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Our Process
For
Picking Your Own
Rhubarb

 

Since 2008 fresh rhubarb has been sold annually during the pick-your-own harvest, normally the first weekend in June.  We will gladly pick rhubarb for the handicapped, just notify a member of the crew.  There is no charge for admission and no need for an appointment on harvest weekend.   You pay only for what you decide to buy.  Check the weather and, if you’ve joined the harvest list, your email before you leave for the farm…Mother Nature sometimes forces plans to change with short notice.

THE PROCESS is straightforward.  (See below for details of what to bring and what we provide.)    Customers may enter the property only after we open.  See the home page for date and times.  Please don’t come real early expecting to start picking before we open.  We need the early morning hours to ensure the harvest crew is briefed and ready.  Greeters at the gate can usually answer any questions you might have and also provide basic instruction on picking rhubarb.  If not, they will help direct you to someone who can.  The crew wears green aprons and the owners and foreman wear red aprons.  All are happy to help.

If you are only coming for plants, cookbooks or honey, you can go directly to the checkout tents and tell somebody…that’s also where the rhubarb treats can be found.  Yum.  If you want just rhubarb, or both rhubarb and plants/honey, then proceed to pick your rhubarb and you can pick up plants, cookbooks or honey when you check out.  However, if you have not preordered and prepaid for your plant, you may want to check on plant availability first.  There will be very few if any extra plants available.  Also, you’ll want to get the new root stock in the ground that day or the next.

For rhubarb pickers, wagons and baskets are provided for your convenience.  Many people just hold their bundle or set them on the ground on top of their shopping bags as they pick.  Once satisfied with your selection, we will remove the leaves at a leaf-removal area (tent) and place your rhubarb stalks in a food-grade plastic box.  You then take the box to the nearby checkout tent.  There it is weighed and your bill is rounded down to the nearest quarter.  Should you pick more than you wanted, we will gladly keep excess stalks. Should you pick less than you thought, we can hold onto what you’ve got at the checkout stand and/or add stalks left in excess by other customers and you can pick some more, or both.  Cookbooks and any other items for sale are available at the checkout tent.  There is a separate tent for honey, for the convenience of those wishing only honey.   Please bring your own bags.  We will endeavor to have bags for those who forget and boxes for those purchasing larger quantities.

ON SALE every year will be fresh, rhubarb and rhubarb cookbooks.  Most years we also host a local beekeeper who offers their honey at a modest discount over their normal prices.  Also, should any of our commercial customers wish us to sell their processed products, we will offer them at wholesale prices.  We add no markup to the honey or processed rhubarb products.

FACILITIES include picnic tables, benches, trash cans, mowed fields and a porta poddy.  We also provide complementary bottled water in coolers around the property.  Complementary rhubarb treats can be sampled at the checkout tent.  We try to have enough for everyone but we did run out one year.

PARKING is primarily along the road.  Some areas are marked “NO PARKING” to help keep you safe near the blind corner. Handicapped pa

rking is available up the driveway.  There is also a 5-minute-parking spot up the drive, near the tents/checkout area, where you can unload passengers and stuff.

HARVEST LASTS only one day.  Like a grocery store, we may actually run out of rhubarb.  Over the years, people have learned that the earlier they come, the better the selection.  As a result, the majority of customers, come in the first hour or two.  In 2024 there were still long lines even though we had a crew of 20 to help.  Please be patient.  We sold out in 2024 by 11:00am, hence our newly, abbreviated hours.  See the beginning of the Home page for current harvest plans and/or left-click here to join the notification list and request email updates of harvest plans.  The list is the best way to keep abreast of harvest plans. We don’t spam and don’t make your email available to others.

What To Bring to the Harvest

  1. Bags/Boxes in which to take your rhubarb home.  They also provide a way to ID your harvest should you wish to set it down while searching nearby for more to pick.
  2. Appropriate clothing:  Please be prepared to be in full sunlight in the open fields while picking.  We recommend you wear sensible shoes (tennis shoes, hiking boots…), sun block, hats, etc. Lightweight gloves for delicate skin. Sunblock is a plus.
  3. Friends/Family/Children:  Harvest is decidedly family friendly.  We greatly enjoy answering questions about farming, rhubarb and horseradish.
  4. Fun spirit:  The harvest environment is a big party.  The harvest crew are all volunteers, all valued friends and family.  Rhubarb-folks tend to be nice and know how to have a good time!
  5. No knives:  Please do not use knives for the harvest.  You won’t need them.  We will remove the leaves for you and the stalks are best pulled not cut.  We’ll happily demonstrate how to pull rhubarb.
  6. Common sense:  You will be on a working farm, albeit a small one.  Please exercise due caution while here.  We endeavor to keep the area safe but there are hazards to being outside that we cannot mitigate, such as metal fences, gopher holes, trees, farm equipment, etc..  See the warning box below.

Optional Things to Bring

  1. Food/beverages, picnic blankets, picnic lunch:  We have several picnic tables and lots of mowed, open areas for blankets.  If bringing food then you may wish to bring something to clean your hands as we have no wash facilities generally available.  There are hoses, offering an opportunity to rinse your hands or wet a cloth.  It is potable water.
  2. Friends, neighbors, children, pets…it is a party atmosphere.  If you wish to bring your friendly dog, pig or other domestic pet, they are welcome but please keep them on a leash.

What We Provide       

  • Rhubarb to pick, several varieties, sold by the pound
  • Baskets and wagons to carry and/or organize your rhubarb and keep track of it during the harvest
  • Leaf removal (again, please don’t bring your own knives)
  • Complementary rhubarb treats:  Donna always prepares numerous dishes for your enjoyment.  Dennis makes rhubarb tea, time permitting.
  • Complementary beverages:  bottles of water and, while they last, teas and sodas.
  • Benches, chairs, and picnic tables with umbrellas for your rest and relaxation.
  • Instructions on picking rhubarb and answers to any rhubarb or horseradish questions we know.
  • Tours of the farm and explanations of our varieties and options.  Best to seek out one of the owners or the foreman.
  • Picking your rhubarb:  If you are unable to pick your own rhubarb we will be happy to pick it for you.  No extra charge for the handicapped.
  • A porta-poddy and hand wipes.

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