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Growing Parsley


Growing parsley in your home ensures you of fresh and flavorful harvest of  leaves that you can use right away. This herb has been used all throughout history as both a culinary and medicinal herb. Although we normally thought of it as a food garnish, the uses and benefits of parsley certainly puts it as one of the most valuable herb you can grow in your garden, in the ground or in containers. Plus its foliage, apart from being attractive, is also very aromatic and will definitely complement your home herb garden.

THE BENEFITS

During earlier times, it is a common practice to chew on parsley after every meal to remove bad odors in the mouth caused by strong flavors such as garlic. But it doesn’t just prevent bad breath, parsley is also rich in Vitamin C, three times more than oranges, and is often used to as an alternative medicine for bleeding gums and loose teeth.

It is also referred to as a cure-all herb by ancient Greeks and was used for almost all kinds of ailments and diseases such as kidney and bladder stones, rheumatoid arthritis, menstrual and hormonal imbalances, stomachaches and even as an antidote for poison.

Although most of these practices have survived modern times, we mainly use parsley for flavoring meat, fish, soups and salads.

GROWING PARSLEY

There are three things that the parsley herb loves and will guarantee a bountiful produce:

  1. Good and moist soil. Parsley can tolerate most soil types but it thrives best in a rich organic soil that doesn’t dry out too often. It will also help if the soil’s pH ranges between 6.0 and 7.0.
  2. Full sun. Parsley needs full sun but can still grow well in a partly shaded area as long as it’s sitting on a good soil and stays warm.
  3. Organic liquid fertilizer. To replenish the soil’s nutrients, an organic liquid fertilizer especially the ones rich in nitrogen is best applier regularly to give you a lush and healthy foliage.

If you decide to grow parsley from seed, which is the harder route, make sure to soak the seeds overnight before sowing them. It is best to sow them in early spring as it takes a while before the seeds germinate, usually a month after sowing. It will also do good if you apply bonemeal  to the top layer of the soil after you’ve planted them.

For growing parsley in containers, pick a container deep enough to allow the main roots to grow their full length. Fertilize regularly with a light organic liquid fertilizer to keep the potting soil rich in organic matter. You may also grow parsley indoors provided that you expose the plant to a full sun for six to seven hours everday.

Parsley is not prone to pests and disease especially when grown in pots. But to be sure that your parsley will thrive anywhere–indoors, outdoors, in container, in the ground–for more complete information on growing herbs, check this out.