Celery, scientifically known as Apium graveolens, is one of the most challenging garden vegetables to grow, especially if you are not an expert. However, despite its low tolerance for extreme heat and cold and a long time that it takes to grow, celery’s nutritious nature forces many to invest their time and energies in gardening for it.
Growing celery at home, you can easily feel the rich taste and how it differs for better from that of the celery that you get from the shop. The best part about home grown celery would be it’s not so chemically laden nature, that makes it even more healthy for everyone.
You can use this staple in a number of ways and is generally referred to as a hardy biennial. It also, nevertheless, grows as an annual that has a 18 inch long edible stalk .
Growing celery is not extra difficult but just a process demanding a lot of care. Below is all that you must know on growing celery.
Different Celery Types
Celery is classified in two types depending on how you grow it. First, we have trenching celery that needs mounded soil for its growth. The soil is mounted against the stems and the celery grown this way is crisp in its stems with pale color. Trenching celery is mostly sown in trenches. The gardeners have to take extra steps to produce this one.
Another type is self-blanching celery that is easier to grow with no other steps required on the gardener’s part. There is no difference in taste or nutrients from the above type as such.
However, there are some different varieties of celery in terms of their looks and nature of growth too. Below are some of the common ones:
Utah 52-70R Improved: perfect for when you have limited growing space. This one does not get bigger than 18 inches.
Alfina:A slim celery with slender stalks. Dark green in color and grows fully in no more than 60 days.
Conquistador:Grows best in regions where you do not have a lot of water and rather have excessive heat and risks of pests.
Celery Harvest Time
Celery requires around 16 weeks from its date of plantation to be harvested. You can get their seedlings from the nurseries, but they hardly grow. Hence it is better than you plant them indoors around 10 weeks before you expect the last frost.
You can harvest celery grown in summer before the first hard frost can affect its growth. Sometimes, this harvested crop overwinters and produced some stems in the cold before flowering in spring too. Some people harvest the plant as a whole. However, we suggest that you cut and pick all stems one by one.
You mainly harvest the stalks above the ground for this plant and can pick them whenever you like. The younger celery stalks are as good as the older ones. However, the darker is the stalk’s color, the more nutritious it is. Texture also tends to change as the color does and gets tougher with time but that should not be a problem.
Celery Water And Light Requirements
Celery crops require both regular water and intense light. Make sure you make the beds where there is enough light and ensure regular watering of the plants.
How To Grow Celery?
Growing celery is a bit longer process as compared to growing any other vegetable because you first have to grow the seedlings indoors. Here are the steps to follow:
Prepare the soil in a way that there is full sunlight exposure to the plant. Enrich the celery in compost that is mixed around 15 inches deeper in the soil. Put in aged manure to reach the same depth and ensure fully fertilized soil.
The soil should be dry and yet retaining enough to lock the moisture. Maintain pH of 5.8 to 6.8.
Make sure the beds will not drain extra quickly. Dries ground result in wild celery w2iht no flavor and nutrients as such.
First, start the growth indoors. For spring growth, make sure you sow the seeds indoors around 12 weeks before the last expected frost. For an autumn crop, sow the seed around 12 weeks before the first autumn frost.
Make sure you sow carefully because the seeds will be very small and you do not want to lose them.
Before you plant them in soil, make sure you soak the seeds in warm water and leave them soaked overnight to ensure speedy germination.
Once you sow, cover the pots with plastic to ensure rich moisture inside.
Germination takes around 3 weeks and after that you can transplant the seeds in garden.
Before transplanting, harden the seeds a bit by reducing their water intake and by putting them outdoors for some hours each day.
Now, you can transplant the seedlings in ground. For this you should wait until the temperature reaches 50 degrees Fahrenheit.
Sow carefully with around 4 inches distance between each transplant
Water regularly and thoroughly and protect from frost.
Common Pests And Diseases
Here comes a good news, celery hardly gets any pests or diseases because it does not have to face intense weathers as such. However, if you do not care for it properly, you might get it ruined with some selected pests and diseases that are quite common for all vegetable gardens.
To name a few, celery can be attacked by the following especially during the early days of its growth:
Flea beetles
Earwigs
Slugs
Snails
Remedies And Caring Tips For Disease Prevention
Here are some common care tips to ensure healthy celery growth with no problems as such:
Never expose celery to frost
Water the plant richly in a way that it does not dry out ever
Always mulch the soil and use rich and organic compost to retain the moisture and keep the growth going on a steady rate.
Keep the crop well weeded but always take care when wedding since the shallow celery roots usually do not take extra disturbance.
