How to Space Cilantro Plants

The strong, aromatic flavor of cilantro complements many culinary pursuits. Growing the herb fresh ensures you have a steady supply when it's at its peak flavor. Cilantro grows well in the cool season garden and typically is grown as a fall or spring crop. The herb bolts and flowers in warm summer weather, which ruins the flavor of the leaves. The seeds, when allowed to form, provide another culinary spice: coriander. Proper spacing allows you to make the most of your available garden space while providing the cilantro with the room it needs to grow well.

Compost
Spade
Hoe

Instructions

- 1
  Spread compost over the surface of the garden bed. Dig the compost into the top 6 inches of soil and then rake over the top of the bed to smooth the seeding surface.
- 2
  Draw the corner of a hoe blade down each row in the garden bed to form a half-inch deep planting furrow. Space the row furrows 15 to 18 inches apart.
- 3
  Drop the cilantro seeds into the furrow, spacing the seeds two to four inches apart. Fill in the furrow with soil after sowing.
- 4
  Mist the bed with water so the top 6 inches remains moist. Cilantro seeds germinate in one to two weeks.
- 5
  Thin the seedlings once they are 2 to 3 inches tall and after they produce their first full set of leaves. Pluck out the extra plants so the remaining plants are four inches apart in the row. If you are growing cilantro for the seeds, space the plants eight inches apart.

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