Rhubarb 'Timperley Early' – Hardy Perennial Crown (2L Pot)

'Timperley Early' is the earliest rhubarb most gardeners can grow, cropping from as early as March.

It sends up long, thick, rosy-pink stalks with a good tangy flavour for pies, crumbles, jams and compotes, and it is one of the best varieties for forcing: cover the crown with a bucket or a forcing pot in late winter and you get sweeter, paler pink stems several weeks earlier still.

Rhubarb is very hardy and actually needs a proper cold winter to break dormancy and crop well the following spring. Plant in sun or partial shade in moist, well-drained, fertile soil, mulch generously around the crown, and water through the growing season. Pull no stalks at all in the first year and only lightly in the second, or you weaken the crown for good. Take flower spikes off as they appear so the plant puts its energy into stalks. It makes a big, bold plant with huge leaves, so leave it room. The leaves are poisonous and the stalks are not, so pull the stalks, cook them, and put the leaf blades on the compost heap.

Supplied as a well established crown in a 2 litre pot, ready to plant.

Cultural Information

• Common Name: Rhubarb
• Fully Grown Height and Spread: 60 to 90cm tall by 75 to 90cm across
• Growth Habit: Big, bold, clump forming herbaceous perennial
• Perfect For: Kitchen gardens, allotments and raised beds
• Foliage: Very large, bold green leaves, not edible
• Flowering Time: Remove the flower spike if it appears, to keep the crop coming
• Planting Position: Full sun or partial shade
• Soil Type: Moist, well drained and fertile
• Hardiness: Fully hardy, and it needs a cold winter to crop well
• Maintenance: Low. Mulch each spring, remove flower spikes, and do not pull in the first year
• Seasonal Interest: Spring and summer
• Type: Grow your own