Parsley
Curly Parsley, Flat-Leaf Parsley, Italian Parsley, Hamburg Parsley, Garden Parsley, Parsley
Biennial grown as annual. Slow to germinate (14–28 days) — soak seeds overnight. Start indoors 8–10 weeks before last frost or direct sow 4–6 weeks before. Transplants are slow to recover; handle root carefully. Once established, very productive for months. Overwinters in zones 6+ for early spring harvest. Flat-leaf (Italian) generally more flavorful than curly.
- Germination
- 14–28 days
- Soil temperature
- 10–21 °C
- Harvest after sowing
- 70–90 days
- Spacing
- 15–25 cm
When to plant parsley
Start seeds indoors 8–10 weeks before your last spring frost, and plant out 0–2 weeks before it.
Dashed line: typical last spring frost in zone 7 (Apr 5). Zone dates are averages; most of the UK is zone 8–9, central Europe 6–7 and the Baltics and Scandinavia 4–6. In the app, Tomatograph uses your garden's own frost dates.
How to grow parsley
- 1
Sow
Parsley is slow, taking 14–28 days to sprout. Soak seed overnight, then sow 6 mm deep indoors 8–10 weeks before the last frost, or outdoors 4–6 weeks before.
- 2
Plant out
Transplant carefully, keeping the root ball intact, around the last frost. Established plants shrug off light frost.
- 3
Grow on
Water during dry spells and feed lightly. Flat-leaf parsley usually has more flavour than curly.
- 4
Harvest
Cut outer stems at the base from about 70 days. Plants often overwinter and give an early spring crop before flowering.
Growing conditions
Light
Full sun
Water
Medium water
Temperature
4–27 °C
Frost tolerance
Frost-hardy — tolerates frost
Days to maturity
90 days
Plant spacing
20 cm
Ideal soil pH
5.5–6.5
How Tomatograph watches your parsley
Tomatograph checks your local forecast every morning and only speaks up when one of these applies to your garden.
- First frost within 14 daysReminder to mulch the roots before winter.
- 3 days at 35 °C or aboveHeat-wave alert while plants are flowering or fruiting: shade and water early.
- Humidity above 80% for 48 hoursCheck for septoria blight, which thrives in those conditions.
- Within a week of maturityHarvest-window reminder based on when you planted.
Parsley questions
- When should I plant parsley?
- Start seeds indoors 8–10 weeks before your last spring frost, and plant out 0–2 weeks before it.
- How long do parsley seeds take to germinate?
- Usually 14–28 days at a soil temperature of 10–21 °C.
- How long until I can harvest parsley?
- About 70–90 days after sowing, depending on variety and weather.
- How far apart should I plant parsley?
- Allow 15–25 cm between plants.
- What grows well with parsley?
- Good neighbours include tomato, carrot, asparagus.
Growing guide written by Tomatograph. Planting figures from openplantdb (CC0 1.0). Zone frost dates are averages from openplantdb (CC0 1.0).