Is it safe to eat rhubarb?

It is time to stop pulling rhubarb and picking asparagus. We often have callers asking if rhubarb is poisonous after the middle of June. Actually, it is safe to pull rhubarb all summer long but we stop in mid-June for the health of the plant. Rhubarb plants will feed their roots while growing the rest of the summer. It is safe to pull a small amount of rhubarb for an occasional pie or crisp throughout the summer as long as the plantings are well established. You should pull the thinnest, most tender stalks when harvesting later in the summer.

You will not be able to harvest asparagus throughout the summer as the stalks will grow their fern-like foliage and you will not enjoy eating it. The easiest way to keep the weeds out of the asparagus is to mulch it. I used some grass clippings on mine this summer.

Liz Meimann

I received both my undergraduate and graduate degrees in Food Science at Iowa State University. I love to quilt, sew, cook, and bake. I spent many years gardening, canning, and preserving food for my family when my children were at home.

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2 thoughts on “Is it safe to eat rhubarb?

  1. Thank you. It always used to bug me when they said I couldn’t pull my rhubarb after such a date. Mine right now looks beautiful and healthy and I guess I will just use it occasionally if I need to thanks

  2. Hi Joyce, while the recommendation is not to use rhubarb at this time so that it can regenerate for next year, rhubarb and cooks have a long history. Your philosophy is understood.

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