How to grow dill and parsley at home all year round?

Useful Tips

Edible greens - an excellent and very useful food supplement that we are all used to: parsley, dill, basil, cilantro, celery and other herbs give a unique aroma and taste to our usual daily dishes. It turns out that they can be grown on a windowsill all year round, if you know some secrets, which I would like to talk about today.

When choosing dishes, it is better to pay attention to plastic containers, wooden boxes often leak. It is possible to use one long container for different types of herbs, but remember that some herbs do not go well with each other, as they require more or less watering.

In a wide dish with soil, you can plant immediately several types of greenerybut it is better if southern herbs such as marjoram, oregano or thymewill grow in a separate bowl. Parsley, dill, celery quite get along side by side in one pot.

The soil for herbs should consist of soil, peat, river sand and sawdust in equal proportions. Expanded clay or stones should be placed on the bottom of the dishes as drainage.

How to grow onions for herbs?

Easiest to grow on a windowsill green onions: for it you can use water, not soil... Pour settled water into a jar, place an onion previously scalded with boiling water on top. Make sure that only the roots touch the water.

After a short time, the bulb will shoot green arrowsthat should be trimmed as needed. The arrows will continue to grow until the bulb shrivels. Remember to change the water regularly.

It is not at all necessary to use regular glass jars. Some housewives have adapted as containers juice packaging:

Or plastic egg packaging:

Or plastic bottle with slotted holes:

Green onions grow well in containers with soil depth from 7 centimeters and more. Onions love light, so it is better to place containers on a light south window. If you have a dark apartment, you will need to install additional lighting. In low light, ready-made bow will not have a rich taste and will not contain those beneficial substances that it should have.

Small onions with a diameter of about 2 centimeters can be used for feathering. They can be bought ready-made, or collected on your own plot in the summer. Water the soil in containers well, and then lower the bulbs into it from a distance 2 centimeters from each other so that half of the onion is in the ground.

The first onion feathers should appear pretty soon. Should water the groundso that it does not dry out. You can start the first cut of onions in 3 weeks after landing.

Greens at home: how to grow dill and parsley at home?

Dill very unpretentious and grows easily, however, in order for the herb to be ready for use, it will take about 1.5 months... For a good harvest, you need to water the grass a lot and provide it with good lighting. In winter, you may need additional daylight lamp... It is also a good idea to feed the plants with mineral fertilizers for indoor plants.

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Parsley also grows well on the windowsill, but before sowing the seeds should leave in water for a day... This is necessary so that all essential oils that interfere with rapid germination evaporate. After that, you need to sow the seeds to a depth of approximately 0.5 centimeters... Until the first shoots have emerged from the ground, leave the dish with seeds in a dark place.

You need to water the plants every day. So that the shoots do not interfere with the growth of each other, they need to be thinned out... After the first harvest, you should feed the parsley with mineral fertilizers.

Homemade greens: how to grow salad on the windowsill?

Watercress grows very quickly - already on the 5th day after sowing shoots can be seen. This plant is very unpretentious and can grow even without soil: on wet sawdust, napkins or cloth. The crop can be harvested already 2-3 weeks after sowing.

Seeds are planted to a depth of about 0.5 centimeters rows, the distance between which is about 10 centimeters, they are immediately watered and placed in a dark place. After sprouting, you need to put the salad on the windowsill. Lettuce loves spraying, ventilated area, good watering. You also need to ensure that the soil was loose all the timeif lettuce grows in the ground.

How to grow greens on a windowsill: basil

Basil Is a very aromatic herb that is widely used in Mediterranean cuisine. The plant is very thermophilic and photophilous. If basil is grown in winter, it will need additional lighting... This herb also loves moisture very much, so you need to water it every day and only in the morning.

You can sow seeds in pots for regular flowers. After seed germination, it is better to feed the plant complex fertilizers... So that the sprouts do not interfere with each other, it is better to plant them. If the basil starts to bloom, remove the peduncleto prolong the life of the plant.

Moon Tips: When growing herbs at home, remember to follow the lunar rhythms. Since we eat leaves, we should sow herbs necessarily on the growing moon so that they gain strength, and the energy goes into the growth of shoots. In order for the herbs to sprout quickly, it is better to sow them in days of Fire (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius)as well as in days of Water (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces).

Avoid watering plants in days of Air (Gemini, Libra, Aquarius)... If the grass does not require daily watering, choose days of Waterwhen the moon is at Cancer, Scorpio or Pisces.

Good days for planting herbs at home this summer: June 10-14, June 19-22, July 9-11, July 17-20, August 3-5, August 13-16, 2013

Lucky days for harvesting herbs from the windowsill this summer: June 9-11, June 19-21, July 16-18, August 13-14, 2013

Learn more about Gardener's lunar calendar for June 2013 can be read here.

Dill and parsley are among the most popular greens in the world. These herbs contain many vital vitamins and trace elements, they are included in recipes for a large number of dishes, their medicinal properties are widely used in folk medicine.

A rare housewife does not dream of growing these herbs on her own at home and having at hand at any time of the year fresh greens without nitrates and other toxic substances. How to plant dill and parsley at home on the windowsill? It is not that difficult, you just need to follow some simple steps.

What varieties of seeds to choose for growing at home?

