Cilantro???

Every year I purchase cilantro plants and they grow up nicely, then die?? Is this common and, if so, is there any way to prevent it?? TIA!!!

I have the same problem so maybe someone else can answer. I've even planted seeds 2 weeks apart. They grew but all plants went to seed at the same time. Maybe its the heat??

Gosh, 727, I thought I was the only one. I surely hope someone stops by to help us. Since it's used in so many Mexican dishes, you would think it would grow in the heat - but then, maybe not, and it's dried. Do you dry yours?? I never have and wonder what freezing it would do??

I've never tried drying for freezing. I do freeze basil, but cilantro looks so fragile, I never tried it. Anyone out there freezing or drying cilantro?

Yep, they are short-lived here, also. The heat tends to make them bolt pretty quick. Growing them where they are somewhat shaded will help prolong their growth during hot weather, at least until the air temps begin to stay high consistently.

There are some varieties that are slower to bolt. You may want to try some of those. (Can't remember right off-hand but I believe Johnny's used to carry some of those.)

Cilantro. Yummy!

Slice up chilled mango into mouthbite pieces
Sprinkle with chopped cilantro
Add a small dash of red pepper flakes (not too many!)
Mix well.


'Tis such a treat on a hot summer day! The blending of the coolness of the mango, the flavor of the mango and cilantro combined, and the pinch of pepper really comes together nicely!
(You may also add a dash of lime or lemon juice to the above, if preferred)

Happy Growing! ô¿ô

I had the same problem with my cilantro.
I think first of all that it doesn't like too much water and since it can be quite hot here in California, it might like partial shade.
I'm starting to grow some right now, it's already sprouting though the weather is not quite warm and it's been cloudy/rainy for a few days...

I'm going to try that Shoe, it sounds great. We love mangos too. Might you have a fresh mango salsa recipe??

from my personal experiences, i find cilantro to be a cool weather plant. there are no shady spot in my area, so i don't bother plant them in the summer time cuz they tend to bolt and go into seeds. during the warmer months, when i need them, i just buy them. in the fall and spring time i plant a lot of them. it is the time i dry and store them. dried leaves i use in soup, also depending on the recipe i use them on. i much prefer fresh cilantro over dried.

yes they can be dried in the oven. wash and rinse thoroughly. spin in vegetable spiinner. if u do not have vegetable spinner, place inside a pillow case and spun inside the cool clothes dryer. spread the leaves only [no stems pls] evenly on a cookie sheet at 180ºF oven. leave oven door open. drying time depends on amount of leaves being dried. be sure to stir to allow even dryness on all the leaves. a small batch, about 2 bundles store bougth cilantro will dry in an hour. after the leaves dry, the leaves crumbles nicely and has nice bright green color. do not throw the stems away, u can use them to flavor soup or when making stocks. stems can be wrap with paper tower, premoistened with few sprays of water , place wrap cilantro stems inside plastic bag. will keep in the fridge for a week or more. this procedure is also good with Italian parsley.

I love Italian parsley too and can grow it out the kazoo, I'm delighted to say. Thanks for the drying recipe, MaVie!! I've heard they can be dried in the microwave too, but never have found anyone that knows how to do it. Hope you are feeling better MaVie!! I broke my ankle 10 days ago, and I'm getting adjusted and hopefully getting well. At first, I had 'nightmares' about the fall which make me wonder how in the world those that really have horrible accidents cope, they have to be very strong people, whew!!!

