U-Pick Rhubarb Draws Crowd

U-Pick Rhubarb Draws Crowd CROPS New Crops Rhubarb grows like a weed in the Midwest but is a lot more challenging at 7 700 ft in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains But Dennis Duncan of Black Forest Colo figured out how to create hospitable soil beds for plants that can produce up to 90 lbs of rhubarb/plant He and his wife Donna tapped into a market of rhubarb-loving consumers in Colorado and elsewhere who are willing to pay $3 75/lb to pick rhubarb themselves during a one-time harvest on a weekend in early June “We get 400 or 500 people and have a crew of a dozen volunteers ” Duncan says “It’s a big party Families come out with kids and pets ” Customers pick the stalks take them to a tent where Duncan’s crew removes the leaves and then to another tent to have them weighed Average sales are about 10 lbs /customer in addition to a couple of commercial pickers who pick 200 to 500 lbs of rhubarb Currently with about 400 plants on half an acre High Altitude Rhubarb produces about 3 000 lbs of rhubarb a season With new plants that will be in production in 4 years Duncan expects to produce 7 000 to 9 000 lbs He got started when a friend gave him some rhubarb roots His plants only yielded a few stalks so Duncan researched and figured out how to create a nurturing environment for plants to grow 4 ft tall and 8 ft wide He creates good loam with mulch and compost then builds 3-ft high mounds of top soil about 10 ft apart He fills the spaces between the mounds with pine mulch to prevent weeds and makes water rings at the top of the mounds around the plants It recently cost $3 000 to establish a new plot for 60 plants The mulch composts in place yielding soil similar to the native soils but deeper “We deep water about five times a year ” Duncan says noting that the mounds compress as the mulch composts and he tops the mulch off every 5 years His oldest beds are 20 years old and rhubarb plants typically produce for about 25 years Through the years he’s added 20 varieties Some consumers prefer the red varieties but the most prolific variety is Victoria It’s a greener rhubarb but tastes the best has thin skin and the best yield Duncan notes that there is typically only one harvest because in mid-June the area is usually hit with large hail storms Then comes the extreme heat In some years there is enough regrowth that he takes reservations for a second harvest in July The Duncans figure they spend a couple of months a year on their “hobby farm” - working with the plants website updates organic certification paperwork and bookwork Duncan started with hand tools and has since mechanized with a 25 hp John Deere tractor and attachments to do 95 percent of the field work His background in the corporate world of computers has been useful for marketing; his website gets 30 000 hits a year Combined with word of mouth and articles written about the business the Duncans don’t need to advertise In fact Duncan says his biggest risk is running out of rhubarb “We are a destination business and we don’t want people to drive here for nothing ” he says noting he knows of one customer who drove 13 hours to pick their rhubarb Duncan shares his technique for growing rhubarb on his website He has advice for anyone who wants to create a destination business “Differentiate yourself Focus on something unique in your area ” he says Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Dennis and Donna Duncan High Altitude Rhubarb 7275 Wildridge Rd Black Forest Colo 80908 ph 719 494-8424; www highaltituderhubarb com; dennis duncan@highaltituderhubarb com

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