Do you love cilantro in your food? Garlic? Ginger? They are all easy to grow when you pay attention to their individual timetables.
Cilantro is a cool-season herb. Fall is the most productive time of year to grow it. It thrives in full sun during cool weather and survives light frost.
The plant’s life cycle is faster than that of other herbs. If you are a big cilantro user you will want grow fresh cilantro most of the year. Sow seeds every three to four weeks. They germinate in seven to 10 days. From time of sowing you can harvest cilantro leaves in about four weeks and harvest the seeds (called coriander) in 45 days. You can sow seeds successively all winter. Direct sow cilantro outside in fall and grow it indoors in a pot during the coldest part of the winter.
Harvest cilantro by cutting the 6- to 12-inch outside stems close to soil level. New leaves emerge from the center of the plant. Don’t cut more than one third of the leaves at a time or you will weaken the plant.
Cilantro loses most of its flavor when dried. Keep fresh leaves coming fall through spring until the weather gets hot. When the soil reaches 75 degrees the plant will quickly bolt and go to seed.
Leaf spot and powdery mildew can affect cilantro, but good drainage and airflow along with judicious watering should prevent problems.
Grow cilantro in a sunny garden area where it can reseed. It has a taproot so it does not take well to transplanting.
Garlic is a bulbous vegetable that can be planted in mid fall. Choose a softneck variety for best results in coastal Carolina.
Plant cloves (the sections of the bulb) flat side down and pointed side up about 6 inches apart. Cover each tip with two to three inches of soil. Soil should be well drained and rich with organic material. Good drainage will help prevent fungus disease. Mulch well. Give plants about an inch of water per week. Garlic may sprout by late fall.
In the spring, feed regularly with foliar fertilizer or slow release granules. In late spring some varieties produce flower stalks with bulbils. Cut them off because they waste the plant’s energy. In June as bulbs form the plants no longer produce leaves. Stop watering, remove the mulch and allow the garlic to dry out.
Garlic is ready to harvest when most of the leaves turn yellow-brown. This should be late June or July. Dig up the bulbs. Don’t break the stalk. Tie groups of six or so together and hang them to dry in a dry shaded area with good air flow for six to eight weeks.
Ginger loves heat, humidity and filtered sun. It grows when the soil temperature reaches 68 degrees. Coastal Carolina meets these conditions part of the year. It is your choice how to handle the rest of the year.
Start ginger by root division using a piece of plump grocery store ginger. Look for a rhizome with a number of fingers, or growing tips. Soak the rhizome in warm water overnight and then cut it into pieces about two inches long. Try to include four eyes per piece. Direct plant the rhizomes in a sheltered spot with filtered sun. Well-drained sandy loam with slightly acidic pH is best. Place the eyes facing upward and cover the rhizome with one inch of soil.
Water regularly during warm weather. Mulch heavily during winter and reduce water because the plant will be dormant during cold weather. It will grow when the weather warms.
Alternately plant the divisions in good potting soil. Move your ginger inside when outside temperatures drop below 50 degrees. Maintain it in a warm spot with good humidity until spring.
Another option is to start your ginger indoors in a pot in late winter. Move the pot outside or transplant it when the weather and soil warm.
Ginger takes eight to 12 months to reach harvest time. Meanwhile, the above ground plant may reach two to four feet tall. New rhizomes are ready to harvest when leaves die back.
Plant young rhizomes for your next harvest and throw out the old starter pieces.
Storage tip: Freeze rhizomes and grate off what you need.
Cilantro, garlic and ginger each have a timetable, but they take very little maintenance along the way.
Reach DEBBIE MENCHEK, a Clemson Master Gardener, at dmgha3@aol.com.
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