Parsley gone mad!

[sphinxeyes]

Hello all!

Haven't been around much now that the growing season is over for me, but there are a few survivors in the garden that seem determined to tough out the cold.

One of them is my parsley plant. I bought it from Home Depot, just a small modest plant, no big aspirations. In the greenhouse it stayed alive through the summer, but it always looked a bit droopy. Eventually I moved it out and planted it in the garden to give it more room. Well...THAT livened it up. Maybe it was the extra room for the roots or the cooler open air, but it really took off and did well. So I thought "great, it'll last throughout the summer!" Then autumn came and it was still green and twice it's original size! It was an unexpected delight to go outside and cut fresh parsley to go with Thanksgiving dinner. Now it's December and the parsley is still going strong, even with light snow we had this morning.

So does anyone know exactly how long it might continue to grow? I've never grown parsley in the garden, but in pots it's never lasted this long before. When it does succumb to the freezing temps, will it be gone for good or will it come back next year on its own?

Oh, and since I have so much of it...anyone have some recipes to share? What can be made with parsley other than pesto?

[mjc]

It is a biennial...which means that it should come back in the spring, but not for very long before it flowers, sets seed and then dies. In your zone, it is possible that it would keep a few leaves all winter.

It also dries easily...spread it on a rack (cake rack will work) and stick it in the oven, with just the light on. It should be mostly dry overnight and thoroughly dry in a full 24 to 36 hrs.

[mnjrutherford]

Parsley is a cold hardy plant as far as I know. When I lived in New York I was introduced to Hamburg or German parsley which is uses both leaves and root. The root is like a white carrot. Parsley is an excellent medicinal and the toasted seeds are good to chew following a heavy beef meal because, like horseradish, it aids in digestion.

Parsley tends to lose it's flavor with heat so it is typically added to things that are quick cooking, or at the end of the cooking process. My all time favorite omlette is onion and parsley. I heat a bit of olive oil in a skillet. Add minced onion and allow it to saute a minute or two. I beat the cleaned, chopped parsley into the eggs and pour the mixture over the onions and swirl it around the pan to coat the bottom. When cooked to taste, I roll it into my plate. TOTALLY scrummy! If you are making pasta of any sort, adding a handful of chopped parsley to the dough is very attractive in the finished product. If you make something with noodles on the side like egg noodles, spetzle, or the like, you cook and drain the noodles then pour them into a hot skillet with some melted butter or olive oil (half and half butter/OO is really scrummy as well), toss in a handful or two of chopped parsley toss to coat and you have a wonderful side dish with an added layer of flavor. Chopped parsley is a flavorful topping to ANY Italian dish, stews, Indian dishes, Spanish, French, well, pretty much any European or middle eastern cuisine. Parsley is very prevalent in all those areas. Oooo, here's something yummy, mince a blend of mint, dill, parsley, and garlic into plain yogurt and serve it as a sauce over roasted chicken and basmati rice! Maybe do that in a pita pocket even. Add some chopped tomato and cucumber if in season as well.

Hmmm... I think I'm a tad envious of your lovely parsley. I shall redouble my efforts in the coming year! ;o)

[ottawagardener]

Cold hardy - oh yes, my italian parsley is nicknamed 'polar bear' parsley around here as it survives in a coldframe to be harvested most of the winter (except when it's a block of ice though I guess I could chip a bit off and throw it in soup;-). When temps rise on warmer winter days or in the spring, it bounces back. Even outside of the coldframe, it's maintained a population for me despite the fact that I only planted it once.

I have heard from someone just north of me that they don't get parsley surviving but I didn't ask the details such as if they have well drained soil, good snow cover etc...

I love using parsley as a vegetable as it's so plentiful in our garden. I use a lot in salads and any greens mixture, also it's the base of some great pasta sauces.

I agree with MNJ: delicious.

[flowerpower]

Next yr, plant the parsley early in the ground. It has a very long taproot and really doesn't like transplanting. If you start your own seeds, just remember it can take a long time to germinate. Start the seed outside in a pot while its still cold, or direct sow and then thin them out.