Seasonal Food Week No. 4 – Rhubarb

I was tempted to say only ‘visit The Rhubarb Compendium‘ – an astonishing, sprawling, never to be finished site from the US.
Then I checked and found scant reference to The Rhubarb Triangle in West Yorkshire, home of forced Yorkshire rhubarb which was awarded PDO status two years ago.
Forcing rhubarb seems to be a tricky business, trade secrets being handed down through the family. Only last week, the rhubarb forcers were facing problems due to the lack of frost, but although I’m about 60 miles south of the triangle, I should think that problem’s over.
A man in a pub once told me that, when the conditions are just right, the rhubarb grows so fast that if you stand still in the sheds too long you come out wearing a rhubarb leaf hat.
Watch this video on Vimeo at fullscreen and take a look into the magical world of the forcing sheds.
Finally, an interesting page from The Poison Garden website.

I’m using the phrase ‘seasonal food’ to indicate those foods which, generally, are only available in their growing season, so many are wild and all grow in the UK.