If you’ve ever walked out to admire your rhubarb patch and spotted a tall flowering stalk shooting up—don’t panic, but take action. I’ve learned the hard way that when rhubarb starts to bloom, it’s redirecting energy away from those juicy, edible stalks.
That eye-catching flower spike might seem pretty, but it’s not your friend if you’re hoping for a strong harvest. The sooner you spot and remove it, the better your chances of keeping the plant productive and happy.
Over the years, I’ve found that regular checks and quick snips keep my rhubarb thriving season after season. With a little attention, you can enjoy a steady supply of tender stalks—and skip the frustration of a flower-filled flop.
1. Preserves Plant Energy
Flowering takes a tremendous amount of energy away from the parts of rhubarb we actually eat. Think of it like a marathon runner who suddenly decides to swim across a lake – there’s only so much energy to go around!
I’ve watched my own plants struggle after flowering, producing noticeably fewer stalks the following season. By removing flower stalks early, you redirect that valuable energy back to growing thick, juicy stems and establishing stronger roots.
Most experienced gardeners remove flower stalks as soon as they appear, usually in early spring when they’re just 6-8 inches tall.
2. Extends Harvest Season
A flowering rhubarb plant signals the end of its productive cycle for the season. Once those flower stalks emerge, the plant begins to focus on seed production rather than growing more delicious stems.
My neighbor let her plants flower last year and had to stop harvesting weeks before I did. By promptly removing flower stalks, you can continue harvesting well into summer in many climates.
Regular inspection during spring mornings helps catch those sneaky flower stalks before they develop too far and trigger the plant’s shift toward reproduction.
3. Prevents Stalk Toughening
When rhubarb flowers, the edible stalks become increasingly woody and stringy. The plant redirects nutrients toward seed production, leaving the stalks with less moisture and more fibrous material.
Last season, I compared stalks from two plants – one that had flowered and one where I’d removed the flower stalks. The difference was remarkable! The non-flowering plant produced tender, juicy stalks while the flowering plant’s stems were tough and needed extra sugar when cooking.
Catching and removing flower stalks early prevents this quality decline throughout your entire harvest.
4. Increases Overall Yield
Plants allowed to flower produce fewer harvestable stalks overall. The flowering process consumes resources that would otherwise create new edible stems.
After faithfully removing flower stalks for three years, my rhubarb patch now produces nearly double what it did when I first started growing it. The simple act of snipping those flower stalks redirects the plant’s growth energy toward producing more of what we actually want – delicious stalks!
For maximum yield, check plants every 2-3 days during peak growing season and immediately remove any emerging flower stalks.
5. Maintains Plant Size
Flowering can actually reduce the overall size of your rhubarb plant over time. When energy goes toward flowering instead of root and crown development, the plant’s foundation weakens.
My oldest rhubarb plant is now seven years old and still expanding because I’ve never allowed it to flower. The crown has grown wider each year, supporting more stalks with each passing season.
Removing flower stalks helps maintain the plant’s vegetative growth cycle, encouraging it to expand rather than reproduce and decline.
6. Improves Stalk Flavor
Flowering affects the flavor profile of your rhubarb stalks. The plant increases oxalic acid production when flowering, making the stems more bitter and less appealing for pies, jams, and other recipes.
After removing flower stalks from half my plants in an experiment, the taste difference was clear. The non-flowering plants produced stalks with that perfect balance of tartness without excessive bitterness.
Keeping flowers at bay maintains the ideal flavor that makes rhubarb such a prized spring crop in many gardens.
7. Prevents Unwanted Seeding
Rhubarb flowers produce seeds that can spread throughout your garden. While this might sound helpful, these seedlings rarely match the quality of the parent plant and can become garden weeds.
The seeds from my neighbor’s flowering rhubarb ended up sprouting in my garden beds the following spring. These volunteer plants required extra weeding time and didn’t produce stalks worth harvesting.
By stopping flowers before they set seed, you prevent this unwanted spread and keep your garden beds free from rhubarb volunteers that compete with other plants.
