Rhubarb have large, vibrant green leaves and thick, fleshy stalks that can range in colour from green to red, depending on the variety. Many types of rhubarb have a bitter taste, but there is a way to avoid this through the process of forcing.

Buying forced rhubarb from the shops is noticeably more expensive, so Jess Gough, behind the page , has shared how to force rhubarb at home. Forcing rhubarb involves cutting off its light in January to make the stems think they're still below ground. As a result, they grow more quickly, are more tender and don't have the normal green colouring. It's the lack of green that makes the stems of the taste sweeter, as well as look pretty.

Jess captioned her post: "Forced rhubarb is so expensive to buy in the shops, but you can easily grow it at home. Rhubarb forcing is the practice of growing rhubarb plants in the dark.

"The lack of light and slightly warmer temperatures inside the forcer encourage the rhubarb stems to shoot up rapidly.

"Because it grows so much faster, forced rhubarb is ready earlier in the season than regular rhubarb.

"It's also sweeter because the lack of light reduces the presence of oxalic acid (which normally makes rhubarb sour) in the stems."

To force rhubarb, place a rhubarb forcer (bell-shaped pots with a lidded opening at the top) or something similar, like an upturned bin or bucket, over the crown, just as the plant starts to bud.

Make sure the light is completely blocked out and check in on the plant once a week. Harvest when the stems are about 30cm long or reaching the top of your forcer.

However, gardeners should be aware that only healthy plants that have been in the ground for one growing season are strong enough to be forced, as growing without access to light for a couple of extra months is an exhausting process.

Jess also urged: "Don't force the same crown for two years in a row, as this can weaken the plant."

Once you have harvested all the forced stems, remove the covering to allow light to reach the crown, and don't harvest any more stems from that plant that year.