Growing Cilantro

I'm a crappy gardener.  And I've heard that cilantro is very hard to grow.  But I wanted to try.

I got tips from the internet and from my friend Amy who grows the most beautiful, healthy cilantro.

Here are my sprouts today.  I planted the seeds 8 days ago.   Cilantro sprouts don't like to be transplanted so you should right away plant the seeds in a tall pot for their forever home.  Amy said to allow for long roots.  I used a 12-inch pot.  One source said to plant the seeds an inch apart.  I ignored that one.  I scattered the seeds and topped with around 1/4 inch of soil.

 

Amy said to use local seeds because "mainland seeds are hit or miss".  This pack was around $4.99 from City Mill.

   

It helps a lot if you crush them before planting.  It speeds up the germination time.  Each seed contains two seedlings.  I got my small suribachi in Japan.  Came in handy!

   

This might be the biggest tip of all.  Amy said to use the soil recommended by pakalolo growers.  Landon got it for me for Christmas.  It's from Ace Hardware in Kaimuki.  I think it was $60.

   

I added a lot of black cinder to the soil to help with drainage.  One tip that I saw online sticks to my mind because I tend to overwater, and the tip is to keep the soil "moist not soggy".

   

And finally, I added some worm castings . . . because somebody gave me . . . and it seems like a really good thing.   I would love any additional tips if you have them.  I think the hardest part is yet to come.