indoor cilantro - first try

[Charles]

I'm trying to grow some herbs indoors. I have no experience. I am trying to grow cilantro, basil, and parsley. They are in small clay pots. I got seed starting mix, planted the seeds about 3 weeks ago, they sprouted and now have the small plants under a fluorescent light about 12-14 hours a day and near a window. I am watering them when the soil mix is dry on top (about every 4 days).

The basil looks great. The parsley is small but ok. Several of the cilantro plants are bending over although the leaves look ok to me.

Is this normal for cilantro? Should I be doing something different? Also, I have no idea how many plants I should have in a pot.

Thanks. Any input is appreciated because I really know nothing about what I'm doing....

Charles

 

[Chuck]

You will do fine with basil and parsley but doubtful with cilantro. Cilantro is a cool weather crop and if you keep your house warm this fall it will bolt.

 

[Charles]

You will do fine with basil and parsley but doubtful with cilantro. Cilantro is a cool weather crop and if you keep your house warm this fall it will bolt.

Thanks. Hopefully, it won't be too warm in the room where the cilantro is, but I'll see. Do you have any thoughts on several of the young plants bending over while others are straight?

 

[Chuck]

Thanks. Hopefully, it won't be too warm in the room where the cilantro is, but I'll see. Do you have any thoughts on several of the young plants bending over while others are straight?

It looks to me like they are not getting enough sunlight and are getting leggy while reaching for it. They become topheavy

 

[Corzhens]

This reminds me of our cilantro. It was a bad experience because we didn't know that the birds here savor cilantro leaves. In 2 days time, our newly bought cilantro in the terrace had lost all its leaves and when it tried to sprout new leaves, they were also eaten by the birds. In short, that cilantro did not prosper. Now this thread about cilantro indoor, I think it is a good idea. And as @Chuck said that cilantro loves cool weather so maybe it can thrive in our living room which has an air conditioner.

 

[IcyBC]

I can start cilantro with the stems in pot, and as soon as I put them in the dirt after they had roots, they died on me. I think cilantro needs lots of sun, as @Chuck said. I love cilantro, and the price for a bunch is very inexpensive here, but I love to grow my own

 

[kgord]

Yes, maybe you can move it to the coolest room of the house, and keep the temperature down in their if at all possible. It seems funny to me that cilantro is a cool weather crop when they eat so much of it in Mexico, and except for some of the higher elevations Mexico is quite a warm country. However, it is, what it is!

 

[clair02]

These are all wonderful suggestions, and since I have just started with my own herbs, they will help me avoid problems with my own potted plants. Thanks for sharing all these tips and ideas.