Although I haven’t talked much about celery in many of my previous articles, the truth is: I love celery!
Luckily, I can grow all my veggies and herbs in my mom’s backyard. I know not everyone has access to a large garden, and some people, like me, live in an apartment. But that’s no excuse not to grow your own fresh produce!
My best friend also lives in an apartment, and she has 2 pots on her balcony that continuously provides her with a small supply of celery all year round!
And, in this article, I’m going to teach you how I’m able to achieve that, but first…
Is It Possible To Grow Celery In A Pot?
Many people think celery is a very space-consuming vegetable when it’s really not. You can most definitely grow it in a pot as long as the pot is of a medium to large size and has sufficient drainage holes at the bottom.
What You Will Need:
Step-By-Step Guide To Growing Celery In A Pot
Step 1: Start With A Celery Base
To acquire a celery base, cut the bottom 2 inches off a celery bunch. Make sure it’s healthy, vibrant, and free of any harmful fungal or bacterial disease.
Place the celery base in a shallow dish of water for a few days until roots begin to appear.
But, you can also plant celery seeds or buy a young celery seedling. Seeds take longer to sprout but give you the advantage of growing from scratch, while seedlings speed up the process.
Step 2: Choose The Right Pot & Soil
Like I mentioned before, the type of pot plays a very important role in determining if you’ll be able to optimally grow celery in it. You want to choose a pot that’s deep with sufficient drainage holes to limit chances of waterlogging problems.
Fill it with nutrient-rich, well-draining soil that will provide the optimal texture and nutrient base to accommodate growth.
Step 3: Transplant The Celery Base
Once you have your pot prepped, it’s time for transplantation. Make sure your celery base is growing some roots at the time of transplant.
You want to keep the crown slightly above the soil level and plant the base in the pot carefully.
Step 4: Watering & Sunlight Requirements
When it comes to watering your celery, keep the soil consistently moist but not soggy. Soggy soil attracts waterlogging issues and may lead to fungal diseases like root rot.
Because celery needs plenty of sun to grow, you want to strategically place your pot in a location where the plant gets an average of 6+ hours of light regularly.
Step 5: Fertilizing For Continuous Growth
Feed the growing celery with compost tea or liquid fertilizer every 2-3 weeks and stay consistent with this routine.
If you believe nutrient deficiencies and poor soil fertilization to be affecting your celery growth, add coffee grounds or banana peel fertilizer to address those challenges and add some extra nutrients to the soil.
Step 6: Harvesting & Regrowing
Now comes the part where I tell you how I’m able to get repeated harvests from the same celery plant. The trick is harvesting outer stalks as needed, but letting the center of the plant remain as it is. This will allow your celery to keep growing.
Repeat this process with multiple plants for a steady supply.
Common Problems & Solutions
Leggy growth? For weak and leggy growth, move your celery to a sunnier spot to allow for more sun exposure.
Yellowing leaves? Check for overwatering or nutrient deficiencies. These factors lead to discoloration and degradation of leaf pigment.
Pests? Use neem/peppermint oil or soap spray for natural pest control.
Conclusion
For an endless celery supply, there are certain factors you need to consider, especially when growing in a pot. Things may not work out as well if you don’t have the ideal pot or aren’t diligent with the fertilizer feedings.
However, if you follow the process as I outlined above, your chances of having a sustainable, recurring celery supply increase drastically. Then, it’s just a matter of maintaining it well and addressing problems that may develop along the way.
