Tag Archives: Ginty Creek rhubarb

Forcing the Rhubarb at Ginty Creek

‘Twas supposed to be sunny yesterday but we did not see a lot of it.

sunshine down the klinaklini valley

It is thawing in the afternoons now so if I want to go anywhere it has to be in the morning.  I loaded a winter’s worth of ashes onto the toboggan and dragged it the half-kilometre to the rhubarb patch.  The rhubarb was one of the very few useful garden remnants that came with the place.   Because I am away in the mountains all summer, I have not had the time to put a garden in here.  I walked without snowshoes as the trail was well-packed.  It was hard to see in the poor light and if I slid off it I crashed into knee-deep snow.

ashes sprinkled on the rhubarb patchThe ashes are not to provide nourishment, although they will contribute a little.  Their purpose is to attract the sun.  At this time of year anything dark rapidly melts a hole in the snow.  The rhubarb will get a head start this way.  I should be able to glean a meal or two before I go away for the summer.