Thanks, Planatus. That was helpful. There are a few points to be made. Though the name tag from nursery was "Canada Red" and it looked red when they are young and tiny in early spring. When they grew bigger, the huge stems were mostly green. I don't know whether wood ashes or sawdust would make difference, but mine was growing great without them up until two weeks ago. As I indicated, I planted my rhubarb in partial shade area, but it gets afternoon sun which can be hard on them during hottest months. Since you planted yours on a north-facing slope, One thing I may try differntly next year is to plant them so it gets morning sun and afternoon shade. I will see if this will make a difference. Thanks again.

Hello, I too, like you, am looking forward to spring. I'll try to answer some of your questions. RE Asparagus -- asparagus needs to be in full sun, and definitely does NOT want a heavy, wet soil, which would make it rot. It actually does best in rich, sandy loam. It does like a steady supply of moisture, but doesn't ever want waterlogged roots, hence the sandy soil. As far as varieties, there are three main classes, open pollinated, mixed-gender cultivars like 'Mary Washington' which are the oldest types, and the cheapest to purchase; all-male hybrids, known as the 'Jersey' series because they were developed in New Jersey, these are generally all-male plants (although a few females slip through at times), so they are claimed to make larger spears and give higher yields as they don't devote energy to bearing fruits. Personally, I don't see that there is a big advantage in these for the home gardener. They are the most expensive plants to buy; finally, there are also the 'gourmet' types, such as 'Purple Passion' which bears purple spears, or some of the European cultivars which grow the white asparagus (ONLY if blanched with mounds of soi), such as 'Precocce d'Argenteuile' (note -that's probably NOT the correct spelling) -- these types are fun to grow if you are of that mindset. Rhubarb will grow in full sun or partial shade, and it likes rich, moist soil. It will tolerate heavy soil and the infrequent, very short-term flooding. In hotter climates, it actually would prefer some shade in the heat of the day. With rhubarb, your basic choice is between green-stemmed and red-stemmed cultivars. There actually is very little to no taste difference, but green-stemmed cultivars like 'Victoria' are actually more vigorous than the red-stemmed ones 'Chipman's Canada Red,' 'Cherry,' etc. Personally, I would say just get a green-stemmed type, and add a little food coloring when cooking if you wish. But, that's up to you. As far as when to plant -- you will basically receive dormant roots on either of these, and the nursery should send them at approximately the correct planting time for your region. Both are fully hardy, and can be planted outside as soon as you can work the soil, which is probably sometime in March in Virginia. Hope that answered some of your questions.

You mention that your area is hot and dry; is it that way now and has been for the last while? Reason I ask is I live in a fairly dry climate, and during dry spells most if not all my rhubarb goes dormant. Looks like it died, leaves all turn brown and dry up. But it always comes back the next spring, or if we get a sustained wet spell. I generally will water a bit during droughts, but not usually enough to bring the plants back, as I typically am not interested in harvesting rhubarb in the summer/fall. Rhubarb is pretty hard to kill in my experience. There was one root we transplanted and forgot about when we were moving. Found it in the field 5 years later, it did fine without any water or care from us. Are you sure your rhubarb is dead and not just dormant?

Thank you, floral_uk. It's been hot but in the past week we've had a lot of showers. I twisted off a few stalks. Looks good, but the skin is a tad tough. The pulp is firmer that it would be in the spring, but manageable. I think that I'll harvest some, wash it and peel it. I'll cook up some peelings separately for the color (maybe), then strain them out. I'll either use as sauce or make a galette (perhaps with strawberries). Another question, if I might. The plants haven't been divided in years. Is September or October (or November) a good time? Zone 5a New England.