RHUBARB flowering

My rhubarb had a reasonably good picking being the third year but it seems to want to flower a lot and I am cutting these flowers back (they have hollow stems)
Is there as reason for this ?
Cheers,

 

Hi

You are best pulling them out from the base rather than cuting as this will help stop any dieseases getting in to the plant , one of the reasons they are holow they are putting all the energy into the flower to produce the seed , its just what they do more some years than others it may be the very cold winter we have had as well .

Spruce

 

Rhubarb flowering everywhere this year. Stress from the cold winter.

I've never managed to pull one off at the base, I just break the heads off once they are "up", the leaves [on the flower stalk] can then contribute to the energy for the plant, without it having to Flower and Make Seeds.

I did try cutting a flowering stalk off at the base one, and it bled (i.e. pumped water up from the roots) like a stuck pig, so I don't recommend that

Christo Lloyd was dead against taking the flowers off Rhubarb, saying it made no difference. I've got a lot of respect for his writing and opinions but I take the flowers off mine ...

having said that, on that basis I ought to take the flowers off my Potatoes too, but I don't know anyone who does that other than exhibition growers.

 

Mine was flowering too, so a friend of mine who is more experienced than me just pulled it out from the base, hasn't flowered since.