Grow your own Parsley 2009

• It is a biennial, so it will begin to produce seed every 2 years which ends the plants use as a herb.
• Feed monthly with a dose of general liquid fertiliser to keep the plants healthy.
• Parsley does not usually suffer from pests and disease.
• Keep them in a sunny spot and ensure the pot compost is kept moist.
• To harvest: always use the outer leaves and cut the stems off close to the ground.

The above photo shows the parsley plant I bought on 11 August and I planted it in a fairly small pot, thinking it would be OK. But it started to turn yellow, even though I’d given it enough water and it had plenty of sunshine.

The photo below was taken 18 August 2009:

So after some Internet research I found out that containers for growing parsley should be at least 30cm deep. So I decided to plant it in the huge herb pot with my Rosemary and Thyme. I had to move the chives that I planted in there, so hopefully they won’t mind being moved about!
I also picked off all the yellow leaves on the parsley as apparently this means the plant is suffering from malnutrition. I had already put some fertilizer in the huge herb pot so hopefully the parsley will grow better in here. You should also pick off any flowers too.

The photo below was taken 5 September 2009:

The Parsley didn’t really perk up, so I gave it some Miracle Grow and it started to grow some new leaves. It still has some leaves that are yellow, so I think it needs another hit of Miracle Grow! 

The photo below was taken 19 September 2009:

I didn’t end up feeding the parsley anymore Miracle Grow and it is doing alright on its own, growing bright new green leaves and there haven’t been any leaves turning yellow, so I’m pretty pleased that it’s perking up!

The photo below was taken 3 November 2009:

I’m really surprised that the parsley is still going strong, considering it was the most sickly looking plant when I bought all my herbs and planted them. I haven’t been watering any of my plants over the last month, I’ve just been letting them get their moisture from the rain and as you can see this parsley has had a little shower very recently.