Readers ask: How Do You Know When To Pick Parsley?

Wait until the leaf stems have three segments. Check the stems. If the stems have three or more clusters of leaves, they are mature enough to harvest from. Stems with one or two segments should be left alone. Most parsley plants will be ready to harvest from within 70 to 90 days after you initially plant them.

How do you know when parsley is ready to pick?

The first step of harvesting parsley is to choose the right plants. For harvesting leaves, you want to pick younger stems as they have the strongest flavors. Check the plant to make sure that stems have three segments or more. If you find three or more leaf clusters on the stem, it is ready for harvesting.

How do you pick parsley so it keeps growing?

Just as with other herbs, parsley likes to be snipped, which encourages additional growth. Bunch the stems and leaves together and snip them off at ground level with kitchen shears. You can also just take a sprig or two starting with the outside stalks first. Be sure to cut at ground level though.

Does parsley regrow after cutting?

Parsley is one of the fastest-growing herbs, so you will be trimming it many times per season. Each time you prune its stems it will grow back to full size after two to three weeks.

How do you pick parsley without killing plants?

To harvest parsley without killing the plant, use a sharp pair of clean kitchen shears or scissors to make a clean cut. This will ensure that the cut is clean and help to prevent damage or disease.

Should you let parsley flower?

Leave the inner stalks and leaves, so the plant can keep growing. The second year, the leaves will be sparse and may be less flavor-intense. You may use them, but you may also let the parsley bloom. Bees love the blossoms.

Why is my parsley turning yellow?

The most common reason for parsley turning yellow is because the soil is too damp as a result of of boggy ground, over watering or the parsley is planted in a pot without drainage holes in the base. Parsley prefers moist soil with plenty of organic matter that allows for good drainage.

How long will a parsley plant live?

Parsley plants are biennial which means that they live for two years and at the end of the second growing season will flower and produce seeds. When growing parsley for seed production, remove every imperfect or weak plant so that only the healthiest plants can fertilize each other.

Does parsley come back every year?

Parsley is a biennial, not a perennial. What that means is that it grows into a plant one season, and after winter’s cold temperatures, it blooms, sets seeds, and dies. The better idea may be to replant in spring, letting it grow all summer and winter.

Can you eat parsley stems?

You can eat the stems of parsley, but they are much more bitter than the leaves, so I recommend just using the leaves for most recipes. By placing all stems together, you can easily remove them in one quickly cut.

How often can you harvest parsley?

A hardy biennial that can be harvested all year round with winter protection. Flat-leaf and French parsley are the two most common varieties. The leaves and stems are used as a garnish in salads and as a condiment. Parsley’s reputation as a garnish often does it a disservice—it gets left on the side of the plate.

How do you maintain a parsley plant?

Keep the soil moist by watering regularly during prolonged dry periods; dry soils can cause the plants to ‘bolt’ (going to seed prematurely). Parsley is a hungry plant, so use a general granular plant feed in the soil before sowing or planting out and feed with a liquid plant food throughout summer.

Can you dry parsley?

Hang to dry Cut your parsley with several inches of stem. Bundle them and tie together with twine. Hang upside down in a dark, cool place with plenty of air movement. I actually hang mine in my garage on a wooden drying rack and use a fan to move the air.