🌿 Parsley

Parsley is the most useful culinary herb, fresh and green with a clean, grassy flavour, and it grows through the year in a mild climate. It does well in partial shade, which makes it useful for awkward spots, and in pots by the back door.

Flat-leaved (French) parsley has more flavour for cooking, while curly parsley is a classic garnish. Parsley is slow to germinate, but sown in succession, it gives an almost year-round supply.

Varieties to try

Giant of Italy (flat-leaved, vigorous, strongly flavoured)Moss Curled (curly, classic garnish)Plain-leaved 2 (flat-leaved, reliable)Hamburg (root parsley, grown for its root)

Sow from March to August, 1 cm deep, directly in the soil in rows 20–30 cm apart, or in pots. Parsley seed is notoriously slow, taking 3–6 weeks to germinate. Pouring boiling water along the drill before sowing, or soaking seeds overnight, can help.

Sow in a moisture-retentive, fertile soil in partial shade in summer. Thin seedlings to 15–20 cm apart. Sow again in July–August for winter pickings in a sheltered spot or cold frame. Parsley dislikes being moved, so sow where it will grow or use deep pots.

Top tips

• Be patient: germination can take 6 weeks.
• Soak seed overnight.
• Sow where it will grow.
• Sow again in summer for winter leaves.

Keep the soil moist, since dry spells cause bolting, and give the plant a little afternoon shade in summer. Feed occasionally with a liquid feed. Remove flower stems as soon as they appear in the second year to extend picking.

Parsley is a biennial: in the second spring it flowers and the leaves lose quality, so resow each year. Carrot root fly can attack parsley, so cover with mesh. Slugs and aphids are the other pests. Protect winter plants with a cloche.

Top tips

• Resow each year.
• Cover with mesh against carrot fly.
• Water in dry spells.
• Use a cloche in winter.

Watch out for

Carrot root flySlugsAphidsBolting in the second year

Begin picking when plants have several leaf stems, about 10–12 weeks after sowing. Cut the outer stems at the base, leaving the inner ones to grow, and never take more than a third of the plant at once. Regular harvesting prompts new growth.

In mild areas, parsley crops through the winter. In spring of the second year, plants will flower; leave one or two to seed for self-sown plants, and discard the rest. Pull up old plants after flowering.

Top tips

• Cut outer stems at the base.
• Take no more than a third at once.
• Let one plant self-seed.
• Replace plants every year.

Chop fresh parsley over almost any savoury dish, from soups and stews to salads, fish, potatoes and eggs. Flat-leaved parsley is the base of tabbouleh, gremolata, salsa verde, chimichurri and persillade. Add the stalks to stocks, and finish dishes with the leaves.

Fresh parsley keeps for a week in the fridge with stems in a glass of water, loosely covered. To preserve, chop and freeze it in ice-cube trays with water or oil, or freeze whole sprigs in bags. Dried parsley is a poor substitute.

Top tips

• Freeze chopped in ice-cube trays.
• Stand stems in water in the fridge.
• Use the stalks in stock.
• Add at the end for freshness.