What every gardener should know about growing celery

Growing celery:

Celery comes in many varieties. This would include Giant Gilded, Pascal, Rosso di Torino and Utah. Pascal is the brand most people prefer to grow.

If you like a different type of celery from the typical, the Rosso di Torino is the type preferred by many.

Seeds may be purchased from catalogs, online, your local lawn and garden store and you may harvest your own from previous growths of celery.

Does celery grow above ground or under ground?

Many believe celery grows underground like carrots do. Not true. It is not a root vegetable. Your celery crop grows above-ground. The roots of the plant are the only portion that remains underground.

How do you grow celery?

Celery plants can be difficult to grow yet those who have the patience successfully grow it. The most difficult part of growing celery is the extended growing season.

Celery requires a lot of water and often will become stringy and dry without the correct amount throughout the growing season.

Because celery is actually a plant that grows and produces in the second year and many people grow it as an annual plant, it has a long germination period.

Starting celery is best done indoors many weeks before you will transplant it to the outdoors. The seeds should be planted in separate pots, such as peat pellets and only a few per pot.

Planting Celery

Some experienced planters say seeds that are at least two or three years old should be used. Some planters recommend keeping them in the refrigerator during winter, and then soaking them in water overnight before planting.

The seeds, when ready to plant will need to be thinned. This should be done twice before actually transferring the seedlings to the outdoors.

Grow celery only after there is no chance of frost. They can be planted in rows about 12 inches apart and the rows should be at least 2 feet apart. Use compost on the soil to enrich it and ensure the proper nutrients are available before planting the celery.

Care of the Celery Plants

Celery plants need plenty of water. This is especially true when it is hot. If you use mulch around the plants it will help them to keep moisture during the hot, dry months of summer.

The mulch will also help to keep them from needing a lot of weeding. Celery will be ready for harvesting between 120 to 140 days.

The stalks will be about a foot tall. If they have not been subjected to frost, the outside stalks will be okay for use. Many people use them for cooking.

If there has been damage merely cut this outside layer off as the insides should be fine. The leaves are also used in cooking. If you are growing celery for the seeds, a process known as 'bolting' is used.

This allows the seeds to dry out and they can be shaken into a container, covered to keep them airtight and saved for planting.

Celery Insects

If you find that insects are a problem on your celery plants, they can mostly be removed by hand. The use of sprays may be used for large areas of celery plants or if there are too many to remove by hand.

The sprays used should be safe for vegetables. Make sure and read the label very carefully to make sure the spray contains no harmful chemicals.

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