Parsley is one of the most popular spicy herbs, loved by many for its excellent taste and many beneficial properties. Most summer residents can not imagine their sites without this culture, but not everyone knows the correct and most profitable technology for planting it. In this article, we consider whether it is possible to sow parsley in the winter, what are the advantages and disadvantages of winter planting, as well as the features of growing herbs and useful tips for care.

Did you know? The ancient Greeks and Romans had a fragrant spice in high esteem - not a single sauce or salad could do without it. In addition to cooking, parsley was also actively used in cosmetology, because people believed that it promotes skin rejuvenation. In ancient Greece, countless beliefs were made about this amazing plant - for example, it was believed that if you break the parsley shoot while pronouncing the name of the enemy, it will certainly bring him death.

Advantages and disadvantages of winter planting

Before proceeding with the planting of parsley seeds in open ground, any summer resident should ask about the time of this event. Traditionally, only two types of planting are practiced - in the spring and in the fall before winter. There is no significant difference between spring and winter crops.However, the second option for many reasons is considered more profitable and more popular among experienced gardeners. Contrary to popular belief, parsley is very cold-resistant and easily tolerates frosts, so winter planting of the crop will not do any harm to crops or seedlings.

• Other technology benefits include the following:
• the possibility of an early harvest;
• high resistance of winter crops to diseases and low temperatures;
• significant acceleration of seedling growth;
• the possibility of reusing the beds;
• simplification of agricultural work to care for the crop;
• saving time and labor.

Parsley seeds planted in the cold season are characterized by more active growth and the formation of strong, hardened plants. Given the other features and good immunity of this culture, most gardeners recommend and actively practice winter planting themselves. However, there are also negative aspects to this method, which cause certain difficulties for beginning gardeners.

• They most often include the following:
• the difficulty of accurately determining the timing of sowing;
• changeable and unpredictable weather conditions;
• risk of freezing seeds;
• limited shelf life and the inability to transport the crop.

All these disadvantages and risks can be easily minimized if you responsibly approach this procedure and take advantage of already proven recommendations and tips for planting and further care of plants.

Important! The best predecessors for the crop are cucumbers, potatoes, cabbage and carrots. However, after parsley, these cultures should be planted in their original place no earlier than 3 years later.

When to plant parsley in the winter

Inexperienced gardeners, inspired by the benefits of winter planting, often make the most common and dangerous mistake - they choose the wrong time for sowing seeds. In an effort to sow the seeds into the soil as quickly as possible, gardeners contribute to their premature germination, as a result of which the sprouts die during the first frosts. In order for the culture to give friendly and healthy seedlings in the spring, it is best to focus on late autumn - late October - early November.However, in the event of prolonged warm or rainy weather, the landing dates must be postponed until the final establishment of cold weather. The most suitable time for starting work can be determined by the readiness of the soil - it should freeze at least 2-3 cm. Daytime temperature during this period should not exceed +2 ... + 3 degrees - seeds planted at this time will be protected from premature germination and provided with the most comfortable conditions.

Preparatory work before landing

After the final determination of the seed planting dates, active preparations for planting the crop should begin. Preparatory work includes the selection of the most suitable variety for cultivation, preparation of the site and seed. Let's consider these points in more detail.

Did you know? According to experts, winter parsley has more useful properties than ordinary. Regular consumption of it will help normalize the work of the digestive tract, regulate metabolic processes, strengthen the immune system and accelerate recovery from diseases of the cardiovascular system.

Choosing the Right Grade

When deciding to plant parsley in the winter, you should be responsible for choosing a variety, since not all varieties of culture are suitable for winter planting. When choosing a spice, it is best to proceed from taste preferences and its features, so that in the future there will be no difficulties when growing and leaving. First you need to decide on the type - all varieties of parsley are divided into leaf and root.

Leaf varieties are distinguished by juicy, bright green and tasty greens, and root is most valuable in root ones. However, choosing the root variety of parsley for growing, it is worth considering that they will also have greens - however, it is much worse in quality. Experienced gardeners still prefer leaf parsley for a pronounced rich taste, amazing aroma and unpretentiousness in care.

The following winter-hardy varieties deserve special attention:

A good option would also be to purchase such varieties:

If there is a need for root parsley, then The following varieties are best suited for growing:

Site preparation

In order to get a decent crop, the garden bed chosen for growing parsley must be taken care of in advance - it is best to start at the end of October. Preference should be given to an open, sunny area, well protected from the wind, although the culture also reacts calmly to slight shading. Parsley will feel most comfortable in loose, nutritious, rich in organic and mineral fertilizers soil. It is also recommended to monitor the acidity of the substrate - it should be weak or neutral.

