How to grow parsley on a windowsill

In winter, the lack of vitamins for the body is most felt, so you want to replenish it with a variety of greens, for example, the same parsley. Therefore, if you are a lover of everything home, and not shop, then even in winter you can grow parsley in an apartment, on a windowsill.

Features of growing parsley on the window

Parsley is considered an unpretentious and not very demanding plant to care for, but for its successful cultivation in an apartment, one should prepare and provide certain conditions (light and temperature).

You can plant parsley at any time of the year, even in winter, you just need to provide additional lighting.

There are two ways to harvest parsley:

• sowing seeds;
• planting root crops.

When sowing seeds the process of growing parsley is more time-consuming and laborious, and the first cut of the crop can be produced only 1.5-2 months after sowing. But this method allows you to have fresh parsley for quite a long time.

When planting root crops fresh parsley will appear much earlier, about 3-4 weeks after planting, but the rapid depletion of the roots will not allow growing parsley for a long time, so they will have to be replaced (replanted to new soil or use new roots).

Parsley varieties suitable for growing on a windowsill

For sowing and growing parsley at home, it is recommended to choose the early varieties of parsley.

By the way! On the packaging of some seeds it says so "Can be grown on a windowsill".

The following varieties of parsley are suitable for growing on a windowsill:

• common (Appetizing, Grandma's bed, Beads, Gloria, Chastushka, Natalka, Russian feast, Ordinary, Morning freshness, Fitness) - fragrant and juicy greens, which are used for preparing salads and fresh consumption;
• curly (Aster, Vorozheya, Green pearls, Emerald lace, Mooskrause 2) - with less pronounced aroma and taste, but with an interesting foliage shape, which is ideal for decorating dishes.

Important! It is believed that curly parsley is easier to care for and less demanding in terms of its conditions, so many people prefer to grow it at home.

Rules for sowing parsley on the windowsill - step by step instructions

Here's what we need to do - choose suitable containers, soil, prepare (soak) the seeds and sow them correctly.

Planting capacity

It is recommended to plant parsley in deep and capacious containers, as it forms a powerful root system. The height of the pots should be at least 15-20 cm, and this size is necessary both for planting root crops and seeds.

Advice! If desired, before planting, the growing container can be disinfected with a strong solution of potassium permanganate.

Important! There must be drainage holes in the planting container, which will allow excess moisture to go into the pan and not stagnate in the pot.

Growing substrate

In order to save time, you can buy a substrate in a specialized store; any ready-made seedling soil with an acidity level in the range of 6.5-7.0 pH will do.

But you can prepare the planting mixture yourself. To do this, it is optimal to mix peat, garden soil, humus (compost) and river sand (2: 1: 1: 1). And you can make it easier by taking most of the garden land (2/3), adding a little humus (to improve fertility) and sand (to loosen) it.

Note! Any soil, even purchased one, is recommended to be disinfected beforehand, for example, by roasting in the oven or steaming in a double boiler, so that all pathogenic organisms and fungi die under the influence of high temperatures. Or (and you can do both) spillage with a pink solution of potassium permanganate or phytosporin.

Preliminary preparation of seeds

Before sowing parsley seeds, it is recommended to carry out pre-sowing treatment, which will contribute to the friendly emergence of seedlings.

To do this, they should be soaked, namely, put the seeds on a damp cloth, which should also be covered with a small piece of moistened gauze on top (or use cotton pads). Put a lid on top so that the moisture does not evaporate quickly, and put it in a dark and warm place for several days.

The seeds should not float in water, but only slightly damp.

Do not forget to check that the cloths (or cotton wool) are slightly damp and never dry out.

And immediately 20-30 minutes before sowing, pickle in a slightly pink solution of potassium permanganate.

Direct sowing of seeds

Step-by-step instructions for sowing parsley seeds for growing on a windowsill:

• Pour a drainage layer (2-3 cm) on the bottom of the planting container.
• Fill pots with nutrient medium.

• Make grooves 0.5 cm deep and spill them abundantly with water, allowing moisture to absorb.
• Sow seeds.
• Sprinkle the seeds with earth.

By the way! In general, it is believed that it is not necessary to sprinkle parsley seeds with earth, but only sow superficially on wet ground. But many people like to sprinkle the seeds lightly (but not more than 0.5 cm).

• Spray the soil from above with a spray bottle.
• Cover the planting container with glass or foil and place in a dark place at a temperature of +25 degrees until shoots appear.

During the period of seed germination, high air humidity is required, therefore, it is recommended to cover the container with seedlings with glass or film to create a greenhouse effect. After the emergence of shoots, the shelter is removed and the pot is moved to a cooler place.

