cilantro

[bj taylor]

has anyone in the dfw metroplex had success with cilantro? if so- please share what and when worked for you?
thanks;
bj
(i use so much of this stuff & the grocery stores are getting so high I need to grow it myself)

[Mr. Clean]

bj, I'll watch along with you for answers. We go through the stuff like mad ourselves.

[Nadine]

I have not tried it, but now you have me wanting to!
I just looked it up in my bood "Herbs for Texas by Howard Garrett with Odena Brannam. Under "Cilantro" it reads: "see Coriander".
There, it states that it is an annual best planted by seed around Halloween in full sun.
It gives a further description, so you may wish to go to your local library and check it out. Better yet, buty a copy. The book is packed full of great information. I think you will get more than your money's worth out of it if you like to grow herbs. :wink:

[culdeus]

I've tried and tried to keep this alive and late bolting by changing sun/water/etc.. And then it doesn't have the best flavor in cool weather I have found, more like soap than anything. One of the few herbs I can't make exceed groc. store produce of the same variety. This bothers me alot because I like to make fresh salsas on occasion.

There are much better substitutes that will grow, will have similar flavor (not soap), I used a variety of asian coriander that worked great and was very vigorous and didn't bolt all summer. However, nothing will bunch quite like the mexican cilantro which you need for soups and stuff.

I'd experiment with at least some varieties of Coriander and see what they do for you. I'm going to shoot for at least half a dozen types this year and see how it goes.

[kbrew]

I've had some success with cilantro within the confines of its limitations. I don't think you can expect an ongoing production. It grows like a weed and very quickly, then you harvest before it begins to flower. Then you rip it up and plant more seeds for another round. Or you can let it go to seed and you will have new plants coming up. It does seem to do better in the early Spring and store-bought transplants seem very difficult to find after May.

[Nadine]

culdeus wrote: ...I'd experiment with at least some varieties of Coriander and see what they do for you. I'm going to shoot for at least half a dozen types this year and see how it goes.

Please let us know what you find. Be sure to put plant labels beside each plant (the Latin name is best) because it would be great to share. Also, some plants will be great in some areas of the yard and not so great in others. I understand from reputable sources, that this does not necessarily depend on light or water, but with microclimates and possibly subtle energies. 8)

[Dchall_San_Antonio]

We used to grow it but it became unruly taking over everything. Tasted good. Definitely not a warm weather plant.