How to (Easily) Grow Celery at Home (w/Recipes)

It’s not just tasty and easy — it’s pretty!

For those of you who like to dress up your flower beds with some well-placed ornamental edibles (or who want show-stopping potagers) this is an oft-overlooked plant you can’t be without.

For those of you who like to eat — it’s celery! Of course you should grow it.

Celery does not have to be a challenge to grow in the home garden.

Photo Caption: Celery does not have to be a challenge to grow in the home garden.

I don’t know how this veggie ever got its finicky reputation. After hearing dire warnings about how difficult it was to grow I avoided it for years. Eventually, I encountered a magazine article (from Taunton’s old, out of print Kitchen Gardener — you can buy the back issue, it is Feb/March 2000) that put it in perspective for me. I’ve never looked back.

One of the reasons celery gets its bad reputation is due to slower growth. It takes 80 to 100 days to get to maturity. Two things to consider:

  • Celery is cold hardy. It can handle light frosts and will grow quite well under simple polytunnels. Anyone in Appalachia (and most other places) can grow it. It’s perfect for a winter crop, too!
  • “Maturity” means great big plants. You can certainly harvest “baby celery” and enjoy it at any stage of growth.

Easy as any garden veggie to grow, I like to think of celery as having 2 different forms. “Herb celery” and “succulent celery.”

Herb celery (this is the same as Asian celery or cutting celery): Think of it the same way you do parsley (they’re related). If you just want celery flavor to add to soups and other dishes you don’t need any special preparation for your garden beds (that you wouldn’t already do for regular vegetables). It doesn’t even take up any room! Plant it around the edges of your other beds as a cut-and-come-again border.

Succulent celery: There are two versions of this, too. Watered down, bland grocery store celery is different altogether from vibrantly flavored garden celery. The succulent garden version isn’t difficult though, it just means more compost. Use a raised (or dug) bed about 8″ – 12″ deep filled with finished compost… or you can skip this step and plant a border of celery seedlings on the edge of a mostly finished (not hot) compost pile. Fat celery comes from heavy feeding. If you add additional compost or nitrogen rich fertilizer (like my slow-release organic recipe) throughout the growing season you’ll have very happy plants.

Consistent irrigation for either version is a must. Celery is very drought tolerant once established but it gets bitter if it has to endure those conditions. A good mulch will help (but don’t pile it onto the crowns of the plant).

Celery also gets a difficult reputation due to blanching. This is an optional practice — it is absolutely edible without it! I don’t do it but the grocery store versions are always blanched. Think of it as the difference between green asparagus and white asparagus.

I put my celery seed trays on a lower shelf to give them more shade. They do not need full sun in the south.

Photo Caption: I put my outdoor celery seed trays on a lower shelf to give them more shade. They do not need full sun in the south.

How you start your celery transplants depends on your growing setup. If you have strong lights or a greenhouse, you can follow the packet instructions. I don’t have those things so I grow my seedlings on shelves right outside my front porch. When nights are too cold I bring them in. I have a long growing season so I don’t worry much about getting a slow start.

I also start my transplants in fairly small cell packs. Since they have reduced room to grow I don’t want to keep them in the trays as long. I only start mine about 5 – 7 weeks prior to the frost-free date.

Like carrots, celery is a little slow and erratic to germinate. Bottom heat helps (put the tray on top of a warm appliance or seed heating mat where they will stay at about 78 F.) I compensate by using an insane number of seeds (hah!) This also means I spend some time later on thinning them with my little bonsai scissors. I thin them to one per cell because crowded celery will produce inferior plants.

If you start them indoors be sure to harden them off before planting outside. Plant your celery where it will get afternoon shade if possible. You can put it next to a tall crop if you don’t have natural shade near your vegetable beds.

I’ve seen recommendations for soaking or scalding seeds before planting them, but I haven’t found it necessary.

You can direct seed in the garden but celery prefers warmer soil to germinate so it will give you a slower start. I don’t do it because the later spring days are too hot for infant celery seedlings and because the roly polies and slugs in my neighborhood have an affinity for munching veggie seed embryos. I have better luck when I plant out 5″ or taller transplants. You could try direct sowing under a polytunnel to get around this problem.

Celery makes an excellent ornamental and space-saving crop in the kitchen garden. Here I have staggered red and green varieties along the edge of a melon bed.

Photo Caption: Celery makes an excellent ornamental and space-saving crop in the kitchen garden. Here I have staggered red and green varieties along the edge of a melon and bush bean bed.

There are lots of varieties to choose from. I usually like to grow a red and green variety so I can alternate them in an attractive bicolor border around my other vegetable beds. For those of you doing intensive planting you can put them 6″ – 8″ apart.

I got so excited when I started with celery that I’ve grown multiple varieties every year. Here are some of the ones I’ve liked:

Red celery varieties are sturdier in bright sun and contain more nutrients than regular celery.

Photo Caption: Red celery varieties are sturdier in bright sun and contain more nutrients than regular celery.

