So, it may be time to consider creating some space in your garden. To grow this amazingly flavored and aromatic herb. This article will focus on growing cilantro. A flavourful annual as it is a key ingredient in cuisines and dishes in almost every continent.
For centuries, cilantro has been used for cooking in various parts of the world including many areas in Asia; especially India, Thailand, China and parts of the Middle East, Africa, Mexico, Africa, Spain and Russia. It is believed to have origins in North Africa and parts of the Middle East.
Apart from its comestible applications, cilantro was used as medicine for sleeping disorder and aiding in digestion. Cilantro does well in the southern zones and requires maximum sun since it does well in hot climate.
What You Should Know on Growing Cilantro
1. Planting Cilantro-Plants or Seeds
The question many people ask is whether to consider planting cilantro plants or do seeds instead. Well, the answer to this question is pretty simple. Cilantro grows best when the seed is directly sown in the soil, and this is mainly for two reasons; the growth rate is quick enough that there is no need to begin indoors. Transplanting will in most cases, ruin the plant since a cilantro plant grows a taproot. Planting cilantro calls for certain requirements to ensure proper growth. Which include soil that is appropriate and the spacing should be enough. For maximum harvest throughout the season, it is important to make successive sowings at a given length of time.
However, there might be instances when waiting for harvesting is not an option in late spring. You therefore have the option of harvesting 2 weeks preceding the average last frost date. This can be achieved by using peat pots to start growing cilantro, which can then be transplanted directly to your garden. What’s more, it is worth noting that germination of seeds take roughly 7 to10 days and harvesting of the leaves begins 3 to 4 weeks after the seed was sown.
2. Cultivation of Cilantro Seeds and Plants
To begin the cultivation of cilantro, there are a number of steps you must follow. First, soil preparation for the planting area is important and this is achieved by addition of compost manure or other organic matter. This is followed by working the manure/organic matter into the soil to at least a depth of 18 inches. In addition to this raking the area smooth as well as sowing cilantro seeds as deep as a quarter an inch in the garden is required.
What you want to do is to sow the seeds or thin (removing some of the grown plants to offer room for growth) to roughly 6 to 8 inches apart in rows spaced out 1 foot. Plenty of moisture is needed and you need to feed the cilantro plants with fertilizer. Keep in mind that this should be a water-soluble fertilizer and addition should be done once the plant reaches a height of about 2 inches high.
When learning how to grow cilantro, keep in mind that these plants have a quick growth rate; therefore, sowing can also be done in the fall in zones that are warmer.
3. Growing Cilantro- Tips to Keep in Mind
Maximising foliage when growing cilantro is a major consideration, as this helps in physiological processes like photosynthesis, transpiration and so on. For that reason, pinching back young cilantro plants by about an inch is crucial as this encourage plants that are fuller and bushier. Also, the main stem’s top part should be trimmed off as soon as it appears to be developing seedpods. This is crucial as it redirects the plant’s energy back to the leaves instead of the flowers and the seeds.
In addition to this, a careful watch of the plants is needed as the weather gets hotter. The life span of a cilantro plant is quite short; therefore development of seeds is rapid in hot weather. And once the seeds develop, degrading of the plant quickly sets in. This is crucial information on how to grow cilantro you should have. Still, if you allow the seeds to develop, the cilantro plant will sow by itself. You will notice this by seeing seedlings that are delicate growing up around the matured plants.
4. Disease and Pest Control-Insects and Diseases Affecting Cilantro Plants
When it comes to insects and diseases affecting cilantro plants, rarely do they have serious issues, and this could probably be attributed to their natural strong scent which acts as an insect repellent. However, there are two diseases you have to be on the lookout for that pose serious threats to these plants, these are; leaf spot and powdery mildew.
Leaf spot forms small spots that are yellow in colour which later develop to brown spots that are much larger. The main cause of this disease is excessive moisture as well as inadequate circulation of air. In order to prevent leaf spot, you need to make sure that planting is done in soil that is well-drained, have enough water, plus thinning is done just right to ensure excellent circulation of air around them.
Powdery mildew on the other hand, becomes visible as white powdery coating on cilantro leaves more often than not in dry and hot periods. In order to avoid powdery mildew, you need to make sure that your cilantro plants are getting plenty of moisture in addition to ensuring they are not overcrowded.
Conclusion
Finally, while there are various reasons for you to want to know how to grow cilantro plants, the reason worth noting are growing these plants for seeds. If this is the case for you, then you need to keep in mind that fertilization is not necessary because it may cause a delay to flowering and hence production of seeds. For harvesting of the seeds, it will take approximately 45 days. Well, there you have it, growing of cilantro plant can be an exciting project for your kitchen or garden and will make you meals tastier and also provide medicinal values as well. Provided you follow the recommended steps that are needed to ensure that these plants flourish. This involves sowing and effective cultivation and the weather is crucial to ensuring successful growth. You will have guaranteed success when it comes to harvesting.
Read my other post on small vegetable garden and urban gardening.