8. Reduces Disease Vulnerability
Flowering rhubarb plants become more susceptible to diseases and pests. The energy diverted to flowering weakens the plant’s natural defenses against common problems like crown rot and leaf spot.
Two summers ago, I noticed my flowering plants developed more fungal spots on their leaves compared to the ones where I’d removed flower stalks. The non-flowering plants stayed healthier throughout the season with minimal intervention.
Regular flower removal helps maintain the plant’s vigor and natural resistance to garden problems.
9. Extends Plant Lifespan
Preventing flowering significantly extends your rhubarb plant’s productive years. Flowering signals the completion of a plant’s life cycle, and repeated flowering can lead to premature decline.
My grandmother’s rhubarb patch has been producing for over 25 years because she religiously removes flower stalks. Compare that to my impatient cousin who let his plants flower repeatedly – his patch needed replacing after just 5 years.
With proper flower management, a single rhubarb planting can provide decades of harvests instead of just a few seasons.
10. Maintains Stalk Color
The vibrant red or green color of rhubarb stalks fades when plants are allowed to flower. Flowering changes the plant’s internal chemistry, reducing pigment production in the stems.
Last year’s comparison between my flowering and non-flowering plants showed a dramatic difference. Stems from plants where I’d removed flowers maintained their bright color right through the season, while the flowering plants produced pale, washed-out stalks.
For those picture-perfect rhubarb pies with bright red filling, keeping flowers in check is essential.
11. Simple Removal Technique
Removing flower stalks is surprisingly easy once you know what to look for. They emerge from the center of the plant as thick, rounded stems that feel different from the typical leaf stalks.
I use a sharp knife to cut flower stalks at the base where they meet the crown. A clean cut minimizes damage to the plant and reduces the chance of disease entering through the wound.
For smaller plants, you can even snap the flower stalks off by hand with a quick downward motion, though I prefer the precision of a clean cut.
12. Perfect Timing Matters
Catching flower stalks early makes removal easier and more effective. The ideal time is when they’re just 6-10 inches tall, before they’ve used up too much of the plant’s energy.
Morning inspections work best for me since the distinctive shape of emerging flower stalks stands out when backlit by early sunlight. I walk through my garden with coffee in hand, keeping an eye out for those telltale thick stems emerging from plant centers.
Setting a regular schedule during spring helps ensure no flower stalks go unnoticed until it’s too late.
13. Encourages Crown Division
Preventing flowering encourages healthy crown growth that eventually leads to division opportunities. Non-flowering plants focus on expanding their root systems and crowns rather than seed production.
After four years of flower prevention, my main rhubarb plant had grown large enough to divide into three separate plants. This free multiplication method works best with plants that haven’t been weakened by flowering.
A single well-managed rhubarb plant can potentially provide multiple new plants every 4-5 years when flowers are consistently removed.
14. Enhances Second-Year Growth
First-year rhubarb plants should never be allowed to flower. The energy conservation is especially critical during this establishment phase.
When I planted six new rhubarb crowns two years ago, I removed flowers from half of them as an experiment. The following spring, the difference was striking – plants that hadn’t flowered emerged earlier and stronger, with nearly twice as many stalks.
For new plantings, being vigilant about flower removal during the first two seasons sets the foundation for years of abundant harvests.
15. Weather Stress Response
Rhubarb often flowers in response to environmental stress like temperature fluctuations or drought. These stress-induced flowers are the plant’s attempt to reproduce before conditions worsen.
During last summer’s heat wave, every one of my rhubarb plants tried to flower. By removing these stress-response flowers and providing extra water, the plants recovered and continued producing stalks well into fall.
Monitoring becomes especially important during unusual weather patterns when plants are more likely to trigger flowering as a survival mechanism.
16. Compost The Cuttings
Don’t waste those flower stalks after removal! They make excellent additions to compost piles, returning nutrients to your garden system.
I chop mine into smaller pieces before adding them to the compost bin to speed decomposition. The thick, fibrous nature of flower stalks adds valuable carbon-rich material that balances kitchen scraps nicely.
Just be sure to compost them before seeds develop, or you might find rhubarb sprouting throughout your garden when you spread the finished compost.