Leaving the house for work earlier this week, as I passed by the the elevated rock garden, I happened to catch a whiff of cilantro. Immediately I pulled my lunch out of the case, snipped off a few bits of cilantro by fingernail, and plopped them unceremoniously atop my salad of the last of the baby bok choy, farmer’s market-procured lettuce and snap peas, and Costco-foraged wild smoked salmon and tzatziki dressing. It was Yum.
I notice my two cilantro plants need a little trimming so they don’t think about going to seed.
I also noticed one of my strawberries was ripe! My first ripe strawberry ever! But it was low to the ground and I didn’t want to go back inside and wash it so I figured I’d pluck it once I got home later on in the day.
Cilantro, strawberry, tarragon, basil
Unfortunately, some no-doubt adorable beast without a concern in its little head ate it. I hope it choked.
Sea Vegetable
How do you keep your cilantro so lush?! I love gardening and have a fairly green thumb, but for some reason, my cilantro ALWAYS croaks. And in mild, sunny San Diego, you’d imagine it’d be happier than any plant could be. But no such luck. Only lasts a few months and then it fades, browns and dies. Cilantro will be the bane of my existence. I have to know your secret, haha.
I find that cilantro I grow myself tends to be *Extremely* seasonal. It lasts for a bit, and I grab it while I can. The only secret I know of is to use it when it is ready — and then hope someone is selling good stuff at a farmers’ market or somewhere! I’m sorry to hear it is so difficult to grow in San Diego, where one might expect everything to grow quite well.