Rhubarb

High school (ages 12+)
Food & Cooking

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/rhubarb

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the scientific classification?Genus Rheum, Family Polygonaceae
2. What is the primary edible part?The petiole (stalk)
3. What is rhubarb and why does it taste so sour?Rhubarb is a vegetable plant whose long, green stalks are eaten. The sour taste comes from oxalic acid inside the stalks.
4. Are the leaves of rhubarb safe to eat?No, the big leaves contain a lot of oxalic acid and can be toxic, so they must be removed before cooking.

Herbaceous Perennial: A plant that lives for more than two years, dying back to the ground in winter and regrowing from its roots.
Ploidy: The number of complete sets of chromosomes in a cell.
Petiole: The stalk that attaches a leaf blade to the stem.
Inflorescence: The complete flower head of a plant including stems, stalks, and flowers.