 years.

This variety of rhubarb is usually harvested from mid-May and offers stalks weighing between 500g to 1kg. In the garden, it requires a space of 1.2 metres square.

Originating from Asia and belonging to the Polygonaceae family, Garden Rhubarb has the Latin name Rheum rhaponticum. It is a hardy perennial vegetable plant introduced to Europe by Marco Polo. Originally a medicinal plant, its rhizome was used in Chinese medicine in ancient times, and it has only been consumed as a food since the 18th century.

Rhubarb is a vigorous plant that produces large leaves, and the edible petiole (stalk) is usually green tinged with red. It is a stem vegetable that forms a large clump, reaching up to two metres wide and tall when in flower. Its flowering is not systematic and occurs in June in the form of panicles of white flowers. It is ornamental, but takes away from the leaves and tends to exhaust the plant. As such it is often recommended to remove the flower stalks before they develop.

In the garden it thrives best in humid, fertile soil and a cool climate. You should plant it in rich soil, preferably in partial shade, leaving enough space for its development - at least 1 or even 1.5 square metres.

The peak harvesting season for rhubarb is in May-June, but it usually offers some stalks in September-October too. In the kitchen, the stalks are consumed cooked in jam, compote, marmalade, or as a pie filling. Its tart flavour pairs well with strawberries. Try this combination in a crumble, it's delicious!

Rhubarb has appetizing, astringent, and refreshing properties, and contains vitamins (B, C) and minerals (calcium, magnesium, iron). Be careful however, its leaves, which are rich in oxalic acids, are toxic.

Harvest: Stalks are harvested in May-June, with a second harvest in September-October.

Storage: Rhubarb stalks can be stored for a few days in the vegetable drawer of the refrigerator or for a few months, cut into pieces, in the freezer.

Gardener's tip: Rhubarb leaves are toxic, but you can safely add them to your compost and even use them to prepare a liquid fertiliser that will repel aphids.