You can use your garden celery in any recipe that calls for regular celery, though you may want to use less of it since it does have a stronger presence. Here’s a salad recipe using garden celery:

Fusion Salad w/Celery

Serves 6 – 8

  • 3 – 4 eggs, preferably true free-range
  • 2 medium heads of lettuce, washed and dried
  • 4 scallions, cut lengthwise in half and then into 2″ pieces
  • 1 cup cilantro sprigs
  • 1 cup chopped garden celery (leaves included)
  • 1 tbsp minced ginger
  • 2 small hot peppers, minced (optional)
  • 1 – 2 cloves minced garlic + 8 cloves minced garlic (keep separate)
  • 4 tbsp good soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
  • Approx. 4 tbsp peanut oil
  • 1 block extra firm tofu, crumbled (if preparing beforehand, drain and freeze the tofu first for better texture)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp sugar (optional)
  • 3/4 cup hot water
  • 1/2 cup rice or cider vinegar
  • 2 – 3 tbsp roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
  1. Put eggs in cold pan with water just covering them and turn on high. Once water hits a rolling boil turn the heat off and let the pan sit for 10 minutes on the burner. Drain and set eggs aside to cool.
  2. Tear salad greens into bite-sized pieces and mix with cilantro, celery, and scallions in a large bowl
  3. Peel eggs and cut crosswise in half. Remove yolks and mash them to a paste in a small bowl. Slice the whites crosswise.
  4. In a medium bowl mix together the ginger, hot peppers, 1 – 2 minced garlic cloves, soy sauce, and lime juice.
  5. Heat a wok or heavy skillet over high heat. Add 1/2 tbsp of the peanut oil and the rest of the minced garlic (8 cloves). Stir-fry until the garlic begins to change color and then remove it from heat. Add the rest of the peanut oil and allow to heat a further 20 seconds. Add the crumbled tofu and stir-fry until bits of the tofu become crispy and golden. Once this occurs add the salt, (optional) sugar, and hot water. Bring to a boil. Add the vinegar and reserved egg yolks and stir to blend.
  6. Pour the hot tofu and liquid over the greens and toss lightly to blend. Pour in the lime juice dressing and give it a further toss. The greens should wilt slightly (If this doesn’t appeal to you, allow the tofu mixture to cool before mixing it in). Transfer the salad to plates, mounded attractively, and garnish with peanut sprinkles and sliced egg whites. Serve immediately.

Here are a few more garden celery recipes from Mariquita Farm, from Veggie Monologues, and from the Sustainable Farming Project.

Eliza Lord

I'm a Greenville, SC native (the Appalachian foothills) who wears the hats of Greenville Master Gardener & Upstate Master Naturalist. I love to write about food and sustainability.

10 thoughts on “How to (Easily) Grow Celery at Home (w/Recipes)”

  1. Liza - March 1, 2010 2:18 pm

    Great post! Informative, well-written. You may have inspired me to give celery another shot…

    1. Sustainahillbilly
      Twitter: appalachianfeet
      - March 1, 2010 2:39 pm

      Awesome! I’ve really enjoyed mine (and I definitely neglect it from time to time and still get a decent harvest).

  2. Sandra - March 1, 2010 3:30 pm

    Hi Eliza Anne – not really, even with poly… “anyone in Appalachia can grow it…” Here at Thistle Cove Farm we routinely get to well below zero F and have seen the thermometer at 35 degrees Below Zero F. No wind chill that night though -smile-. Good thing as we didn’t have walls in our home, only R-19 insulation and 6 mm plastic covering the walls. The snow was about three feet deep as well. The wind chill is a killer on this little hill perched at the end of the valley. We’ve had frost in all twelve months and snow or flurries in all but July and August. The Feds say our frost dates are 15 May and 15 Sept but it’s more like whenever God chooses -grin-. Bummer. I love celery. How about a blog entry on parsnips…love them too.
    I see you’ve picked up a follower from my blog; great and hope more visit and follow you.

    1. Sustainahillbilly
      Twitter: appalachianfeet
      - March 1, 2010 3:57 pm

      I think you could still grow it though… but maybe not to maturity without a reinforced hoop house. I guess you can consider yourselves gourmands with your “baby celery.” 😉

      There was a guy I met growing it in the NC high altitudes who was using strong polytunnels. He had to go out and shake the snow off of them on a regular basis.

  3. Sandra - March 1, 2010 8:31 pm

    You may be right but, still, I don’t think so. We routinely get winds of 50 to 70 mph and seeing as how we’re at the “toe” of the valley, we get hit hard. I mentioned the 6 mm plastic holding in the R-19 insulation…we used 6 mm plastic because the wind was blowing the stapled insulation out of the walls and we were freezing to death. After the 6 mm plastic, we were just freezing -grin-.
    A reinforced hoop house would last, maybe, minutes. There are others in this region who are having better success due to their, protected, locations. Maybe I’ll try for a CSA with them.

  4. VnV - March 16, 2010 3:53 pm

    Thanks for the very informative post and for picking up my celery (smallage) recipe.
    .-= VnV´s last blog ..Burmese Spinach – Mushroom Stirfry =-.

    1. Sustainahillbilly
      Twitter: appalachianfeet
      - March 19, 2010 4:32 pm

      You’re welcome! :)

  5. Pingback: How to Grow Vegetables (Archive Directory) | Appalachian Feet

  6. Diana - January 22, 2011 12:18 am

    Eliza this is very tempting. Wow I did not realise you grow so many celery variety.
    .-= Diana´s last blog ..Kebun Malay-Kadazan Girls Seed Inventory =-.

  7. Pingback: News: Eliza on TV, Upcoming Events, and Our Favorite “How To” Articles | Appalachian Feet

Comments are closed.