Cilantro comes from the family Apiaceae and is an annual herb. It is commonly known as Chinese parsley and dhania. Its leaves are used for cooking mainly in Mexican and Asian dishes.
Though it is very popular people are not growing it at home, why is it so? It may be because they think that growing cilantro requires a lot of effort. But it is not true because it is easy to successfully grow fresh cilantro in your home garden.
What Are Cilantro Seeds?
Cilantro seeds are used in cooking known as coriander. The seeds are two covered in a husk. The husk is a type of coating for the seed that is hard and light brown.
But before planting them prepare the seeds carefully so that the germination chances are increased. You need to crush the husk simultaneously holding both the seeds.
Then after crushing soak them in water for few hours, to be precise twenty-four to forty-eight hours. After few hours remove them and let them dry.
How to Plant Cilantro?
After the cilantro seeds are prepared completely, plant them carefully. The choice is yours, you can either plant them indoors or outdoors. If you are planting them indoors, then you need to transplant them outdoor afterward.
You need to put the seeds in soil with the help of covering that would be about 1/4 inch(6mm.) A layer of soil. Keep them the way it is till they grow up to 2inches or 5cm tall. You need to grow the cilantro in the condition of the crowd because the leaves start shading its roots and avoid bolting during the hot season.
If the cilantro is being transplanted then you need to dig 3-4 inches apart and place them carefully in the plants. After transplanting water, them properly.
Growing Conditions for Cilantro
The most important thing to keep in mind is that cilantro should be exposed to hot weather conditions. If the temperature increases to 75F or 24° C, it will bolt. So basically, the cilantro should be grown in cool and sunny weather conditions.
Tips and Tricks for Growing Cilantro
Cilantro needs to grow at the right time, choose whether that is cool but sunny. The ideal temperature should be 55°F-70°F.
Cilantro should be planted correctly because the cilantro is grown with the help of transplanting bolts often as compared to the ones grown from seed. You should plant them one-fourth inches deep and three inches apart. And keep in mind that the soil must be moist.
Regular care of cilantro should be done, water them regularly and always encourage leaf production activities.
Cilantro can be used to attract many types of insects. Bottling cilantro draws the attention of insects like ladybugs, hover-flies, lacewings, and parasitic wasps.
After you plant cilantro seeds, you can harvest them after fifty to fifty-five days. And in total coriander seeds gets ready after ninety to one hundred and fifty days.
What to Do If It Starts Bolting?
Many people might have the question that what they need to do if cilantro starts bolting. And the fact is that you cannot cut them off completely because then it loses its natural flavour. And, once cilantro flowers are cut, they cannot be brought back to leaves.
Why Does It Bolt?
Cilantro is best grown under cool weather conditions; hot and moist conditions will lead them to bolt easily.
How to Stop Cilantro from Bolting?
First, there is no such thing that can help them from bolting. The main thing of plants is to reproduce. There are several ways, by which you can extend the before it starts producing flowers.
Kindly keep in mind that if cool and moist weather is not available at your location then you can buy slow-bolt cilantro. This is a type of cilantro which is specially designed to withstand high temperatures.
Secondly, it doesn’t matter what kind of cilantro you are growing. You need to practice succession planting. It is a method in which you grow new seeds every one to two weeks for the next set is easily ready to harvest.
The best seasons to grow cilantro from cuttings are early spring, early fall, and late summer. If you plant cilantro during spring or mid-summer, it will lead to bolting.
Keep harvesting cilantro leaves frequently, as it will lead to delaying cilantro flowering.
Conclusion
Cilantro is the only plant that grows super fats under the best weather conditions. It is used in many Asian recipes while cooking. Cilantro is very easy to grow and is also very good for health. The only tip is to stop cilantro from bolting. Growing cilantro at your own home is a very popular process that requires effort but the result is above expectations.
You can grow cilantro with a pH level of 6.2 to 8.2. The coriander seeds should be sowed one inch deep in the soil, and six inches of spacing.
According to the researchers, some people may be allergic to cilantro, so it’s always recommended to ask them out whether they want it to be lured in their dish or not. We hope you liked the process and follow all the tips and tricks very well as and when required. All the best.
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