When and how to plant parsley seedlings?
It is not always possible to get a gorgeous parsley bush. To get a good harvest, you can grow parsley seedlings.
Benefits of growing parsley seedlings
Grow parsley seedlings in two ways:
- sow seeds into a container and then transfer them along with the soil, that is, without disturbing the root system;
- grow seedlings immediately in a pot and then transplant them into the ground (with an open root system).
When transferring seedlings grown by the first method to the garden bed, the parsley continues to grow unchanged, but the planted by the second method undergoes some adaptation period of depression.
But in general, planting parsley with seedlings allows you to get more lush bushes of greenery in the early stages - a month and a half or two earlier than seeds sown in the ground.
To accelerate the germination of seeds, they need to germinate. To do this, pour the seeds with warm water and leave for three days. Change the water every day. After three days, drain the water, dry the seeds and put in the refrigerator for a week. Alternatively, spread them evenly on a soft cloth and leave until fully germinated. Moisten the fabric periodically.
To obtain an early harvest, sow parsley in prepared containers with nutrient soil in grooves 1 cm deep.
So that the seedlings are not thick, the seeds must be planted individually at a distance of 2 cm from each other or mixed with sand.
Sprinkle the seeds with earth, water, cover with foil or glass and place on a sunny windowsill. They will rise faster if the temperature does not drop below 25 ° C. When the first leaves grow, remove the film.
Young seedlings are watered or sprayed with a solution of mineral fertilizer (0.5 g per 1 liter of water), preventing the soil from drying out and getting direct sunlight.
When to plant parsley seedlings in open ground
When a second pair of leaves appears, dive the seedlings into separate cups so that it develops better and is stronger.
In early May, plant the matured parsley seedlings in an open garden. In this case, the soil must be watered.
Plant at intervals of 5-8 cm between bushes and 25 cm between rows. Further parsley care consists in watering in the early morning or in the evening and weeding. Fertilization is also necessary. In order to harvest several times per season, the greens must be cut at the root, which will provoke its re-growth.