How Do You Harvest Cilantro So It Keeps Growing? [Simple Guide]

Cilantro is a great addition to your kitchen garden. If you are buying them from the market chances are more often than not you will be disappointed by their looks at the time of cooking.

We have already discussed how to grow cilantro in your house. In this post, we will focus on harvesting cilantro.

Cilantro is generally grown from seeds and not from transplants. Sow them in the garden or in containers. A large enough container can grow many cilantro at once.

Cilantros are harvested mainly for leaves and seeds. If you are planning to grow cilantro mainly for leaves choose a variety that is slow bolting.

When to Harvest Cilantro Leaves:

You can start harvesting cilantro leaves once the plant reaches 8 inches in height. Generally, it takes 60 to 80 days for cilantro to reach that stage.

If you want to harvest seeds wait for 3 more months. By that time the cilantro starts bolting and producing seeds. Cilantro flowers are white and very delicate.

Once the plant reaches this stage you cannot harvest leaves anymore. The leaves have now become bitter.

How to Harvest Cilantro Leaves:

You can easily pick off the cilantro leaves and stalks by hand or you can use sharp clean scissors or pruners to do the job. Throughout the cool season, you can do the harvesting.

While harvesting, leave about an inch of stubble. This will have the crown and continue producing new leaves. This way you’ll get a more leafy green harvest instead of harvesting the whole plant at once.

Once the weather warms up, the cilantro starts to bolt and the leaves become bitter. Harvest cilantro once or twice a week. If you harvest less frequently they might bolt early.

You can eat cilantro leaves fresh or dried. If you don’t need them immediately store them in an airtight container for future use.

You can do this method to harvest basil and other herbs too.

How to Harvest Coriander Seeds:

Once the weather becomes warm enough, the cilantro will naturally end its life cycle and bolt. Now the plant will produce a cluster of flowers and then start forming seeds.

If you are planning to harvest coriander seeds, let your plant bolt and grow seeds. After some time, the seeds will turn brown.

You can easily separate the stem that holds the coriander seeds and put them in a paper bag upside down. This will let the seeds separate from the stem and into the bag once they mature.

Storing Fresh Cilantro Leaves:

After harvesting it’s important to store them properly. The best way to store the fresh cilantro leaves is to keep them in a cool dry place.

So avoid keeping them in a place where they are exposed to direct sunlight for extended periods of time.

By storing the leaves in a cool dry place you can preserve the flavors and nutrients of the cilantro leaves. You can read more about storing and preserving techniques here in our earlier post.

Like the post? Don’t forget to PIN IT.