Harvest parsley: this is how it grows back optimally

Parsley (bot. Petroselinum crispum) is one of the most popular kitchen herbs in all variations and should not be missing in any garden - after all, nothing beats an aromatic herb kitchen. How and when to harvest this versatile herb and what to consider when cutting can be found in this article. With our tips, both parsley and parsley planted in the bed will grow even better afterwards - for a more abundant harvest and more flavor.

When to harvest parsley

Basically, there is no specific date or time when it is best to harvest parsley. You can use knives or scissors all year round if you need a few rolling papers in the kitchen. The cabbage tastes best freshly cut, and it cannot be stored for a particularly long time - the stalks lose their characteristic aroma after just a few days in the refrigerator.

However, you shouldn't just cut off as much as you are consuming. With a regular, vigorous pruning, you stimulate the growth of the plant and thus ensure a rich harvest. Excess parsley can be frozen very easily and thus retains its aroma. The cut back plant then sprouts strongly and develops a bushy appearance with numerous leaflets.

Tip: In contrast to leaf parsley, root parsley is harvested from October at the earliest. The long, parsnip-like beets can stay in the ground until February and can simply be pulled out if necessary. The leafy green tastes very similar to leaf parsley and is also used. However, you can only harvest this in summer.

Can you use parsley after flowering?

There is one restriction, however, when it comes to harvesting: as soon as parsley starts to bloom, you must no longer use it. From this point onwards, the herb increasingly produces toxic apiol, which has unpleasant consequences in the digestive tract. The consequences are cramps and diarrhea, and excessive consumption can also lead to cardiac arrhythmias. In addition, parsley leaves its taste from this point on.

The right harvest time at a glance:

• possible all year round
• also in the winter
• as soon as a stem has at least 3 pairs of leaves
• from the beginning of flowering no more

Tip: If you dig the herb out of the garden bed in winter and put it in a pot, you can still use it until spring. Planting out in spring is then no longer worthwhile because the parsley will then begin to bloom. Such specimens are also unsuitable for seed production because they did not hibernate and therefore will hardly develop suitable seeds for sowing.

Cut properly

So that the parsley plant benefits from the cut and does not die afterwards, it is very important to use the right procedure. Therefore, pay attention to these notes when cutting:

• Use stems with at least three pairs of leaves
• Cut off just above the ground
• don't just pluck off individual leaflets
• these no longer grow back, the stem remains bare
• Always cut the stem from the outside in
• Leave the plant heart where it is!
  • recognizable by thicker stems in the middle of the plant
  • Otherwise parsley will die

Use sharp and previously disinfected secateurs or similar for the cut Knife so that no germs (e.g. from other previously cut plants) are transferred will. Remove yellow leaves immediately and dispose of them.

Tip: Parsley does not have to be cut back before winter, you can just leave it in the bed and continue harvesting if necessary. Only when it gets really frosty, cut back the plants and freeze them - finely chopped - for further use. It sprouts in spring and can still be used between June and July until flowering - shortly before that, the leaves are particularly aromatic.