What eats rhubarb leaves?

Went down the allotment today, and found that the leaves on just one of our
five rhubarb plants had been stripped to the ribs! No slime trails,
footprints or droppings as a clue, so any ideas on what it was?
--
Kathy

It's pointless to try and discuss ethics with a spider.

Nope, I saw one in JANUARY! I had to do a double take... then when I
removed my fleece there was a bright green one attached to that too. Think
the weather is really messing around with the animals...

The message
from "Kathy" contains these words:

What eats rhubarb leaves?

Went down the allotment today, and found that the leaves on just one of our
five rhubarb plants had been stripped to the ribs! No slime trails,
footprints or droppings as a clue, so any ideas on what it was?

Found quite a lot of caterpillars recently, mainly of the grass-noshing
variety. I've never seen paterkillers on rhubarb, thobut.

Despite any lack of slime-trails, I'd diagnose snails.

--
Rusty
Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional.
Direct reply to: horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co period uk

"Janet Baraclough" wrote
"Kathy" wrote:

What eats rhubarb leaves?

Went down the allotment today, and found that the leaves on just one
of our five rhubarb plants had been stripped to the ribs! No slime
trails,
footprints or droppings as a clue, so any ideas on what it was?

IME nothing eats rhubarb leaves (too toxic). Since its exclusively
one clump and on allotments my guess is that a neighbouring allotment
owner has
harvested your leaves to make an insecticidal brew to spray his newly
planted crops, (but generously left you the edible bit).


Does that work Janet?

--
Regards
Bob Hobden

In article ,
says...
"Kathy" wrote:

What eats rhubarb leaves?

Went down the allotment today, and found that the leaves on just one
of our five rhubarb plants had been stripped to the ribs! No slime trails,
footprints or droppings as a clue, so any ideas on what it was?

I'd suggest caterpillars, but isn't it a bit early?


No, you are correct it is caterpillers but I am not sure which moth
species they belong to
--
Charlie Pridham, Gardening in Cornwall
www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of national collections of Clematis viticella cultivars and
Lapageria rosea

Rusty_Hinge wrote:
The message
from "Kathy" contains these words:

What eats rhubarb leaves?

Went down the allotment today, and found that the leaves on just one of our
five rhubarb plants had been stripped to the ribs! No slime trails,
footprints or droppings as a clue, so any ideas on what it was?

Found quite a lot of caterpillars recently, mainly of the grass-noshing
variety. I've never seen paterkillers on rhubarb, thobut.

Despite any lack of slime-trails, I'd diagnose snails.


Sorry to hi-jaqck this thread but I have a different problem. 2
separate crowns, both 3 years old and both gone to seed this year. I
have cut off the flower stalks but cannot see any signs of new growth.
Should I now consider the crowns dead and re-plant or will they survive?

Malcolm

The message
from Janet Baraclough contains these words:

I've always used a brew of comfrey/nettles for the same purpose
(certainly does work, and is also a foliar feed)
so haven't ever tried the rhubarb version. But it's a very old bit of
garden lore.

I've often used the liquor from boiled rhubarb leaves gesture="rude, to
bur-EC-craps" and it's very good for ridding plants of aphids and
caterpillars.

/gesture

--
Rusty
Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional.
Direct reply to: horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co period uk

The message
from Malcolm contains these words:

Sorry to hi-jaqck this thread but I have a different problem. 2
separate crowns, both 3 years old and both gone to seed this year. I
have cut off the flower stalks but cannot see any signs of new growth.
Should I now consider the crowns dead and re-plant or will they survive?

Three-year-old crowns should be producing usable rhubarb by now.

You did the right thing by cutting down flowering stems, but the lack of
other growth does not look good.

To be sure of a good crop you need to do a *LOT* of preparation.

The method I was taught by an old gardener (whose rhubarb frightened
passing airliners) was to collect (from the stuff left over after
jumble-sales) old leather, discardigans and pulloffs, and old bones
saved from meals, or obtained from the butcher.

Then, in the dampest part of the garden, but if possible, in full sun,
dig a hole 2 feet by 2 feet, and four feet deep, and put a layer of
bones, wool and leather, mixed with some of the spoil from the hole.

At this stage, bonemeal can be added.

Then fill the hole with well-rotted manure, bonemeal and spoil, all
mixed. (Blood, fish and bone is just as good - maybe better).

You will have a goodly mound of soil left over, but as the manure breaks
down, the level will sink, so plant the crown on top of a fair mound of
earth before carting surplus spoil away.

