Growing cilantro gives you two herbs for the price of one. Although the whole plant is generally referred to as coriander, in the United States, the leaves when eaten fresh is referred to as cilantro. The seeds have an entirely different flavor and are called coriander, even in the U.S. Don’t let this confuse you. Whatever you call it, cilantro is a delicious, versatile herb.
Fresh cilantro leaves are a popular herb in many ethnic dishes, particularly in India, Mexico, and China. However, it has a love it or hates it flavor. Most people consider the flavor cooling and grassy, but for some reason, many people experience it as soapy. Even Julia Child hated cilantro.
How to Grow Cilantro
Sow seeds thickly in a wide, shallow container; then, as soon as plants are 3 to 4 inches tall and sporting a couple of cuttable leaves, use scissors to cut off some foliage for cooking as shown.
Shear from a different section of the container every time, rotating the pot as you go and never letting plants in any area mature. By the time you get back to the first section harvested, new leaves will have appeared.
Cilantro Growing Tips
1. Select a bowl-shaped container at least 18 inches wide and 8 to 10 inches deep.
2. Fill the pot with a fast-draining potting soil; mix in organic granular fertilizer.
3. Before seeding, moisten the soil using a fine spray from the hose. Because the seeds are fairly small, mix them in a bowl with sand (3 parts sand to 1 part seed) so they’ll disperse more evenly. Sow the seeds, then cover lightly with soil.
4. Gently mist the soil so as not to displace the seeds.
5. Place containers in full sun or, if you live in a hot climate, light shade. Seeds should germinate in 7 to 10 days.
6. Harvest at least weekly to keep leaves coming. Using this method, it’s possible to harvest four crops of cilantro from a single pot.
Troubleshooting
Cilantro occasionally has problems with aphids and whitefly, wilt, or mildew. For the insects, use insecticidal soap. To prevent or control wilt and mildew, make sure you clean up spent cilantro plants at the end of the season, and remove any infected plants as soon as possible.
One of the surprises that most gardeners get from cilantro is that it moves through its life cycle so quickly, especially in spring. If you are lucky enough to live in a mild winter climate, fall and winter give you the longest season to harvest. Once you understand this fast little plant, it’s easy to manage. Give it its own patch in the garden where you can harvest, then ignore, then harvest again. Harvest while it’s low, let it get tall when it wants to, then cut off the tall plants after the seeds drop to get it out of the way. This makes room for the new plants that start themselves from the fallen seeds. Or, of course, you can set out new plants every 3 to 4 weeks for as long as we have them in the stores, but the harvest and ignore technique will get you through the in-between times.
Harvest & Uses
Cilantro is very delicate and should be used fresh, at the end of cooking. The best way to store cilantro for future use is by freezing.
The seeds can be harvested green or you can wait until they have dried. The taste is a bit fresher in the green stage. You can store them in the refrigerator for several weeks or freeze them the same way you would the leaves.
You can also wait until most of the seeds have dried and turned brown. Cut off the entire seed head and store in a paper bag until the seeds have come loose. Then store in an airtight container and don’t grind them until you need to use them