At the end of October, the land allocated for culture is carefully dug up - approximately 30–35 cm, after which they are leveled and fertilizers applied. Organic fertilizers are more suitable for planting root parsley, and mineral nutrients are best applied for leafy cultivars - superphosphate and ammonium nitrate are ideal for this purpose. Organic fertilizers, for example, manure, experienced gardeners recommend pre-mixed with sand - this will protect the seeds from rotting, and the soil will provide good moisture permeability.The final stage is making grooves. Usually they are limited to two or three rows, and the row-spacing is 10 cm. In the case of more grooves, the distance between the rows is increased to 15–20 cm. This is due to the use of a huge amount of seeds, characteristic of winter planting, to increase the percentage of germination of most of them in spring time. After the preparatory work is completed, the bed must be covered with a film on top in order to protect the earth from getting wet and to preserve the integrity of the grooves.

Seed preparation before planting

Parsley grains are characterized by extremely long germination due to the high content of various essential oils in them. That is why the process of their preparation is greatly simplified. First of all, the seed should be carefully selected to exclude poor-quality or affected specimens. The disinfection procedure follows - any disinfectant solution, for example, boric acid or potassium permanganate, is suitable for this. It is necessary to soak the cloth or gauze with the chosen product, wrap the seeds in it and leave it for one night in a warm room.

Important! Chemical treatment of parsley is strongly discouraged due to its ability to accumulate in the plant, which may subsequently affect health.

At the end of the preparatory process, you can also use one of the methods of soaking seeds for their early germination:

1. The simplest and most reliable is to soak the seeds in water the night before planting. However, it is important not to forget to pour them before this hot water, since room temperature water is not able to dissolve the essential oils on the surface of the grains.
2. You can also speed up seed germination with vodka. - Essential oils are highly soluble in alcohol. This is done as follows: a small amount of vodka is poured onto the bottom of a shallow container, after which the seeds, previously wrapped in a gauze bandage, are lowered into the liquid for 15–20 minutes. Longer soaking is unacceptable, as vodka can burn seeds. After the specified time, the bandage must be removed from the container and be sure to rinse with water. Seeds will be ready for planting after they have dried thoroughly. According to gardeners, this method of seed treatment is able to accelerate their germination by 2-3 times.
3. Soaking seeds in wood ash is no less effective. For this, 3 tablespoons of ash are added to a liter jar, after which they are filled to the top with water and left to infuse for 2 days, not forgetting to stir occasionally. Next, the resulting mixture is carefully drained, a gauze bag with seeds is placed in it and kept for 6-7 hours.
4. Very popular among gardeners ordinary soaking of seeds in warm water with the addition of 1 teaspoon of salt. This is done exactly one day before the intended disembarkation for their swelling as soon as possible.

Experienced gardeners strongly recommend that a week before planting, they also harden the sprouted seeds - place them on the lower shelf of the refrigerator. This is the best way to prepare the seed for the cold and reduce the risk of premature decay.

How to plant parsley in the winter

Turning to the most crucial and important part - sowing seeds in open ground, special attention should be paid to the weather conditions of the region - in the Moscow Region, for example, winter planting of parsley is usually practiced after setting the temperature from +3 to +4 degrees. It should be noted that autumn planting of parsley involves the use of a large number of seeds - experienced gardeners add about 30–35% to the normal rate.

This is done in reserve, since none of the existing methods to increase seed germination does not guarantee their preservation by 100%. The technology of planting greens in autumn does not differ much from the same procedure in spring - a significant difference is observed only in the distance between the grooves.

General recommendations for winter planting of parsley look like this:

1. The film, which was covered on top of the bed, must be set aside, and it is recommended that the bottom of the grooves be strewed with a thick layer of sand, which helps to preserve the seeds.
2. Next, the seeds are carefully laid in furrows and sprinkled on top with a previously prepared dry nutrient substrate, which is subsequently compacted.
3. To avoid the formation of a “soil crust” that impedes the full development of plants, mulching of the soil is mandatory - peat or humus is best for this purpose.
4. In case of prolonged rains, the bed must again be covered with a film to protect the seeds from premature moisture. Once the frosts are finally established, the covering material can be removed.

