Why You Should Think Twice Before Growing Parsley From Seed

The idea of having a small kitchen garden is one we have all toyed with at some point or another. Whether it's in the backyard, a shared community space, or on a simple window sill, the ease of harvesting our own culinary plants comes with a special sense of pride and satisfaction. As newbies, we usually start with herbs, firmly believing they are easy to grow, only to be disappointed when the parsley seeds are still hiding in the soil three weeks after planting. If you're new to kitchen gardening, think twice about growing your parsley from seed. This herb is a notoriously slow grower, taking up to six weeks to germinate — and even after all that waiting, you might find the seeds didn't germinate at all.

Parsley seeds are fussy, whether they're the flat-leafed variety or curly. They need time and low expectations. Even if your parsley seeds do germinate on the first try, you'll spend over a month of the precious gardening season just waiting. Now, if you are the patient type, by all means get those parsley seed packets. But if you really just want a fresh supply of one of the best herbs to have in your kitchen without too long of a wait, it's much easier to take a trip to your local nursery or supermarket and pick up an inexpensive bushy parsley plant that's already grown.

Getting your parsley plant from the store means you can instantly start cooking with it, no waiting needed. From being one of the fresh herbs that will seriously elevate your steak to giving jarred Alfredo sauce a flavorful punch, parsley is incredibly versatile and can complement a multitude of different dishes. You're also technically purchasing more than just one parsley plant — stores plant several of them closely together in a small pot so that the whole plant looks bigger, bushier, and therefore more appealing to the customer. You can easily plant your store-bought pot out, too. In order for this parsley to survive in your care, you have to repot it and divide it into individual plants, all of which will continue to grow and provide harvest.

Once grown, parsley is not a high-maintenance plant. By skipping the seeding stage, you take an express train to the easy part of the process. Parsley will easily grow in partial shade and won't die on you if you forget to water it once or twice. That said, keeping it well-watered and in a sunny spot will result in the most abundant and flavorful plant. You can technically harvest the parsley leaves for two consecutive years, but the flavor is supreme in the first year — that's why many plant parsley on a yearly basis. And instead of having to grow the pesky seeds every single year, you can simply pop into the store next spring for another fresh parsley batch.