[May 09, 2013]It's that time of year for those
who have rhubarb to start enjoying the fruits of their labors.
Rhubarb is actually considered a vegetable, even though it is used
as a fruit in pies, sauces, tarts and even in wine. This hardy
vegetable can usually remain in one place for five years, and
sometimes even longer.
There are two basic types of rhubarb: red petiole varieties
and green petiole varieties. Petioles are the leafstalks of the
rhubarb plant, and those are the edible portions.
The leaves of
rhubarb contain large amounts of oxalic acid and are toxic. The
leaves should also not be fed to livestock or pets. Many people ask
about the poisonous properties of rhubarb after a frost, and there
is a potential for the oxalic acid to move from leaves to the
leafstalks after damage is done to the leaves. It usually takes a
freezing temperature of about 28 degrees to cause this amount of
damage, and you can see the damage on the leaves when it shows up as
water-soaked tissue that turns brown or black when it dries out.
Rhubarb is best divided in early spring before it breaks the
ground. We're about a month late for the division process this year.
Each crown area can be cut into four to eight pieces and replanted.
You just need to make sure you have at least one good bud per
section.
The first year of establishment, you shouldn't harvest at all.
The second year, you can have one or two weeks of harvest. After the
second year, you can harvest for eight to 10 weeks. Pull the stalks,
and don't remove more than a third at any one time.
The appearance of seed stalks is a common problem. This tends to
happen with cheaper plants grown from seed, overcrowded conditions,
plants that have begun declining and need to be divided and
replanted, or plants suffering from low fertility. When seed stalks
do appear, simply cut them off at the base of the plant. The
production of seed stalks tends to make the leaves and petioles
smaller.
Broadleaf weed control
Everyone seems to have been waiting for warmer temperatures, and
the appointed date, to begin broadleaf weed control programs. Well,
that time will come, believe it or not. We have also been waiting
for a period of drier conditions with lighter winds. For most of the
broadleaf products to work, the temperature has to be over 55
degrees. These chemicals do work better when it is warmer and the
weeds are actively growing.
The first item of business is to know what type of weeds you want
to control. This will make a big difference in what product, or
products, you select.
One website useful in identification and control of weeds is
http://www.turf.uiuc.edu/weed_web/index.htm.
It gives a variety of pictures, as well as control products. Of
course, you get to click on a weed by name to see the pictures. You
may have to click a bit to find the one you are after. Always read
the label for weeds controlled, potential drift and other safety
recommendations.
The main products used for broadleaf weed control in lawns are
2,4-D, MCPP (mecoprop), dicamba, a combination of those three
products, and triclopyr alone or in combination.
Let's start with the triclopyr since it's probably the easiest to
discuss. Its place in weed control is for hard-to-control weeds and
woody plants. It also improves control of violets. It can be added
to other chemicals to provide broad-spectrum control. Some blends
now contain trichlopyr, so check the label under active ingredients.
The old standby is 2,4-D. It is good on carpetweed, chicory,
dandelion, lamb's-quarters, plantains and wild carrot. MCPP is good
on chicory, lamb's-quarters and white clover. Dicamba is good on
black medic, chickweeds, chicory, dandelion, dock, henbit, knotweed,
lamb's-quarters, pearlwort, purslane, red sorrel, thistles, white
clover, wild carrot and yarrow. The combination of all three
products will pick up all of those listed for the individual
products, plus a few more such as mallow, speedwell and wild onion.
The combinations are sold under many different trade names, so check
the active ingredient list for ones you need.
Plant sale
The annual plant sale by the Logan County Master Gardener group
will be on Saturday, May 18, between 9 a.m. and noon. The place is
the Special Events Building at the Logan County Fairgrounds. The
group will have perennials, annuals, houseplants, heirloom tomatoes,
peppers and ornamental grasses available. The sale was delayed three
weeks this year due to the cool, wet spring.
