Coriander Long Established Popular Herb

Herb - Coriander (Coriandrum sativum)

Long established popular herb. Height 30-50cm. Used chiefly in soups and confectionery.

Coriander Coriandrum sativum) is an annual herb in the family Apiaceae. It is also known as Chinese parsley, dhania or cilantro. All parts of the plant are edible, but the fresh leaves and the dried seeds (as a spice) are the parts most traditionally used in cooking.

The leaves are variously referred to as coriander leaves, fresh coriander, Chinese parsley, or (in the US and commercially in Canada) cilantro.

Coriander potentially may be confused with culantro (Eryngium foetidum L.), in the same family (Apiaceae) as coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.), but from a different genus. Culantro has a distinctly different spiny appearance, a more potent volatile leaf oil and a stronger aroma.

The leaves have a different taste from the seeds, with citrus overtones.

The fresh leaves are an ingredient in many foods, such as chutneys and salads, salsa, guacamole, and as a widely used garnish for soup, fish and meat. As heat diminishes their flavour, coriander leaves are often used raw or added to the dish immediately before serving. In Indian and Central Asian recipes, coriander leaves are used in large amounts and cooked until the flavour diminishes. The leaves spoil quickly when removed from the plant, and lose their aroma when dried or frozen.

How to grow Coriander:

Coriander, Coriander needs a frost free period to grow but it doesn't like extreme heat. So in milder climates you grow Coriander during summer, in tropical climates you grow it during the cooler dry season. To grow Coriander you need reasonable soil and you need to keep the plants well watered.

Always grow Coriander from seed, directly where you want it. Coriander HATES being transplanted. The stress will likely cause it to go straight to seed and then it dies. And you never get any leaves at all!

Also, Coriander grows a big taproot, and those little seedling pots are not deep enough to accommodate it. Growing Coriander in a pot isn't doing it any good.

Growing Coriander from seed:

The standard directions are to sow Coriander about 1 cm deep, but there is no need to get scientific about it. Just cover the seeds and keep them moist.

You can plant Coriander in rows for easy harvesting or you can spread the seed over a wider area and rake it in. It depends how much seed you have available.

Don't go overboard with the amount of seed. Healthy Coriander plants grow fairly big, about 50 cm or 2 feet tall.

You want about 5 cm between plants if you grow Coriander for the leaf. They need more space if you grow them for seed, but you can always eat the extra plants and just leave a few to go to seed.

Coriander seeds take about two to three weeks to germinate. If they come up too thickly, just pull up and eat the extras...

Yes, the best way to harvest surplus plants is to pull them up. (Provided you can do so without damaging the plants next to it.) Coriander grows a taproot that is packed with flavour. You will often see Asian soup stock recipes call for Coriander or coriander root, just like Europeans use parsley root in stock.

Harvesting Coriander:

After you have eaten all your thinnings, harvest individual Coriander leaves of the base of the remaining plants. Just make sure the plant is big enough to cope and leave some leaves on it so it can continue to grow.

Sooner or later your Coriander plants will flower. Once they start developing that flower stalk they stop making more leaves. Therefore it is a good idea to re-sow Coriander every few weeks during the growing season. That way you never run out.

Some people also chop out the flower stalk as soon as it shows and manage to keep the plants going a bit longer. Or they harvest the whole Coriander plant once it shows signs of wanting to flower.

Problems when growing Coriander:

The biggest problem when growing Coriander is that the plants are so sensitive to heat - and also to other stresses. Anything that stresses them will cause them to bolt (meaning they will grow a flower prematurely and set seed).

Select your site well. During the colder times of the year (Or in cooler climates) choose a spot in full sun. If you expect hot weather, give your Coriander plants some shade.

Make sure your Coriander plants never dry out. (As always, mulch helps.)

Many people underestimate the amount of water Coriander needs, because most herbs we know are so hardy. So water it well, but of course, make sure the soil drains well. Few plants like growing in a bog hole...

Apart from that Coriander has no special soil requirements. Rich, dark soil always produces the biggest, healthiest plants, but any reasonable soil with average nutrient levels should be fine. If you want to feed your plants extra, some dilute liquid fertilizer like fish emulsion never goes astray.

One more thing: Coriander plants do not like humidity. In my climate they will bolt to seed from the heat before humidity becomes a problem, but your climate may be different. Always grow Coriander where the air can circulate freely.