Cilantro Coriandrum sativum
LATIN NAME: Coriandrum sativum
COMMON NAME: Cilantro
The cilantro presses the fresh, green leaves through the cool weeks, the whole clump standing in the bright, crisp look of the spring kitchen garden. The fast-growing, annual herb carries the flat, deeply divided, fern-like, bright-green lower leaves and the finer, thread-like upper leaves along the erect, branching stems, and the small, white or pale-pink flowers in the small, flat-topped umbels, through the early summer, one of the bright, quiet sights of the spring kitchen garden, drawing the bees, to be followed by the small, round, ribbed, pale-brown seeds with the strong, warm scent. The ribbed seeds have a very long record as the fine, quick herbs of the old gardens, and the plant is a historic presence of the spring kitchen garden. It is a plant of the open, sunny, light, moist, well-drained ground.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
The cilantro is a historic subject of the plant science, and the divided leaves keep showing up in the work on the quick herbs. The way the small, white or pale-pink flowers form in the small, flat-topped umbels has been studied at length, and it keeps appearing in the studies of the quick herbs, the fern-like leaves and the members of the carrot family. The ribbed seeds and the quick habit have also made it a fine study herb, and the cilantro is a regular subject of the work on the divided leaves of the temperate world.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
The cilantro is a bright, useful plant of the spring kitchen garden and the study collection. The flat, deeply divided, fern-like, bright-green lower leaves along the erect, branching stems carry the bright look of the spring kitchen garden, one of the bright, quiet sights of the spring kitchen garden, drawing the bees, and the ribbed seeds have a very long record as the fine, quick herbs of the old gardens, the fresh tops coming to the soups, the dips and the steady practice of the warm kitchens, while the small, white or pale-pink flowers in the small, flat-topped umbels open through the early summer, to be followed by the small, round, ribbed, pale-brown seeds with the strong, warm scent. It is one of the fine choices for the spring kitchen garden, the quick row and the study collection, and it has been written up in the culinary and the horticultural papers for the ribbed seeds and the very long history. It is a bright, useful plant of the open, sunny, light, moist, well-drained garden.
The cilantro seeds are happy in a rich, leafy soil kept moist and cool. The young plants are fast and fresh, and they appreciate the light, moist ground of the spring row.
To grow the cilantro from seed, sow the round, ribbed seeds sparingly across the surface of the tray of rich, leafy soil, water gently, then keep the tray in a bright, open spot. The seedlings push through within a couple of weeks, and they grow on fast. With the sun and the light, moist ground, the fresh leaves will press up over the cool weeks.
Uses: Culinary/Medicinal/Industrial
Cilantro is a fragrant herb that attracts bees, birds, and butterflies including the Swallowtail. It can even be grown indoors in windowsill pots. You will find Cilantro in many Italian dishes as well as Mexican cuisine such as guacamole and it is an essential ingredient in salsa.
The piquant flavour of fresh coriander leaves, so essential in authentic Chinese and Latin American cuisines, are very popular