Sherry,

drying the cilantro and Italian Parsley i learned thru trial and error cuz i got sick of wasting them when they get bad in the fridge.

the dried Italian Parsley or Cilantro, u can use to make compound butter - u can use in so many ways, to flavor boiled corn, and other dishes where u would use butter alone.

it is so difficult to give out recipe cuz i never measure anything. i do cooking accdg to taste. u can make ur own garlic butter for garlic bread. take a stick of [room temperature] butter, 3 cloves of garlic, 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan Cheese and 2 tbsp of dried Italian parsley. place all ingredients in blender or food processor. process to blend well. spread this recipe on French bread or Mexican bolillos and bake in the oven @ 400ºF between 20-30 mins. or accdg to ur preference of crunchiness.

so sorry to hear about ur broken ankle. i hope u got it taken cared off. often times people take it for granted when they hurt their ankle which in the long ran and will be too late to fix the problem.

i am slowly recouperating. i thought my dr. was kidding when he said it will be a long process to heal. i am learning the hardway... slowly but surely.

Hey Shoe! i hope u are doing well healthwise too. how was ur operation dear friend and cooking buddy :)!

Thanks, MaVie!!! You sound like you are perking pretty good. I had surgery on the ankle 10 days ago and I never did hurt, a real blessing, it's just uncomfortable. I have this great little scooter, pic attached, to get around on, so I'm able to do just about everything but climb stairs.
We are going to make up the butter to use tonight, and I'll use it more frequently as I love garlic toast...

well u better try not to put weight on that ankle, or u might be sorry. i am learning the hard way, to learn to stay put or i do get a relapse every now and then. it would seem each relapse takes longer to gain my energy back. i have to learn to be patient and stay put or i may not be able to do any planting come spring time. YOU take care HEAR!!!!

i am sure u will enjoy that garlic toast. my oven is not properly calibrated, maybe u should try to toast/ bake ur bread @ 375ºF. enjoy!!!

Shoot, MaVie, I was careful even when I fell, which was a careless home accident, when a trash sack was accidentally left on a step, in a dark carport. Had I not been alert, the 'wreck' would have been much worse. Garlic, cheese toast is one of my comfort foods - that and 5 Alive, best juice in the world. We are getting ready to start your recipe and I cannot wait!!! Thanks again...

well if u love garlic like i do, u can add more if u wish. i use tons of garlic in all my cooking. if Shoe comes around, he will confirm that for u ;).

Shoot, MaVie, at our house there is no such thing as too much garlic, we live on it and I remember very few days that we haven't had it...I like getting the big round pods and sautéing them in butter, squeeze out the garlic and use it on French bread like butter or add it to the EVOO, along with cracked pepper and dip your bread in it, can you say YUM YUM!!!! I can eat that and pass dinner...

Howdy MaVie...great to see you!

My operations are healing up, slow going though.

As for garlic...YES, MaVie is the garlic queen! She has me now frying it in olive oil and can be used in so many nice ways! (And save the seasoned oil for many other recipes!)

MaVie, I hadn't thought of putting parmesan in the garlic butter...that sounds like the perfect ingredient!

Hoping we ALL heal up quickly and can continue growing, cooking, eating, and the special comaraderie we have here at DG!

Sherry, i use about a whole bulb of garlic whenever i sauté food in the house, can't have enough of it.

hi Shoe :)! i, too is in the slow healing process. no, not an operation.

yes, u need Parmesan cheese [freshly grated that is!!!] on garlic bread. it is the magic touch for a very delectable garlic bread.

for the healthy concious recipe for garlic bread:
1 cup extra virging olive oil [EVOO]
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
3-6 cloves of peeled garlic
2 tbsp dried parsley or 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley leaves

process and blend on food processor or blender. spread evenly on bread. roast or toast in oven to desired consistency.

i totally agree Shoe. we ALL need to heal cuz Spring is but around the corner!

Glad to know this about cilantro. I have started some plants to grow with my brussel sprouts. i hope they will get enough shade!

Tamara

In my Seattle area garden, I plant cilantro 3 or 4 times through the growing season. I think it's just a short lived plant. There are some varieties that are slower to bolt - Richter's has SANTO, for example. I think the more common seed packets available are actually for coriander, so they designed to bolt and produce seeds quickly.
To preserve cilantro for long term usage, I make a pesto and freeze it. I have been disappointed with dried cilantro - mine didn't retain much flavor. I usually add the juice of 2 or 3 limes and about 1/4 cup of olive oil (I don't measure...) to my blender, and then pack in the washed leaves and stems. I pat the leaves dry a bit, but I'm not very thorough. I'll add more lime juice and olive oil if the pesto is too thick. This method makes a wonderful marinade for chicken, salmon... I've stired some into soups, too. yummm!

