The Modern Victory Garden

If you happen to be a listener of the National Public Radio program "A Prairie Home Companion", you will be familiar with their fictitious radio show program sponsors, one of which is Bebop-A-Reebop Rhubarb Pie.               

(Sung to the tune of "Shortnin' Bread")

"One little thing can revive a guy, and that is a piece of rhubarb pie

Serve it up, nice and hot

Maybe things aren't as bad as you thought.

Momma's little baby loves rhubarb rhubarb, Be-Bop-A-Re-Bop Rhubarb Pie"             

This is usually sung following a dramatic and sound-effect-enhanced tale of woe and immediately followed by "Wouldn't this be a great time for a piece of rhubarb pie?   Yes, nothing gets the taste of shame and humiliation out of your mouth quite like Bebop-A-Reebop Rhubarb Pie."                   

It makes me laugh every time I hear that and I can’t help humming that tune when I am in the garden looking at my rhubarb plants!   Last evening when I was looking (and humming that diddy) I noticed that the rhubarb plants are ready for the first harvesting to begin.   

Up until just recently the stalks were too short and too thin yet, but now that we have had a bit of a warm up in the daily temperatures (still cool but not cold!) they have stretched and fattened up.               

There are several nice sized stalks and many more coming along.   I am going to wait until this coming weekend to do the first harvest from them though, as I want to have a little more free time to use them in a recipe and a few more days will provide even more stalks to choose from for harvest.   

Rhubarb is actually an amazing plant. It is one of the few perennial plants in the food production garden and (along with asparagus) is one of the first to provide food in the spring.   At a time when the garden is producing leafy greens almost exclusively, along come the mysterious red stalks with the umbrella like leathery leaves, holding the promise of some tart and sweet goodness.                      

I found an interesting site that is a compendium of all things rhubarb.     Just about anything you could ever want to know about this interesting plant from it’s history, how to grow it, it’s medical uses, and even what plants look like rhubarb but are not!   A sister site is a recipe collection – featuring (of course) – rhubarb!   If you want to learn more about this interesting, tasty, and often forgotten plant, then check out these two links.                 

Now everyone sing along with me….                         

"One little thing can revive a guy, and that is a piece of rhubarb pie

Serve it up, nice and hot

Maybe things aren't as bad as you thought.

Momma's little baby loves rhubarb rhubarb, Be-Bop-A-Re-Bop Rhubarb Pie"                      

Laura

kitsapfreedomgardener