Parsley
Herb · cool season
When to plant
- Start seeds indoors about 8 weeks before planting out.
- Plant outdoors about 2 weeks before your average last spring frost.
- Ready to harvest about 70 days after planting out.
Soak seed overnight; germination is slow.
Frost dates depend on where you live. Enter your ZIP code to get exact dates.
Dates by zone: 3a 3b 4a 4b 5a 5b 6a 6b 7a 7b 8a 8b 9a 9b 10a 10b
Growing basics
Harmful to pets. Toxic to cats and dogs in large amounts; it can make their skin sensitive to sunlight.
- Sun
- Shade
- Spacing
- 8–10 in
- Soil temperature
- At least 50°F
- Time to harvest
- About 70 days
- Containers
- At least 1 gallons
- Plant family
- Carrot family (umbellifers)
- Harvest per plant
- About 0.5 lb
- Seeds keep
- About 2 years
Companions
Keep apart: Horseradish. Horseradish spreads aggressively. Give it its own spot.
Keep apart: Mint. Mint spreads aggressively into neighbors. Keep it in a pot.
Keep apart: Fennel (bulb). Fennel slows the growth of most garden plants. Grow it on its own.
Keep apart: Sunchoke (Jerusalem artichoke). Sunchokes spread aggressively and shade neighbors.
Grow it well
Tips
- Freeze extra herbs in ice cube trays. Chop basil, parsley, or cilantro, pack it into ice cube trays, and top it off with olive oil or water. Pop out a cube or two for soups and sauces all winter.
- Grow herbs by the kitchen door. You'll use them far more if you can step out and snip some while dinner cooks. Basil, parsley, chives, and thyme all do well in pots.
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