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Hi can anybody tell me if I should remove the flower head from my rhubarb?!!!

i just pulled my flower off mine this morning, think u have to do it asap as i think it will weaken the plant

Yes remove the flower stem soonest, and throw it on the compost heap!

Took two off mine on Thursday .

Alison

job done thank you for you swift replys ;D

Mine flowered last year for the first time and seems to have got it into the system because it has flowering big time this year, every time I take off the flowers another lot pop up.

Mine flowers like mad, but you do need to pull the buds off as otherwise the plant's energy goes into seed production rather than the leaves you want.

ooh spooky - first year that my rhubarb has gone to seed - I removed all the flower heads today. Is it age and/or the hot weather that makes it happen?

Yeah first time mine have flowered as well.    And the stalks I was getting were really short and thick.  Luckily some new growth at the bottom.  Cut them well back on Saturday, so fingers crossed.....

My experience it is lack of water. I have had 2 flowers on 4 roots. I have heavily watered and have had no more. Rhubard is one of the plants that we all forget to water too busy watering all the other stuff.

Quote from: plot22 on April 11, 2011, 05:32:40
My experience it is lack of water. I have had 2 flowers on 4 roots. I have heavily watered and have had no more. Rhubard is one of the plants that we all forget to water too busy watering all the other stuff.

Oh dear I never water mine and it seems to be flowering like mad this year- first job when I get to the plot then :-[
-after removing the next batch of flowers! Thanks :)

My plants were a bit sad last year  :(  but never had any flower buds on them but a lot of folks on the site had them, this year I've been giving them loads of water, still no flower heads so far and it looks much more healthy,  :D I have noticed that others still have the flower buds on them.     :-\     ;D

Taking out flower stems here too...  ::)

This happened a lot to me last year, so must pop over and check my plants as haven't been for a few days. This usually happens to me because of the lack of water. Hope we are not going to have another dry year, as these few months has been so lacking in rain, and all the spring things need lots of watering.  :( busy_lizzie

Rhubarb has deep roots, and I have a high water table. I'd be very hesitant about assuming this is down to lack of water while there's plenty of the stuff coming down the stream a few yards away! I had thought it might be the age of the clumps until last year. Three years ago, two of my clumps drowned in the endless rain, leaving a few little bits surviving. Last year, the stronger of the two flowered again. I now think it's just the nature of the beast; it's a flowering plant, and it wants to reproduce.

We had a dry spring last year and my rhubarb produced masses of flowers.  I cut them off and donated them to some local florists I know who were delighted.  Looks like I'll be doing the same this year as I can see a couple of big fat flower heads forming.

Our water is metered and I have 9 large crowns so I can't see me giving them all a significant watering to prevent flowers stems forming.

I moved my  rhubarb Champaign in the autumn.  It went to seed over the weekend and I just took the flowering stems off.  Hopefully, they  will divert all their efforts into producing good stems and leaves now. 

Pretty sure it definietly isn't due to lack of water. Here on the west coast of Scotland we've have had torrential downpours every other day and my rhubarb is flowering. The plant is in a very damp spot that doesn't dry out even after a prolonged spell.

I believe that it is a sign of stress lack of water nutriants over crowded, dig up in Dec Jan and split seems to revitalize old plants

Bump for Pauline.   ;D