Care for winter parsley in the spring and summer

Caring for a parsley planted in autumn will not be difficult - it is enough to carry out standard agricultural work in a timely manner. These include watering, top dressing, loosening the soil and regular removal of weeds. When the first shoots appear in spring, experienced gardeners recommend covering the parsley with a translucent film - so the crops will survive the aggressive environmental effects. As soon as 2-3 real leaflets become visible on the sprouts, parsley will need to be thinned out.

This procedure is usually carried out by experienced gardeners twice - the first time with the aim of forming beds on which the strongest and healthiest sprouts should remain, and the second after the appearance of 6-7 leaves. Then, between the rows they significantly reduce the distance to 5-6 cm. In addition to thinning, the crop also needs loosening the soil - however, it is worth starting this procedure only after stable, warm weather is established. In this case, it is necessary to carefully monitor the structure of the soil - it should not be excessively dense.

At first, there is no need to worry about watering - thanks to the melting snow, the seeds will be provided with sufficient moisture. In the future, watering is performed as the soil dries up - waterlogging is highly undesirable due to the risk of rot. It is best to perform this procedure in the evening and only with warm water. Weeds that appear near and on the site itself must be removed immediately - most of them are sources of dangerous pests. After the snow has finally melted and the air temperature has been established in the region of +8 ... + 10 degrees, the plants are fed with complex fertilizers - parsley also needs mineral substances for full growth and development: superphosphate, nitrate and potassium chloride.But organic fertilizers should not be forgotten - regular application of compost and mullein infusion to the soil will significantly improve the quality of crops. By the end of the season, the application of nitrogen-containing fertilizers should be minimized, since this element has the ability to accumulate on the surface of plants. It will not be superfluous to carry out foliar dressing with microelements, to which parsley also responds well - about 2-3 times per season.

Possible diseases and pests

Like any culture, parsley is also susceptible to attack by dangerous diseases and pests, which can significantly reduce the yield and cause a lot of trouble during treatment and care. The most harmful ailments of the culture are rust, powdery mildew, white leaf spot and black rot. Most of them affect parsley in any growing season.

However, the symptoms for each disease are individual:

1. Rust parsley is easily recognizable by the characteristic yellow-brown spots that occur on all the aerial organs of the plant.
2. Powdery mildew It is considered one of the most malignant ailments, widespread everywhere, and manifests itself most often on the leaves, inflorescences and stems of plants in the form of an unpleasant whitish plaque. Later it will acquire a dark gray color, and the affected parts of the parsley will become stiff, brittle and unsuitable for consumption.
3. White spotting, or septoria, It mainly affects plant leaves, although seeds can also be affected. Spots of different sizes and shapes appear on both sides of the leaf blades, which later turn into mushroom pycnids in the form of small black dots.With a high degree of damage, the disease can spoil up to 70% of the crop.
4. For black rot typical damage to the roots of the plant, which quickly spreads to the other organs of the plant. The development of the pathogen is promoted by high temperature and humidity - when warm weather is established, the roots and leaves begin to decay rapidly, becoming covered by an unpleasant black coating.

As for pests, the most common ones are considered leaf carrot, carrot fly and gourd aphids. Plants damaged by these insects lag far behind in growth, their surface is covered with a painful purple color, and the leaves quickly turn yellow and dry out. There are also frequent cases of stalk bending, by the unnatural appearance of which it is easy to determine the invasion of parasites. Only preventive measures aimed at creating conditions that are comfortable and favorable for parsley will help prevent the emergence of misfortunes, namely:

• regular inspection of crops for signs of damage;
• weed control;
• thorough cleaning of the site from vegetable debris;
• crop rotation compliance;
• timely removal of diseased specimens;
• compliance with the rules of watering, tillage and the application of trace elements.

Harvesting and storage

Harvesting the crop depends on the further purpose of its use - it can be freezing, drying, salting or harvesting in oil. This procedure is carried out as the plants mature and necessary. In order to get a more aromatic raw material for drying, it is necessary to stop watering a few weeks before its collection. If parsley is grown for instant consumption, then the irrigation regime is observed in such a way that the soil moisture remains at the level of 75–80%. To store the roots of parsley, usually small wooden boxes filled with sand or sawdust are used, after which they are rearranged in a cool dark room.The shelf life of the culture depends on the method - as a rule, it varies from several weeks to six months, during which you can enjoy a delicious and juicy spice, adding to various dishes. Planting parsley in the winter is a rather profitable and fairly simple procedure that is available even to beginner gardeners. Practicing winter crop planting, you can achieve the desired emerald green in record time, and delight yourself with this fragrant seasoning throughout the cold season.