How to Grow Italian Parsley in Your Kitchen

The light green, feathery foliage of Italian parsley resembles celery leaves but provides the fresh flavor of parsley to cooked and raw dishes. Although it's a biennial, Italian parsley more commonly grows as an annual for its foliage since the herb only produces seed in the second year. Parsley plants require minimal care and grow well in pots, making them a suitable addition to the indoor kitchen herb garden. With proper care, the Italian parsley plant will produce edible leaves at any time of year.

Pot
Drip tray
Potting soil
Parsley seedling
Soluble fertilizer

Instructions

- 1
  Fill a 6- to 8-inch-diameter pot with moist potting soil. Set the pot on top a drip tray so any moisture that leaks from its drainage holes doesn't damage interior surfaces.
- 2
  Plant a single parsley seedling in the soil, setting it at the same depth it was growing at previously in its nursery pot. Italian parsley reaches between 6 and 9 inches tall with a comparable spread, so only one plant fits in a single pot.
- 3
  Set the pot in a sunny kitchen windowsill. A window that supplies at least six hours of direct sunlight is ideal.
- 4
  Water the plant every three to five days, or when the soil surface begins to dry out. Empty the drip tray beneath the pot after watering. Parsley grows best in moist soil and doesn't tolerate drying out.
- 5
  Fertilize the soil in the pot every two months with a soluble foliage plant fertilizer. Apply the fertilizer at the rate recommended on the label. Italian parsley only requires infrequent feeding to produce well.
- 6
  Pick leaves from the outside of the plant as you need them after the plant begins mature growth. Italian parsley is ready for harvesting once the leaves develop three segments on the outer stems.

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