Portia

How and where do you store your cilantro pesto, Portia???

I freeze it in ziploc freezer bags. A sandwich sized bag holds about a cup - just the right amount to marinate a roasting chicken. They stack quite nicely and efficiently. :)
I did try bottling basil pesto once, but it was an awful lot of work. I freeze my basil pesto the same way.

Thanks, Portia, that's one I'm going to try, sounds great, my hubby liked it too and he's the cook!!

Thanks Portiaw! My cilantro is santo, maybe that will help. And I will do successive plantings too.

Most definitely will use your pesto recipe -- yummmmm

Yes, cilantro is definetly cool weather and will bolt when the weather gets hot. Many seed companies have a slow-bolt variety now that is much better than the older varieties I first used 15 years ago. We planted our cilantro in a 2'X3' raised brick planter with good loose soil on the NW corner of our house when we moved here about 5 years ago. Actually I planted cilantro in the front half and parsley in the back and they come back every year. I have a good stand right now about 4" tall. I do cover them when the temps drop below 30, but they are really hardy ( I forgot to cover them one night about 3 weeks ago when it got down to 28 and they survived), A word of warning: I also love the seeds (coriander), to cook with. One year I harvested too many and had a really skimpy stand the next spring. As far as drying, I personally think its a waste of time, drying many herbs concentrates the flavor ,but to my taste dried cilantro and parsley loses so much it's not worth the trouble. But then, (thank goodness), not everybody has the same taste or it would be a very boring world. After sending this I read Portiaw .I'm 99% sure Santo is what I planted,(again it's been 5 years and I've slept since then).

This message was edited Feb 25, 2005 10:23 AM

Hi all. I'm glad to see so many cilantro lovers out there. I also make a lime/olive oil pesto with my excess cilantro and freeze it. It's also great with mild white fish dishes. Do any of you ever leave some of the plants to go to seed for coriander? I try, but the seeds always seem to fall before I get around to harvesting them. What's the secret?

I read that somewhere yesterday, there is a trick to it. WhenI find it I will post it...

I think the green seeds taste neat, too when they are developing. Sort of half way between cilantro and coriander. Though, eventually they start getting a little chewy.

Erik

I guess I'll buy plants again this year, so they can grow and get really pretty, then die. Oh, well...

Cilantro is a bi annual, it lives the first year, drops seeds, 2 years after, those seeds will sprout, then drop seeds, then the next year, they will sprout again, and soon it will come back every year, because you'll have 2 years of seeds on the ground, every year, a diff years worth of seeds will sprout, kind of like they have to be in the ground a year beore they'll sprout. took a while for mine but now they come back every year.

kathy_ann, thus far, I've had zero luck with it coming back, I understand cooler weather might be the key, mine always says bu-bye, early summer, when the weather starts getting hot. I'll keep trying, we really love it and we have already made MaVie's butter and Horseshoe's mango & cilantro, fresh from the grocery and next will be the lime/EEOO pesto, which sounds wonderful, I'm not sure who sent that one - this thread has gotten so long I couldn't find it...

those sound wonderful, wouldn't mind trying them myself, I'm not big on cilantro most of the time, LOL I do use it when I have it growing,

kathy

kathy_ann, too much tastes like soap, but the right amount punches up lots of dishes - I make fresh tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, cilantro, EEOO, white vinegar (ONLY), lots of fresh garlic, fresh, coarse, cracked black pepper, kosher salt - I sub parsley when the cilantro plays out - I peel the tomatoes and I cut everything chunky, leave the cucumbers in rounds, not too thick or thin - I make a really big bowl and you see it, then it's gone...easy and a friends/family fav...

