Ask AlysGardening adviceWhat's the secret to robust rhubarb stalks?Do you have any suggestions how I can make my rhubarb plant more robust? It's a bit floppy and spindly.
Rhubarb is often sold as the sort of plant you can neglect, but if you want those plump, fat stalks, you need to give it a little more love. Spindly stalks are a sign of too little food, and often also indicate too little moisture (particularly if your rhubarb is competing with other deep-rooted plants such as a tree). The quickest solution is to mulch in autumn with a thick layer of well-rotted compost or good quality multi-purpose compost. Better still would be a mulch of well-rotted horse manure, followed by another layer in spring. This will provide a source of new food, as well as locking moisture in around the roots. If your stems still aren't plump next spring, then leave them alone for another year to bulk up and I promise the year after you will be overwhelmed with fat rhubarb stalks.
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