Celery: Not only is garden celery better-tasting than store-bought types, but it’s also less chemical-laden. In cooler regions, it does best planted in the early spring. In warmer areas, plan to plant in mid- to later summer. Here’s our advice on planting, growing, and harvesting celery!
Although one of the more difficult crops to grow at home, celery always has a place in our gardens because it’s so useful in the kitchen—for stews, stir-fries, soups, and salads.
This cool-weather, long-season crop can require up to 140 days to come to harvest, although short-season varieties are available. Celery is considered a hardy biennial, but it’s typically grown as an annual for its edible 12- to 18-inch stalks. Celery is considered a relatively difficult crop, as you do need to start celery from seed indoors (transplants are hard to find and do not always succeed), and the plant is prone to bolting in cold weather.
There are two main types of celery available:
Trenching celery needs soil mounded up against the stems as they grow to produce crisp, pale stems. To make this easier, trenching celery is typically planted into trenches, hence the name, but some gardeners aid this blanching process using cardboard tubes, pipes, or collars.
Self-blanching celery requires none of these extra steps. This makes it a lot easier to grow, and the stems are just as tasty!
For more information on how to grow celery click the following hyperlink to Farmers Almanac Celery.
For other resources please click on Cornell Universities Celery link or click on Gardening Know How's Celery link.
Celeriac is cool season vegetable stemming from the parsley family. It is also known as root celery, knob celery or Apium graveolens var. Rapaceum and part of the Umbelliferae Family Celeriac is closely related to celery, but easier to grow. It is prized for its crisp, celery-flavored root, which you can eat raw or cooked. A staple in Europe, it is little known in North America.
For more information on how to celeriac click the following hyperlink to Cornell Universities Celeriac.
For other resources please click on click on Gardening Know How's Celeriac link.
Bok Choy Seeds, Snow White: Description
(Brassica rapa var. chinensis). This giant choy is celebrated for its snowy white and supremely succulent stems. Plants stand over 16 inches tall, and the thick stems are extremely juicy, with a perfect crispy texture. Enjoy raw as a refreshing snack (far superior to celery sticks) or in salads. Stunning when stir fried, steamed, or swirled into soups! Jere Gettle encountered this gourmet variety while visiting the city of Nanjing, China. There you can still find this traditional cabbage along sidewalks, drying for wintertime use.
Celeriac Seeds, Giant Prague: Description
(Apium graveolens) This root celery variety is grown for its large, white roots that are superb fried or in soup. Its taste and texture are much like regular celery. Giant Prague celeriac was introduced in 1871 and is popular in many parts of Europe.
Celery Seeds, Amsterdam: Description
(Apium graveolens) Keeping gourmet seasoning on hand is easy with this “cutting” type celery! This particular variety hails from the Netherlands, but it is an Asian-type cutting celery. Also known as Chinese celery, or Nan Ling, these types tend to have larger leaves and small fibrous stalks. This variety will not be suitable for Ants On a Log, but it is a nuanced and balanced seasoning celery. Both the leaves and stalks are excellent for broth, soups, and general use in the kitchen. This care-free cut-and-come-again herb rounds out countless dishes and is a chef’s favorite.
Celery Seeds, Chinese Pink: Description
(Apium graveolens) A stunning bubblegum pink celery from China. This tasty Asian-type celery is a great choice for beginner gardeners, as it is much easier to grow than European-type celery. The flavor is yummy and lightly sweet, the texture is light and crunchy, and its eye appeal is unstoppable. This vibrantly colored veggie is sure to be a hit in kids’ gardens, as well as at farmers' markets. Sure to be the next exciting colorful crop for fresh vegetable marketing. It is quite easy to grow, and even the baby plants are stunning neon pink.
Celery Seeds, Chinese White: Description
(Apium graveolens) A delicate, delicious, and easy-to-grow Chinese variety with snow-white stalks. White celery has been cultivated in the Chinese town of Liyang for over 800 years. Its stems are long, slender, and hollow, with a strong celery flavor, ideal for Asian soups and stews, but equally suitable for mirepoix and other recipes calling for celery.
Celery Seeds, D'Elne: Description
(Apium graveolens) This short and stout, refined, and reliable celery originates in France. We love this variety for its relative ease of growing and nutritious green stalks with gourmet flavor. It performed very well in our trials and our taste tests. These upright, tidy plants average 18 inches tall, and are easy to grow.
Celery Seeds, Giant Red: Description
(Apium graveolens) A traditional red celery variety tried and trusted by generations of gardeners in England. Its stalks are a striking purplish-red and green, and turn pink when cooked. Quite cold hardy with a full, old-fashioned celery flavor that improves as the weather cools, and a very reliable grower.
Celery Seeds, Utah Tall: Description
(Apium graveolens) Utah Tall celery is a vigorous, crisp, and stringless variety known for its tightly folded hearts and thick, well-rounded stalks. It was introduced in 1953. The medium-green stalks can reach a foot or even more in height when well-grown.
