How to Propagate Parsley

Indoors

• 1

  Fill a pot or planting tray with a commercial potting soil.

• 2

  Place the pot in a basin of water and allow the soil to absorb water until it is evenly moist. Alternatively, spray the potting soil lightly with water.

• 3

  Sprinkle the parsley seeds thinly on the surface of the soil. Cover the seeds with a dusting of light soil, or press the seeds into the soil. The seeds should be covered with soil no more than two to three times the diameter of the seeds.

• 4

  Cover the planting container with clear plastic. Place the container in moderate light, where temperatures are maintained between 65 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

• 5

  Mist lightly as needed to keep the soil slightly damp. Never allow the soil to become dry.

• 6

  Remove the plastic when the seeds germinate. Move the planting container into bright light.

• 7

  Continue to water as needed to keep the potting soil consistently moist, but never allow it to become soggy.

• 8

  Fertilize the parsley seedlings about a week after the seeds germinate. Use a weak solution of a liquid fertilizer for indoor plants. Dilute the fertilizer to half strength.

• 9

  Move the parsley to individual pots when the seedlings have one or two sets of true leaves, which are the leaves that develop after the initial seedling leaves.

• 10

  Plant the parsley seedlings in the garden after all danger of frost has passed.

Directly in the Garden

• 11

  Spade a planting area as soon as all danger of frost has passed and the ground is warm enough to dig. If the soil is poor, dig in 1 to 3 inches of compost or well-rotted manure. Parsley tolerates either full or partial sunlight.

• 12

  Smooth the soil, using the back of a rake.

• 13

  Use the corner of a hoe to make shallow rows, allowing 12 to 18 inches between rows.

• 14

  Plant the parsley seeds in the rows, allowing 4 to 6 inches between each seed. Cover the seeds with about 1/8 to 1/4 inch of soil.

• 15

  Spray the area lightly with a hose as needed to keep the area evenly moist until the parsley seeds germinate. Thereafter, water the plants once every week, providing enough moisture to saturate the soil. Don't allow the soil to become either soggy or bone dry.

• 16

  Fertilize parsley every six weeks, using a general purpose garden fertilizer Apply the fertilizer at a rate of about 3 ounces of liquid fertilizer for every 10 feet of row.