Rhubarb question

Why do we cut off the white part of a stick of rhubarb, the part that was attached to the crown? I notice retailers do the same. Is it purely a cosmetic/appearance thing or is it poisonous/tastes bad?

I thought you trimmed both ends of a stick of rhubarb, as the bits closest to the root and leaf were where the compounds lurked that made the rest of the plant poisonous. 

This may well just be myths and legends passed down, but I do it every time without even thinking   

so another rhubarb question  has anyone here heard of putting a bit of leaf into the hole before planting a brassica in it ? Suppose to prevent whitefly it seems worth trying I thought! And mulching a gooseberry bush to prevent sawfly! This should be easy to trial. don't fancy the one about boiling it in water and spraying veg although it seems not on the bits you are going to eat
Could try boiling up leaves to clean stained pans but not sure I want this anywhere near my kitchen 

In the past I've used rhubarb leaves when planting brassicas.  I usually grow my brassicas on in pots, and one year I didn't have any lime left, so I tore rhubarb leaves to the right size, and wrapped them around the outside of the rootball when I planted the brassicas.  I didn't get club root, but there may not have been club root in that particular part of my plot.  I would have to try it in an area that I know is riddled with it, (and I know this because the year before last I lost all my brassicas despite having used some lime), before saying that it definitely works.

Both the leaves and stems of rhubarb contain oxalic acid (or salts of it), but the concentration in the leaves is much higher than in the stems.

(Interestingly, by weight, spinach contains more oxalic acid than rhubarb, and parsley and chives nearly twice as much - good job we tend not to eat any of them in massive quantities, although it might be worth bearing in mind if you're prone to kidney stones.)

In the past I've used rhubarb leaves when planting brassicas.  I usually grow my brassicas on in pots, and one year I didn't have any lime left, so I tore rhubarb leaves to the right size, and wrapped them around the outside of the rootball when I planted the brassicas.  I didn't get club root, but there may not have been club root in that particular part of my plot.  I would have to try it in an area that I know is riddled with it, (and I know this because the year before last I lost all my brassicas despite having used some lime), before saying that it definitely works.

As club root prefers acidic soil, we lime before planting. If your soil is riddled with it, there's very little you can do in the short term, but the last thing you should be thinking of is planting more acid with your brassicas!

I agree, DD, that planting using acidic rhubarb leaves against club root defies all logic.  I have a couple of leftover, sturdy cabbage plants that I'm going to plant in the area that I know is rife with club root, wrapping their rootballs in rhubarb leaves.  I just need to know if it was pure luck when I used them before, or if, indeed for some strange reason, it does offer some protection.

In the post I read about putting a bit of rhubarb leaf in with the brassica it said it was to prevent whitefly not clubroot, how this is suppose to happen must be the plant taking it up into the leaves, not sure about this as we eat that plant.