We love cilantro’s sweet little flowers and we seed this plant freely throughout our garden in the fall and spring. The plants get quite tall, they make a lovely edition to our edible landscaping, and attract all kinds of pollinators.
Working with Cilantro
Cilantro leaves can be used in pestos, guacamoles, salsas, grain salads, and all kinds of things. We also like using the flowering tops as garnishes on dishes, and once those go to seed, we harvest the coriander seeds for our tea blends and spice blends.
Growing Cilantro and Coriander
Cilantro can be grown from plant starts, but is also easy to direct seed. Just scratch the seeds into the soil and water them until they come up. To keep plants from bolting right away in the heat, you can pinch back the top of the plant so it will continue focusing on leaves rather than going to flower and seed. However, you can also let your plants go to seed and you'll end up with coriander. Cilantro's a great plant because you get two herbs in one! And if you let it drop seeds in the garden, it will likely self-seed on its own, becoming a frequent visitor in your garden landscape.