Video: how to sow parsley at home

Growing parsley in a window by transplanting roots or root vegetables into a pot

On greens, you can plant both root parsley (its roots) and ordinary parsley, it also has rather large roots.

Many believe that this The best way grow parsley on the windowsill in winter.

How can this be done?

And it's very simple, you just need to transplant the rhizomes from the garden in late summer-autumn into a pot, then you will have normal greens all winter.

By the way! Before planting in a pot, it is highly recommended to free the roots from the old soil and lightly pinch (trim) the tips (only long ones) so that their length is within 10-15 cm, i.e. they fit in a pot.

How is the planting of parsley roots in a pot:

• Place a drainage layer on the bottom of the pot.
• Fill the pot 1/3 full of soil.
• Distribute the roots in the pot 3-4 cm apart.
• Cover with earth and compact slightly.

Only the appendages (apical buds) should stick out from above.

• Pour from a watering can.
• Before the growth of new green leaves, put in a slightly cool place (+ 15-18 degrees), and then rearrange to a warmer (at least + 18-20 degrees) and bright place (in winter only under lamps, there is not enough light on even the southern windowsill) ...

Video: growing parsley at home from the roots

How to care for parsley on the window

In order for parsley to grow fully and give a stable harvest, it is necessary to create certain conditions for the plant that will be most acceptable for the full development of greenery in an apartment.

Important! In the case of dense shoots of greenery, after a while they need to be thinned out, leaving the strongest ones, because each plant needs enough space and light so that the shoots grow strong. It is optimal to leave one bush for every 5 cm.

Video: growing parsley on the windowsill

Choosing the best place: daylight hours and temperature

For growing parsley, the southern window is the best place at first, but you can put the pots on the east or west window. However, with the onset of spring and even more so in summer, it is recommended to shade the greens from direct sunlight.

Advice! Should regularly turn the container towards the light, as the parsley will lean towards the window over time, and you want to get even and symmetrical greens.

And in the summer, it is advisable to rearrange the parsley on the balcony.

For the full growth of parsley on the windowsill, it is necessary the duration of daylight hours is not less than 12 hours, therefore, during the period of short winter days in the evening and / or in the morning, it is worth providing the plant with additional lighting using phytolamps or full-spectrum LED lamps. The same applies if the weather is cloudy outside.

Optimum temperature for growing parsley at home it is considered + 18-20 degrees.

However, before the emergence of seedlings, the temperature should be higher - about +25 degrees, and only then it must be lowered to the optimum + 18-20 degrees, moving the container with the seedlings to a cooler and brighter place.

Important! The increased air temperature during the growth of parsley, as well as the lack of sunlight, lead to the fact that the sprouts are stretched, deformed and become light green.

Watering

Parsley is a moisture-loving plant, therefore needs regular watering. But moisture stagnation, as well as drying out, should not be allowed. Watering should be carried out when the topsoil dries up, of course, onlyseparated water at room temperature.

Advice! At high temperatures and low humidity, it is recommended to additionally spray the parsley foliage with a spray bottle.

Conduct periodic loosening the topsoil after watering (especially if a crust forms after it), which guarantees air access to the plant roots.

Diseases and pests

If the watering of the plant and the temperature of the content is incorrect, parsley can be affected by fungal diseases:

• white spot;
• powdery mildew.

To combat them, it is recommended to carry out treatment with a biological product Fitosporin and further adjust the watering of greenery and the conditions of its maintenance.

The main pest of parsley is aphid, therefore, at the first signs of its appearance, the foliage should be sprayed with phytoverm.

Important! After carrying out treatments for pests or diseases, it is necessary to adhere to the waiting period indicated on the package of the preparation, without using greens during this period.

Dates of the first shoots and harvest of homemade parsley

When sowing parsley with seeds the first shoots appear within 2-3 weeks, and the first crop can be cut only 50-70 days after germination.

When landing root vegetables (root parsley) or common roots the first harvest on the windowsill can be obtained in 3-4 weeks.

A cut of greenery is required at a branch height of 10-14 cm.

At the same time, during harvesting, it is undesirable to cut the parsley at the root; it is recommended to choose only the longest branches with large leaves, be sure to leave the petioles.

Thus, if you want to always have fresh fragrant parsley on the table even in winter, you can grow it on the windowsill by sowing it with seeds or replanting roots from the garden. The care requirements are not very difficult (only watering, feeding is not needed), you just need to maintain the necessary conditions of detention and be sure to supplement the greens if the daylight hours are not long enough.

Video: how to grow parsley on a windowsill