Common Parsley

Franchi - Common Parsley

The Chef's Essential: Common Parsley (Flat Leaved)

No kitchen garden is complete without the Common Parsley. While the curly varieties may look pretty on a plate, this flat-leaved variety is the true culinary heavyweight, prized by chefs worldwide for its superior, robust flavour and softer texture. This is a vigorous, hardy biennial that produces an abundance of large, flat, dark green leaves. It is far more aromatic than its curly cousins, possessing a clean, peppery taste that lifts heavy dishes. In the UK and Ireland, it is an indispensable "cut-and-come-again" herb that, with a little protection, can provide fresh greens almost year-round.

• Maximum Flavour: It contains higher levels of essential oils than curly parsley, making it the only choice for sauces, stocks, and pestos.

• Winter Survivor: It is surprisingly hardy. Sown late in the summer, it will stand through a mild Irish/UK winter, providing fresh herbs when the rest of the garden is asleep.

• Vigorous Growth: It grows taller and faster than compact curly types, giving you a much higher yield of leaves per plant.

• Nutrient Dense: It is packed with Vitamins A, C, and iron—it is a superfood disguised as a garnish.

Master Gardener's Tip: The "Warm Water" Wake-Up

Parsley is notorious for being slow to germinate—old folklore says the seed "goes to the Devil and back seven times" before it sprouts! To speed up this process and soften the tough seed coat, soak your seeds in lukewarm water for 12–24 hours before sowing. Once sown, be extremely patient; it can take up to 3–4 weeks to see green shoots. Do not let the soil dry out during this critical time. A great trick is to sow a few radish seeds in the same row; the radishes sprout quickly, marking the row so you don't accidentally hoe up the sleeping parsley!

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