Crops Grown for Their Leaves 227 



plant, and if planted on* a well-drained soil, it withstands 

 very severe winters. Early in spring it throws up a crop 

 of leaves with thick, fleshy leafstalks. The stalk por- 

 tion of the leaves when properly cooked makes a tart 

 sauce whose acid flavor is decidedly appetizing in early 

 spring. In the more southern parts of the United States 

 the plant runs quickly to seed and usually dies during 

 the summer ; hence it is not well suited to culture there. 



The acid flavor of rhubarb is due to the presence of 

 oxalic acid, but this acid is so diluted in the fleshy leaf- 

 stalks that their use as food does not cause poisoning. 

 It is not safe, however, to eat any part of the expanded, 

 less fleshy portion of the leaf. 1 



Rhubarb forms large clusters of roots, and the plant 

 is usually propagated by digging up and dividing these 

 clusters. The plants should be set about 4 feet apart 

 each way, and the plot kept well cultivated. Add 

 about 3 inches of well-rotted manure late each autumn 

 and spade it under early in the spring. 



When left alone the roots become crowded, and in 

 consequence the leafstalks are small and slender. To 

 prevent this, the plants should be divided and reset in 

 the autumn of every third or fourth year. Dig up the 

 root clusters and select for transplanting only good 

 roots with a well-formed bud or "eye." As the resetting 

 reduces somewhat the yield for the first year, it is a 

 good plan to transplant only half the bed at a time. 



1 The garden sorrel (Rumex acetosa). a near relative of the rhubarb, 

 is sometimes cultivated and sold in the markets for use as early spring 

 greens. It produces considerable amounts of oxalic acid, and has some- 

 times caused death. 