My cilantro comes back year after year. It stays fairly green and flat to the ground during the winter and then starts growing around March. I had tons of it growing so I thinned them out and threw the discarded plants in my "catch-all" pile and sure enough, I now ahve cilantro growing in the corner of my garden with my sunflowers and creeping Jenny. It actually looks kind of pretty.

hey looky here, someone in VA has cilantro coming back yearly. cool.
That tomato dish sounds wonderful, minus the onions though LOL yuk, he he

kathy

I'm convinced the cooler weather has something to do with it - spring is wonderful here but when the heat arrives, it does it overnight and the cilantro disappears about the same time. I'm going to try it again this year, as I always do, even for a short time, it's worth it. k_a, at the time of the year that I make the tomatoes, it onion is mild, I forgot to say I add green onions...this dish is sorta one that you make to fit your likes...I also use California Blend Lemon Pepper, to taste, and fresh lemon or lime, or both...sorry, I was in a rush when I posted the recipe above...

I gotta step to the plate here folks and clarify something.

KathyAnn, you were almost correct...cilantro is an annual (not a " bi annual", nor "biennial" if that is what you meant to post).

It is definitely a plant that tends to bolt when hot weather comes on, and will do so its first year. (Biennials will not flower until their second year.) The seeds, if not collected, will drop and will germinate later that very year or hold over in the ground (in most zones) and germinate the following year. This is what creates the perpetual cilantro/coriander bed. Yay! (Low maintenance!)

What I find fascinating about this one plant, is that it is actually "3 plants" or rather "3 harvests": When it first comes on and you harvest the leaves, while the leaves are flat-shaped, it is called cilantro. As the flowers begin to come on, the foliage turns from flat leaves to feathery leaves and at this point it is referred to as "Chinese parsley". When the flowers begat seeds, those are what are referred to as "coriander".

Isn't it great that different stages of growth (and each stage used differently by different cultures) all come from one single plant!? I love it! Personally I enjoy all the stages!

So what's it really called? Call it cilantro, Chinese parsley, coriander to describe how it is harvested I suppose. To get technical, the plant itself is called Coriandrum sativum. As for eating it...I say lets just call it into the kitchen!! Yummy!

;>)

no, no, no. cilantro is cilantro! the flavor of cilantro is nothing close to a chinese parsley.

Chinese Parsley is also known in the western world as Chinese celery [latin name Apium graveolens] http://www.futurefoods.com/Catalogue/greens.html here is what is known to us as Chinese celery in the orient http://www.kitazawaseed.com/seeds_chinese_celery.html in the orient, kintsai has been in existence since time in memorial. brought by the Chinese to the Philippines. it is commonly known as kintsay or kintsai http://www.kitazawaseed.com/seed_067-152.html , the flavor of kintsai is that of very strong celery flavor, but unique on its own. the shape of leaves is like Italian Parsley or celery. stem growth is like celery but much taller [2-3' tall], not compactor bunching like celery, but sort of spread out a bit. the seeds are small, like rice but smaller than rice seed with slight curve towards the tip. kintsai is normally use by orientals in making stir fried noodles. leaves and stems are use in boiled meat.

i have for the longest time, keep telling people there is no comparison in flavor between kintsai, cilantro [ http://www.sallys-place.com/food/columns/gilbert/cilantro.htm ], Italian Parsley [ http://www.mountainvalleygrowers.com/petcrispumitalian.htm ] cuz each one has its own very distinct flavor all their own.

Shoe,

remember i love to brine meat? well let me tell u something i unfolded accidentally. in brining, remember i use the Mexican blend of pickling spices. when i finished brining, there is a spot in the garden i chose to dump off the brining marinate.... lo and behold... i have now a continious cilantro garden. i, now will have continious growth of cilantro, only until the weather is cool. once it get hot, the cilantro will bolt and goes into seed. i was amazed to learn and know those seeds soaking in salt and sugar would become nice herb plant!

btw... kitsai has the same growth habit as Italian parsley. 1st year it grows nicely. 2nd year, it produce seeds and dies.

i have a separate area for cilantro, kintsai and Italian Parsley. i did not want them to cross polinate.

edited to correct spelling.

