How To Grow Celery From Seed? Growth Hacks And Care Tips

Celery needs a long, generally temperate growing season to grow beautiful and tall 12—to 18-inch stalks, requiring up to 140 days to harvest; however, certain short-season varieties are available. Planting it in the early spring works best in cooler climates. 

Celery is notoriously tricky to grow in home gardens, but one can always have some because of its many culinary uses, including stews, stir-fries, soups, and salads. Although it is considered a hardy biennial, it's commonly planted as an annual planter. 

You can successfully grow celery indoors. It's better to start the plant from seed because transplants are challenging to obtain and don't always work well. The plant also needs special attention because it bolts in cold weather.

There are primarily two varieties of celery available:

Trench celery: Celery needs to be trenched in soil mounded up against the stems to grow crisp, pale stems. Trench celery gets its name because it is usually planted in trenches. However, some gardeners use cardboard tubes, pipes, or collars to speed up the blanching process.

Blanching celery: Self-blanching celery requires none of these extra processes. The stems are as delectable and much easier to cultivate as a result!

Read More: Easy Indoor Flowering Plants: Make Your Eating Space And Coffee Tables Pretty

When to Plant Celery? 

• It is better to start celery seed inside because it requires a long growing season.
• Sow seeds for a spring crop ten to twelve weeks before the last date of your spring frost.
• Start seeds 10 to 12 weeks before the first fall frost date for a fall crop so that seedlings can be transplanted.

How To Start Growing Celery From Seeds?

1. Soak seeds in warm water for the entire night before sowing. This will speed germination. Given their microscopic size, treat the seeds with caution and a sharp eye!
2. Fill seed flats or pots with a good-quality seed starting mix, then gently firm it level.
3. Place soaked seeds in seed-starting soil; do not cover with soil for optimal germination. The simplest method for seeding is to gently tap the packet over the potting mix's top and attentively observe the seeds as they fall. They should ideally fall approximately one inch apart. Once you're done, firm the seeds into place.
4. To preserve moisture, place plastic wrap over starter trays or pots. Be patient; germination should occur in about one week, but it may take up to three weeks.
5. As seedlings develop, place a fluorescent light 16 hours a day, 3 inches above them (plants also require dark hours).
6. Maintain an ambient temperature of 21° to 24°C during the day and 15° to 18°C at night. 
7. Apply mist frequently.
8. When the seedlings reach a height of 2 inches, move them to separate peat pots or deeper flats filled with fresh potting soil. In flats, plants should be spaced at least 2 inches apart.
9. Harden off seedlings before transplanting by lowering water somewhat and bringing them outdoors (in a shady place protected from the sun) for a couple of hours each day.

How To Harvest Celery? 

• When the first hard frosts arrive, harvest celery in summer and autumn. As a biennial, celery may overwinter in milder regions. Occasionally, it sends forth stems during the coldest months, resuming in the spring before ultimately reaching for the flowers.
• While complete plants can be harvested, plants will continue to produce for longer if individual stems are chopped or picked as needed.
• The components of celery that are harvested are mostly the stalks, which will be above ground.
• Harvest the stalks at your convenience. Fresh celery tastes just as delicious as mature celery.
• Gather stalks exterior to interior. You may begin harvesting when stalks are around 8 inches tall.
• If you build up the soil around the celery to keep it at the right temperature, you can store it in the garden for up to a month. Celery can withstand a single light frost but not multiple ones at once.

Although celery is a cool-season crop, warmth is necessary for all seeds to sprout. In regions with lower temperatures, begin inside with a germination mat at least 8 to 10 weeks before the latest day of local frost. For better results, start celery seeds in the autumn when the weather is still warm and let them develop through winter without frost.