You can grow greens at home on a windowsill all year round. It should be noted that the cultivation of dill and parsley in spring and summer takes place without much hassle. But in the winter, additional lighting will be required in the form of fluorescent lamps.

Dill varieties must be chosen depending on the purpose for which it is supposed to be used. If you need to get umbrellas for conservation, then it is better to choose the early varieties Gribovsky and Grenadier.If you need to get more greenery, then choose mid-season varieties - Richelieu, Umbrella, Kibray. The richest harvests in greens are produced by late varieties - Alligator, Buyan, Russian giant.

Vegetable growers recommend choosing early-ripening varieties of parsley: curly parsley - varieties Moscaruse and Astra, flat parsley - varieties Irinka, Plain, Laika, Russian feast.

Preparation of the necessary equipment and soil

Before you start sowing dill and parsley on the windowsill, you need to collect the following materials:

1. Purchase utensils for growing - pots, boxes. They can be ceramic, plastic, ordinary floral, always with holes at the bottom for the outflow of excess moisture. Their volume will depend on the desired amount of greenery.
2. Prepare drainage material - expanded clay, it is sold in stores, or fragments of ceramics, in order to spread out along the bottom of the pots.
3. Stock up on earth with vermicompost or coconut tablets. Coconut tablets are available at specialty stores.
4. Prepare potassium permanganate. But since it is not easy to find it in our time, it is possible to replace it with hydrogen peroxide or boric acid.
5. Buy seeds of the selected variety for planting.
6. Prepare a container of water with a spray bottle.

Pretreatment and sowing of seeds

2-3 days before sowing on the windowsill, you need to start preparing the seeds:

1. It is advisable to soak them in plain water, while those seeds that have surfaced are best removed. They will not produce the desired harvest. Leave the seeds in water overnight.
2. Drain the water in the morning, and soak the seeds in a bright pink warm solution of potassium permanganate for 2-3 hours. This procedure disinfects the seeds, and the plant will not hurt as a result.

Potassium permanganate can be replaced with hydrogen peroxide solution. In this case, it must be heated to 38-40 degrees and the seeds must be soaked in it for 5-6 minutes.

Another option is also allowed - 0.5 tsp. Dissolve boric acid in 1 glass of warm water and soak the seeds for 2-3 hours. Further:

1. After soaking, rinse the seeds well. Put to dry on cheesecloth.
2. Prepare containers for planting. Pour expanded clay with a height of 1-2 cm, or spread ceramic fragments along the bottom.
3. Pour earth on top of the drainage layer not reaching 4-5 cm from the top of the container.
4. The soil from above must be watered with settled water.
5. Sow dried seeds in any way.
6. Pour another layer of earth 2 cm thick on top.
7. Drizzle lightly again.
8. Cover the containers with plastic wrap to create a greenhouse effect, and place them on the windowsill. For seed germination, the ambient temperature should be around 18 degrees.

The first sprouts of dill will appear in about a week, and for parsley in 2 weeks.

How to properly care for seedlings?

1. After the sprouts appear, you need to remove the film.
2. It is advisable to thin out too dense seedlings.
3. For the first month, water regularly a little, less in winter, slightly increase watering in summer.
4. It is advisable to spray the dill with water from a spray bottle.
5. Plants love sunlight, they need to receive it at least 3-4 hours a day, therefore, in the autumn-winter period, additional lighting with fluorescent lamps will be required.
6. Growing temperature should be around 18 degrees.
7. Pots of herbs should be rotated periodically so that the stems do not grow to one side.
8. If the soil was not fertile enough, then once a month, fertilizing with vermicompost is required. It must be carefully poured into the gaps between the plants in the amount of 2-3 tablespoons per pot.

The first crop can be harvested from dill after 5 weeks from the moment of sowing, and from parsley after one and a half to two months.

How to grow parsley from root vegetables?

If you want to get a harvest of parsley in a shorter time, then you can grow it from root crops.

If there is such an opportunity, then at the end of October it is necessary to dig up parsley roots from the garden bed and transplant them into a previously prepared container with earth and drainage about 20 cm deep, as described earlier.

The tops of the root crop should protrude slightly from the ground. If there is no vegetable garden, then you can buy root vegetables in the store. They should be at least 5 cm long and 2-3 cm thick. Watering is moderate, more abundant in summer than in winter. Place the container in a sunny place. The first shoots will appear in a few days. The plant must be kept at a temperature of about 18 degrees.

Growing parsley and dill on a windowsill in an eggshell

There is also such an original way. Eggshell, due to the presence of a large amount of calcium, as well as phosphorus and nitrogen, is used as a fertilizer.

In order to sow dill and parsley in an eggshell, you need to perform the following simple steps:

1. Rinse and dry the shell.
2. Prepare the seeds as described earlier.
3. Make a small hole in the bottom of the shell.
4. Fill the shell halfway with soil.
5. Place a few seeds in each shell and cover with earth.
6. Place the shells with soil and seeds in an egg cage and place on a windowsill.
7. Water as needed.

The shell in this method acts as a fertilizer. However, large and branched plants will not work with this sowing method.

As can be seen from the above, it is not difficult to sow and grow dill and parsley at home on the windowsill, it is quite economical and invaluable for health. And how fresh and juicy greens will delight the eye in cold winter, and what a special taste it will give to ordinary dishes! In addition, in the same way, you can successfully grow cilantro, green onions, watercress and even green peas at home.