How to Cut Celery Plants

Use care when harvesting celery.

Celery has a reputation for being difficult to grow. Since celery grows slowly, start the plants indoors. Keep in mind that if you move the plants outside before temperatures are sufficiently warm, the celery will bolt and you will lose your precious crop. On the other hand, celery wilts if temperatures are too high, and it needs constant moisture.

Instructions

1. Blanch the celery about two weeks before harvest. Wrap the stalks with paper or a milk carton to reduce light and make the flavor mild instead of bitter.

2. Harvest the celery when the stalks reach the desired size and before any pith begins to grow on the petiole, which is the stalk of the leaf attached the main celery.

3. Cut the plant above the soil line when you are ready to harvest. Cut the stalks so they remain as one unit.

4. Wash cut celery in cold water and dry well. Store in the refrigerator, where it will remain fresh for a few weeks.

References

• Cornell Cooperative Extension of Oneida County; Growing Celery; 2006
• Oregon State University; Celery; August 2002
• North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service; Home Garden Celery in Eastern North Carolina; Douglas C. Sanders; December 1997