Parsley (Petroselinum crispum)
Parsley
is one of the best known and most widely used herbs. It is actually
a biennial, but is usually cultivated as an annual because the first
year leaves have the best flavor. The crisp, tight foliage of the
curly parsley is the most attractive variety to use fresh as a garnish,
but the flat-leaved Italian parsley has a superior flavor when cooked.
The curly variety grows 10 to 12 inches tall and the Italian about
18 inches, although a dwarf variety is available. In the second
year, 2-foot-tall flower stalks appear, and their blossoms ripen
into seeds. Seeds collected from second year plants and dried thoroughly
will keep for two or three years.
Parsley grows well in Zones 3-10. It prefers full sun, but will tolerate light shade. Plant in a rich soil amended with manure or compost. The soil should be well-drained and the pH should be neutral to acid.
Sow seeds outdoors in the very early spring or in the late fall just before the soil freezes. Gardeners in climates with hot summers will have better results planting in the fall. Plant seeds 1/4 inch deep, and be prepared for a wait since germination can take six to eight weeks. (Legend has it that parsley seeds go nine times to the devil and back before germinating.) It will go a little faster if seeds are soaked in lukewarm water for 24 hours before planting. Keep the soil moist until the seeds have germinated. Thin seedlings to three inches apart when they are two to three inches high. Allow plants to spread until they touch, then pull and use every other plant. Continue harvesting alternate plants until they stand a foot apart.
Parsley leaves can be harvested as soon as the plant is 6 inches tall. Leaves can be refrigerated for use fresh, or they can be frozen. Both varieties of parsley can be grown indoors as pot plants on a sunny windowsill. The dark green foliage also looks nice planted among flowers. Outdoor plants can be potted in late summer and brought indoors to grow on a cool, sunny window sill, where they will produce fresh leaves for harvesting all winter. Dig deeply when potting your plants to get as much of the long taproot as possible.
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