Indoor Herb Progress with Parsley Transplants

No that's not a new abstract deconstruction of some over priced restaurant dish. It is those herb seeds I planted back on January 2nd. Parsley is growing the fastest and will need to be transplanted over the next week.  I am going to use the clear storage containers right away and move them in and of the backyard.

The parsley is green. Seems like the flash changed the color of the parsley quite a bit. I wanted to note the reason we started a lot of the perennial herbs indoors so early is because they are slow to germinate. Next to the parsley are rosemary and lavender also planted on January 2nd. Although some germinated after 2 weeks, a few more just came up last week. They germinate and grow slowly. You want to start these 2 herbs indoors really early. Okay back to the parsley.

Lavender and Rosemary: Gary Pilarchik

22 Days of Parsley Growing under Lights: Gary Pilarchik

The parsley had no problems growing under grow lights and I probably should have started them now versus three weeks ago but... I have an excuse to try out my greenhouse container idea.

Parsley Transplants to Be: Gary Pilarchik

You might notice the plug on the left is light and dry. The reason you want to start transplanting your herbs when they get to this size is because they will dry out quickly. I over plant my cells and divide. It works. You can go with 1 or 2 seeds per cell and grow them larger before transplanting.

I broke the plugs up into pieces making sure I get a good number of plants in each clump. They all won't survive but that is fine. At least one will survive per cup and give you a plant for the garden. Honestly, you probably will have the chance to divide them again. Parsley is a bit picky with root disturbance when they get older, so be careful.

Dividing Parsley for Transplanting: Gary Pilarchik

I ended up with 5 clumps of parsley from 2 plugs. I typically transplant them into plastic pots or cups. I do not use peat pots. They are an absolute fail unless you are in a full greenhouse or using them outdoors. Indoors... they grow algae, wick water away and dry out too fast and decompose.  I may not be pure green but as I say go green where you can.

Transplanting Parsley/Root Space: Gary Pilarchik

Some plants need more care with their roots. Parsley is one of them. Make sure you make a hole big enough for the roots to extend down into the mix. Fill in around them and make sure the roots aren't clumped up. I believe parsley creates a tap type root.

Parsley in Transplant Pots: Gary Pilarchik

I ended up with what you see from 2 plugs. There are 27 cells of parsley in the seed trays I planted. What starts out as small seeds can soon take over you home. I will have over 60 parsley plants to sell, give away and plant. And because I over seed... I could probably divide them further. The plants will go into the containers and get moved up and down those steps in the background. 

60 parsley plants? What was I thinking? Really... what was I thinking? I guess a parsley oven dehydration blog will show up in the Summer.

Parsley Transplants in a Storage Container?: Gary Pilarchik