Red Rhubarb Swiss Chard (Beta vulgaris)

Recently I discovered Annie's. Spent hours pouring over the catalog while traveling for Christmas, happily planning. It was a much better read than an airline magazine! Yesterday (Jan 9) I planted some Red Rhubarb Swiss Chard in my community garden plot. I showed a new gardener around & she asked me if there are different varities of broccoli. I told her not at the local nurseries---at Annie's! I was happy to tell her that Annie's has lots of heirloom and organic seeds, and that the website and catalog have really specific descriptions about each variety of seeds. Because I garden for only myself, I plan to share some of my Annie's seeds with her. I appreciate your well written descriptions, & love your quick service. I hope my new gardener friend will love Annie's too, because in Southern California we can plant every month of the year!! Can't wait for my chard to grow to an edible size.

This was easy to grow and harvested last crop probably into October. We love Chard fried with a little butter, salt, pepper and sprinkled with Parmesan but we had so much left when I cut it all in the fall we found it wonderful additions chopped up in soups. I grew mine in a 4X4 square foot garden. We did one square completely of chard (12 plants.) We'll be growing more this year to chop and freeze!

My family loves this Swiss chard. We planted a 2 ft by 10 ft wide bed in the spring, and harvested many meals for fresh eating, as well as many pints for canning. In the summer it was cut down and left to come back for fall. With the cold weather the leaves turn deeper red and the flavor becomes sweeter. The plants have survived several freezes and continue to produce. The flavor of the leaves is sweeter than other chards, and the leaves are tender even when large. Insects don't seem to bother it much either. I would highly recommend this variety to anyone who loves chard.