Then water it.

And water it.

And water it.

You cannot overwater rhubarb, so long as it's not actually sub-aqua.

As it grows, and over the years, give it plenty of nourishment. I give
it 'nettle soup' - nettles and other weeds steeped in water until it
stinks.

http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/rhubarb0.jpg

(2-year-old crown, done to this recipe as well as possible - but not to
the right depth, as it lives on a soakawy for roof-water.)

--
Rusty
Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional.
Direct reply to: horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co period uk

"Janet Baraclough" wrote in message
...


"Kathy" wrote:

What eats rhubarb leaves?

Went down the allotment today, and found that the leaves on just one
of our five rhubarb plants had been stripped to the ribs! No slime
trails,
footprints or droppings as a clue, so any ideas on what it was?

IME nothing eats rhubarb leaves (too toxic). Since its exclusively
one clump and on allotments my guess is that a neighbouring allotment
owner has
harvested your leaves to make an insecticidal brew to spray his newly
planted crops, (but generously left you the edible bit).

Worth considering, except that our rhubarb is all newly planted and only
had/has small leaves at the moment.

--
Kathy

It's pointless to try and discuss ethics with a spider.

On Tue, 7 Apr 2009 23:53:43 +0100, "Kathy"
wrote:



"Janet Baraclough" wrote in message
...


"Kathy" wrote:

What eats rhubarb leaves?

Went down the allotment today, and found that the leaves on just one
of our five rhubarb plants had been stripped to the ribs! No slime
trails,
footprints or droppings as a clue, so any ideas on what it was?

IME nothing eats rhubarb leaves (too toxic). Since its exclusively
one clump and on allotments my guess is that a neighbouring allotment
owner has
harvested your leaves to make an insecticidal brew to spray his newly
planted crops, (but generously left you the edible bit).

Worth considering, except that our rhubarb is all newly planted and only
had/has small leaves at the moment.

Howdy,

Is it possible that they are not toxic before some stage of
maturity?

Or, might the oxalic acid (it is oxalic isn't it?) that is
toxic for us not be toxic to other critters?

All the best,
--
Kenneth

If you email... Please remove the "SPAMLESS."

"Kathy" wrote in message
...
What eats rhubarb leaves?

Went down the allotment today, and found that the leaves on just one of
our five rhubarb plants had been stripped to the ribs! No slime trails,
footprints or droppings as a clue, so any ideas on what it was?
--

Any chickens about? When I kept chickens they stripped my rhubarb leaves
down to the ribs.

mark

"mark" wrote in message
et...

"Kathy" wrote in message
...
What eats rhubarb leaves?

Went down the allotment today, and found that the leaves on just one of
our five rhubarb plants had been stripped to the ribs! No slime trails,
footprints or droppings as a clue, so any ideas on what it was?
--

Any chickens about? When I kept chickens they stripped my rhubarb leaves
down to the ribs.

Didn't they get sore tummies from that?
Plenty of chickens on the site but none on our plot and none free range,
because we get regular visits from foxes, who come to catch the rabbits. We
don't think it was the rabbits because we are rabbit fenced and there were
no droppings. Untidy creatures, rabbits :-}

--
Kathy

It's pointless to try and discuss ethics with a spider.

On 7 Apr, 10:42, Janet Baraclough wrote:
"Kathy" wrote:
What eats rhubarb leaves?
Went down the allotment today, and found that the leaves on just one
of our five rhubarb plants had been stripped to the ribs! *No slime
trails,
footprints or droppings as a clue, so any ideas on what it was?

* IME nothing eats rhubarb leaves (too toxic). *
Certainly nothing would eat them twice. Sounds like some creature was
learning the reason why

Since its exclusively
one clump and on allotments my guess is that a neighbouring allotment
owner has
harvested your leaves to make an insecticidal brew to spray his newly
planted crops, (but generously left you the edible bit).

Would they have left the ribs? Sounds a bit fiddly to me...

"Kathy" wrote in message
...


"mark" wrote in message
et...

"Kathy" wrote in message
...
What eats rhubarb leaves?

Went down the allotment today, and found that the leaves on just one of
our five rhubarb plants had been stripped to the ribs! No slime trails,
footprints or droppings as a clue, so any ideas on what it was?
--

Any chickens about? When I kept chickens they stripped my rhubarb leaves
down to the ribs.

Didn't they get sore tummies from that?

They didn't say.
mark