Is there any way to salvage a coriander plant when it does this, or am I best to mulch it and start from scratch?
My parsley is looking like it is about to do the same thing. Is there any way to prevent it and help it continue producing?
Coriander goes to seed quickly in warm weather. Let it self-sow and you’ll get new plants.
Parsley likewise will self-sow if you let it.
It’s not really possible to have a continuous plant to pick from due to the life cycle of these plants. But if you let them self-sow, you’ll probably end up with surplus, which you can dry or freeze for use when you don’t have productive plants.
Ah ok, thank you!
Is there a world where I can have a neverending supply of these herbs (parsley, basil, coriander, etc.) - maybe having a few different crops at different stages of growth?
It might depend on where you live. For example, basil is frost sensitive, so where I live it won’t survive outdoors in winter. Coriander races to seed in heat, so even staggered plantings won’t help a whole lot in a hot summer. Parsley might do okay with a few planted at different times of year; at least it seems less driven by season than the other two, in my limited experience.
You could have more success with indoor pots, if that’s an option for you (that said, I’ve recently had a parsley plant going to seed in my kitchen, so results will vary).
And if the plants start flowering you can prolong their usefulness by pinching off the flowering stems - though that only buys you some time, rather than preventing the process entirely.
I’ve had a lot of success with basil indoors in a sunny position. Even indoors the coriander is pretty fickle. I’ve not had a lot of success with either basil or coriander in the garden, but am persisting in trying to find the right spot. I am hoping to get a couple of self-seeding patches of coriander growing if I can find the right spots.
In theory you can use varying micro-climates in the garden to extend the growing season, so I am trying a shady spot next to the house that will hopefully keep corriander growing a bit later in summer (but may be too shady over winter) and will try another position that is sunny over winter and hopefully get it producing earlier in the season (but will send it to seed earlier over summer).
The parsley I mostly just let self seed - I have found that the flat leaf and curly leafed varieties seed at slightly different times, so I will usually have one of the two growing well. They also grow at different times in different spots, and there will often be seedlings popping up in new spots while other plants are more established - having crops at different stages is mostly a matter of selective weeding rather than specific planning with parsley!
Keen to hear how you go!
I’ll have a go at indoor crops. I don’t have much outdoor space with varying amounts of light exposure, so I am limited in what I can try.
This is called ‘bolting’, and it’s when an annual (coriander) or biannual (parsley) plant goes into seed. Collect the seed, and replant. This is normal and natural for these plants. I have seen a friend grow a kale plant for over 18 months, but it was in a tropical climate.
