Is rhubarb safe to eat after the plants have been exposed to freezing temperatures?
A. Rhubarb can tolerate springtime temperatures in the upper twenties and low thirties. Gardeners should examine their rhubarb and base their decision on plant appearance. Cold damaged rhubarb leaves will shrivel and turn black. Damaged stalks become soft and mushy. Damaged rhubarb stalks should be pulled and discarded. Any new growth, which emerges later in spring, should be safe to eat. Rhubarb plants showing no sign of damage are fine and can be harvested.
Temperatures in the upper 20s and low 30s usually don’t harm rhubarb. Gardeners should examine their rhubarb after a freeze and base their decision on plant appearance. Rhubarb leaves damaged by freezing temperatures will shrivel and turn black. Damaged stalks become soft and mushy. Damaged rhubarb stalks should be pulled and discarded. Any new growth that emerges later in spring should be safe to eat. Rhubarb plants showing no sign of damage are fine and can be harvested. Can muskmelons be started indoors? For an earlier crop, muskmelons can be started indoors. Sow seeds indoors three to four weeks before the anticipated outdoor planting date. Muskmelons can be planted outdoors in early May in southern Iowa, mid-May in central Iowa, and late May in northern portions of the state. Muskmelons and other vine crops are somewhat difficult to transplant. When starting vine crops indoors, sow seeds in peat pots, peat pellets (Jiffy-7s) or other plantable containers. Muskmelon seedlings grown
