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I planted some parsley and coriander seeds a couple of weeks ago, put plastic bags over the pots and kept them on the conservatory windowsill... nothing has happened yet.

Is there anything obvious I might be doing wrong? Are they particularly fussy or have I been unlucky?

Thanks

Michelle

Be patient, they can take a while. I soak parsley seed overnight before sowing and I have got a large tray full now that need pricking out.

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Mark

Vegetable Kingdom blog

I also had problems with my coriander, they took ages to come up by which time I had bought a pot ! They are going okay now !!

i lightly crush coriander seeds between thumb and finger before planting them - I can't remember where I read to do that, but I have had great germination rates this way. seem to remember coriander and parsley up in about 2 weeks from when I planted this year.

Parsley is apparently notoriously slow to germinate so try to be patient. Mine took about 20 days in a seedtray with a small clear plastic bag over the top but is now going great guns. Good luck!

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Both my parsley and corriander came up within a week on the utility room window ledge. I've also planted some more corriander in a tub in the greenhouse and that took slighly longer but neither was slow to come. The parsley has now spread into a nice clump in a pot in the herb garden (don't that sound posh!) and the first lot of corriander has been eaten!

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i sowed mine outside in a raised bed by my kitchen and it took weeks, but last night we had our first batch of coriander and the smell was delicious, be patient they will come.

SS

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i've sown parley (Lisette) every 2 weeks for a few weeks now and have 4/5 pots on the go..one stays on the windowsill and when I've used some of it, pop it back in the greenhouse and bring another one in...seems to be working - but this parsley has had no problem in germinating at all, and initially was on the livingroom (south facing) windowsill. The coriander on the other hand, I've only got one pot and have used a few leaves, but every other pot has been a complete disaster so will take the advice of the other Grapes and maybe soak or crush the seeds before sowing. Patience is probably the thing though....!

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"A cat sees no good reason why it should obey another animal, even if it does stand on two legs."

I'm not very good at patience!

Thanks for all your replies though

Patience does help with both these herbs. We've planted Coriander (Cilantro) here a few times, but it bolts to seed in no time and we have to continually replant.

Any secrets to a good leafy crop??

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Coriander really hates being transplanted - you need to sow it where you want to grow it, ie. direct-sown

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Really? I find this just shows that everyone's germination techniques always lead to natural seed partners. I found this a doodle without doing much, but others i struggled with last year like coriander, haven't germinated. Parsley though just popped up.

if your corriander plants are bolting it would suggest your not picking enough, i found if i took a few leaves off before they became well established they seem to grow much better, as soon as you see that little stalky bit growing with the little flowers cut that off, unless of course you are wanting to save for seeds

The thing about coriander is that it is a short-lived plant. It goes to seed very quickly, especially if conditions make it think it's gonna die soon. Pick and use the whole plant before it gets the chance to bolt; and sow more every couple of weeks.

(Some say pre-soaking aids germinating, as well as bashing the seeds a bit, to make it easier for the germ thingy to get out of the hard seed case.)

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both these herbs can take up to 35 days to germinate and i find using luke warm water until the first sight of shoot appears speeds things up as well as starting off indoors in a warm room. parsley takes a little longer than corriander.