Cilantro/Coriander

[chrysanthemum]

This is my first year growing cilantro/coriander down here in Texas.  My first round made it through the February freeze and lasted for quite a while before it bolted.  I was sending regular “bouquets” of cilantro to my children’s orchestra conductors and other staff this spring.  I wanted to collect seed from that batch, but I wasn’t attentive enough in recent weeks when it was hidden by tomato foliage, and most of the seed dropped before I collected it.

My second batch of cilantro bolted much more quickly in the warmer weather, and it’s setting seeds now.  I’ll have to be more vigilant in watching for when they brown but haven’t dropped yet.  It’s not hidden by the tomatoes, so it should be easier to keep track of.



Most of my kids aren’t big cilantro fans, but they can appreciate a little of it in certain Indian dishes or in salsa.  It’s a waste for me to buy it, though, because I can’t use the large amount that is sold in the store.  It’s much better for me to grow it and harvest a few leaves here and there.  My third batch didn’t survive its transplanting, so I have a fourth seed starting inside now.  My tomatoes are beginning to come in in earnest, so I’m hoping to have some cilantro leaves for making salsa later in the summer.

[heavyhitterokra]

Speaking of uses for cilantro, I make a layered bean dip here every summer, using two cans of seasoned refried beans on the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan, an 8-ounce tub of sour cream spread over the refried beans, and about 3/4 of a jar of homemade salsa poured over the sour cream. (The jars are wide mouth pint size, so probably about 12 ounces of salsa). I sprinkle shredded cheddar cheese over the salsa, then sprinkle the cheese with cilantro, chopped green onion tops from our walking onions, diced tomatoes from our garden, thinly sliced avocado, and sliced black olives.
You have to lay the ingredients in that order or you'll have a mess.  The topping doesn't matter, but the things below the cheese layer will only lay in that order.

I serve this cold, on a hot day, with corn chips for dipping.

I'll bet walking onions would do well in Texas with poor soil. They can survive just about anything.

[chrysanthemum]

I haven’t succeeded in getting a recent plant to grow, Bon. I think it’s just too hot.

I should have thought to freeze or to dry some cilantro when I had the abundance during the cooler spring. I didn’t. I was just expecting replanting to succeed. Nope.

The seeds on the one plant in the garden are just beginning to brown a bit. I think I might pull the plant up by its roots and hang it my garage. There’s a possibility of more showers the next couple of days. I’d be ecstatic about rain, but I don’t want to miss another round of seeds.

[john]

Cilantro has become very popular among people in recent years. It is a taste that definitely grows on you. The seed may not be germinating in the high soil temperatures of summer. Some seeds won't sprout if the soil temperatures are too high. Spinach is the one that really comes to mind. You may have better luck waiting until September before seeding. Cilantro won't be killed by a frost. It takes an extended freeze. I love the fact that you let it set seed, and volunteer in your garden. The volunteer stuff will come up when the conditions are right for it.

[chrysanthemum]

I’m trying again to start some cilantro inside where we run air conditioning, but I think it may still be too hot. I have some tomatillos and Mexican mint marigold coming up but no cilantro. I may need to give it the same ice cube treatment I gave my lettuce when I started it inside last month.

[amyinowasso]

I realize this is an old thread, but I wanted to suggest papalo as a substitute for cilantro. It is a sturdier leaf than cilantro, so I chop it small. It also is stronger, so less is needed. I planted one next to a cucumber two years ago and it was the only cuke not plagued by bugs. Could be the bugs didn't like the papalo. (I've never seen bug damage on it).

[macmex]

I remember seeing papalo growing wild along the trail, in coffee country, in the sierra of Central Mexico. Nothing bothered it there either... except some people who used it in cooking. They also used it somehow when changing babies. I can't remember well what they said. Maybe they used it to make the baby's bottom smell fresh after they cleaned?

[chrysanthemum]

Jul 3, 2021 6:22:30 GMT -6 chrysanthemum said:

The seeds on the one plant in the garden are just beginning to brown a bit. I think I might pull the plant up by its roots and hang it my garage.

Look what I found yesterday in my garage.  



Evidently I did pull the plant last year, put it in a paper bag, and hung it in the garage.  It must have fallen some time behind a partial bag of insulation that we’ve used for various projects.  Just yesterday we moved the last of the insulation to our attic, and I found the paper bag when I emptied the area.  I didn’t remember the cilantro but recognized it as soon as I looked in the bag.  It was a fun surprise.

[woodeye]

That's an excellent find, chrysanthemum. 

It's not garden related, but that's the same way I find long lost tools in my shop AFTER I have purchased a replacement for the lost tool...

[chrysanthemum]

Now that you remind me, I did recently buy some ground coriander for my spice cabinet.