The Petroselinum crispum, commonly called parsley, is much more than that garnish sprig that so often beautifies a plate without anyone eating it. It is a herbaceous plant of the family apiaceae, from the central Mediterranean area. Parsley has traditionally been used as a garnish in all kinds of dishes and, far from falling into disuse, today it is sold when years ago it was not uncommon for it to be given to us in the market.
In this EcologíaVerde article we are going to see how to enjoy all its benefits with little cost by teaching you how to plant parsley in a potas well as all parsley care.
Parsley: medicinal properties and benefits
Parsley is attributed a huge number of beneficial properties for health, but although it is clear that it is a plant with extensive medicinal properties, not everything that is said about it is true or proven. Let’s see what are the medicinal properties and benefits of parsley which are proven:
- Rich in vitamins and iron: parsley contains large amounts of vitamins K and C, as well as antioxidants, so it helps maintain a healthy balance in the body. Its high iron content makes it also recommended for those who suffer from anemia.
- Diuretic: The intake of the leaves of this plant has diuretic properties, and therefore helps to reduce excess water in our body, in addition to helping proper kidney function.
- Anti-inflammatory: This is another of the properties of the plant, so its regular use helps relieve joint pain.
- Anticancer: Recent studies show the excellent anticancer properties of parsley, both in terms of prevention and action.
- Rich in myrectin: It is one of the richest foods in this natural nutrient, which significantly reduces the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Parsley care – simple guide
Parsley is a fairly resistant plant, so it does not require much attention. However, let’s see how to care for a parsley plant so that it grows healthy and strong.
Light
The parsley plant needs to be in a very well lit area, but it should not be directly exposed to it for more than 4 or 6 hours a day. This is one of the reasons why it is more common plant parsley in a pot before in the garden.
Irrigation
This plant requires a humid environment, especially in its earliest stages. For this reason, parsley should be watered so that the soil is always moist. In dry environments, it is convenient to spray or spray water on its leaves and stems from time to time. As it will always receive humidity, it is important that you place the plant in a pot with adequate drainage or it will become waterlogged.
Pruning
The most important thing at this point is to remove the flowers from the plant as soon as they form, or the plant will mature. In addition, it is also advisable to regularly remove dry or diseased leaves to improve the health of the plant.
pests
Parsley does not usually suffer especially from any plague. In any case, placing it together with other aromatics always helps to keep insects away, and if the aphid appears, it is best to spray it with soapy water, which will solve the problem. In this other article we explain how to make potassium soap to treat this problem if it appears on your plant.
You can also use other effective products that you will surely have on hand at home. Discover here the best home remedies to eliminate aphids.
How to plant parsley from a branch
Plant parsley by cuttings It is possible, but not recommended. Being a plant with such a fine and short stem, the plant will find it very difficult to take root. This, coupled with the fact that the parsley seeds they can be planted throughout the year, making reproduction by cuttings impractical in this case.
If you still want to give it a try, use rooter to help the plant. Here you can discover How to make natural enreizador.
How to sow parsley seeds
If you go to sow parsley seeds, take into account their needs for light and humidity when choosing the location of the pot. This plant also does not need any special substrate, and can share space with any other plant in window boxes or large pots.
Though parsley can be planted throughout the yearit is recommended to avoid extremely cold or hot days, as they can slow down the seed germination. It may take up to a month for the first buds to appear, so the optimal season for best growth is spring and overnight.
If you sow or plant in the garden, leave a space of about 15 cm between each one to give them space. Finally, when sowing the parsley seeds or planting the small plant, water often to keep the substrate moist, but always avoid flooding it.
In this other article we tell you more details about How to sow and plant parsley and in the video below you can see the guide.
If you want to read more articles similar to Parsley carewe recommend that you enter our category .
- Royal Horticultural Society, Jarrín Rodríguez, T., Bellido Ojeda, X. and Rodríguez Fischer, C., (2011), Garden Encyclopedia. Ideas to grow practically everything. Barcelona, Spain, Blumé.
- Cecchini, T., (1994), Practical encyclopedia of floriculture and gardeningBarcelona, Spain, Editorial de Vecchi.
- Cebrian, J., (2012), Dictionary of medicinal plantsBarcelona, Spain, Integral RBA Books.
