Pages

Monday, April 23, 2012

Cilantro (Coriander) from grocer....planted on.

Having had a craving for Vietnamese Fresh Spring Rolls today,  I stopped at my local supermarket on the way home to pick up some fresh cilantro. A fresh batch was just set out and I was delighted to see healthy, crisp roots still attached. Then my green fingers thought - these are perfect planting specimens!



Not only did I get the cilantro I needed for my dinner, but I now have an edge on getting a batch started for the summer.

I never start plants by seed, since I only have one full sunny window. Sniff, sniff, as I wish I could.

I just end up buying plant-lets at the garden centre which can be costly. Since this spring season has been so unusual temperature wise, I've been hastily waiting. I'm glad I didn't buy any cilantro. Instead, now I have plants and herb bliss in the making today!


First I took a good look at the bundle and separated the good bunches from the not so good ones. Then I rinsed them with cold water.

I then took each plant and took off the outer bulky stalks that are perfect for my recipe but too much bulk for my starter idea.  I left 2 to 3 stems of the new growth in the middle (having to remove the outer stalks sometimes by scissors, if the centre was thin).

I found one of my herb pots and filled it with 1 part compost and 1 part potting soil (leaving 2 inches from the rim). I poked holes with my finger and then gently wedged the cilantro roots down. 





Any leafy bits that looked wilted or that looked weak, I cut back.  This reduces stress on the planted roots. You've got to remember, this cilantro had a lengthy travel from the where it was grown to my kitchen. Many leaves and stems would of been bruised or damaged.



I didn't firmly pack down the soil, I watered it well until I found the soil settled nicely, making each stalk stand rigid.

I managed to get about 12 stalks in this 8 inch pot. Not bad for having paid $1.49 for the entire bundle. Hopefully in a few weeks, I can pick more fresh Cilantro!

4 comments:

  1. last spring i did the same with some thyme brought from my local market, it is now a wonderful health plant :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haha, great minds think alike! You can't help but try it. Good for you!

      Delete
  2. Can I cut the stems with green seed bolts off of the plant, let them dry, then plant them again? Or do you have to wait for the plant to wither and the seeds to dry while it is still planted?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I find the seed heads need to ripen and dry on the plant. If you want to harvest the seed for fresh culinary use, then it's key to pick before they dry out too much (when they stay on the stem). For seeding in garden, I wait until they fall off and are straw-brown in colour. In fact, some that fell off before I got to them seeded in the same area and came up in late May. Check out my other post on Cilantro: http://www.heidihorticulture.com/2013/08/when-cilantro-becomes-coriander.html

      Delete

Thanks for commenting and viewing my blog! :)