This message was edited Mar 16, 2005 2:10 AM

Howdy MaVie! Hah!...any post that brings you to us is a good fortune to us! Good to see you!

One of my pet peeves is how we Americans choose names (common names) and seem to do it to confuse ourselves and others!

I'm familiar with Chinese celery...it is not what USA folks will refer to as "Chinese parsley". (I will have to defer to you for a good recipe for using Chinese celery as I'm sure you have a great recipe!)

And yes, "cilantro is cilantro"! No doubt about it! For some reason though, some yrs back I was "accused" of selling "Chinese parsley" at my market when I was selling cilantro. That is when I had to get more info. A search, just now, brought up this: http://www.evergreenseeds.com/evergreenseeds/coriander3.html

This is why some folks here in USA call "feathery cilantro" Chinese Parsley. Perhaps it is to denote that the flavor has changed, as well as the shape of the leaves? Who knows?

Personally, I don't think I would do much with the "cilantro-chinese parsley"...I don't care for the flavor once the flat leaves of cilantro go by. Sure would like to try some kintsai though! ("brought by Chinese to the Phillipines"...no Wonder you know about it!)

By the way Folks...for those of you who are not familiar with MaVie...she is an excellent chef, grower of good foods, and a helping hand to many folks.

Congrats, MaVie, on your perpetual cilantro bed! Do you harvest some of the seed ? (Please tell me YES.) ;>)

personally, i do not refer to kintsai as chinese parsley or celery cuz that will only be so confusing for moi LOL!

kintsai i love to use in stir fried noodle, only and only when the leaves are young and tender. kintsai is considered one of the oriental secret in making stir fried noodles and other ethnic asian cuisine. no wonder a lot of westerners could never understand why they can not acquire the asian flavor. i have heard of other westerners who complained about recipes they have acquired... but could not find why the flavor defers so much! the reason is... whoever hand them the recipe, never told them to use kintsai. instead they were told to use celery. what a bummer eh?

matured kintsai leaves becomes tough and hard, i prefer to use in boiled meat. any boiled meat of ur own preference. where ever u would use celery try using matured kitsai, cilantro leaves. warning though, the flavor might have slight difference but am sure it is nice to make stock with. a little bit of leaves and stem goes a long way.

ok St. Patrick day is up coming. Shoe try to simmer beef brisket with 2-3 stalk/rib of Chinese parsley[CP], 2 bay leaves, 1 med. size onion, 1 tbsp. of black whole pepper corns [be sure to wrap these seasoning in cheese cloth for easy retrival later on]. simmer the meat until tender [i personally like to simmer tough meat like briskets over night in very low fire. u can use the crockpot if u wish.]. simmering is better than boiling. simmer slow and long cooking is better than boiling. boiling sort of toughens the meat before it gets tender... jmo . anyway, once the meat is tender, discard CP, bay leaves and black pepper corn. add some carrots, celery, cabbage and potatoes. or any veggies of ur liking. something different but i guarantee u will enjoy.

Chinese parsley or kintsai will also be good to use in soup bones. or in making stock.

yes, i do collect the seeds. i dry toast them and make my own spice seasonings cuz i do not use salt.

btw... in a few months i will be having seedling of kintsai. i will be glad to do share for postage for those who would be interested to try them. right now, i see the seedlings to be 1/2" off the ground. i will give it a few more months and they will be able to be take a trip to ur garden. this will be a nice blessing for some who'd be interested cuz similar to Italian Parsley, they seem to take forever to sprout. these seedlings were from 2 year's planting of kintsai. lmk

opphs, had to edit cuz i forgot to say ... i know i will definitely send some kintsai seedlings to Shoe.

This message was edited Mar 17, 2005 3:32 AM