Petroselinum crispum is not Chinese parsley. Cilantro is Coriandrum sativum.
How it was found
Kew maps Petroselinum crispum as northwest Africa and the Balkan Peninsula. Native list: Algeria, Greece, Morocco, northwest Balkan Peninsula. Introduced widely across Europe, the Americas, parts of Africa, Asia, and islands — including California.
USDA GRIN lists the species as widely cultivated and widely naturalized. UC Marin: native to Mediterranean countries. Kew’s native list covers northwest Africa and the Balkan Peninsula.
How people used it
Kew lists food. UC Sacramento: used in stews, soups, sauces, dressings, and seasonings; curled parsley (P. crispum var. crispum) is the go-to garnish; Italian flat-leaf (P. c. var. neapolitanum) is said to have a stronger flavor that holds up better in cooking. UC Marin: curly leaf used more as a garnish and flat-leafed parsley used for cooking. UC Sonoma: extra parsley may be frozen or dried for long-term storage; start harvesting 60–75 days after planting; harvest from the outside of plants.
Kew also lists medicinal use.
Timeline
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Mediterranean native
Two maps, one herb
UC Marin Master Gardeners: native to Mediterranean countries. Kew’s native range is narrower: northwest Africa, Balkan Peninsula (Algeria, Greece, Morocco, northwest Balkan Peninsula). Both sentences stay. Neither is a first-garden year.
UC Marin Master Gardeners; Kew POWO
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1866
The name
Kew accepts Petroselinum crispum (Mill.) Fuss, first published in Fl. Transsilv.: 254 (1866). USDA GRIN: Fl. transsilv. 254. 1866. GRIN synonyms include Apium petroselinum L., Petroselinum hortense Hoffm., and Petroselinum sativum Hoffm. ex Gaudin.
Kew POWO; USDA GRIN
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Present
Biennial that gardeners treat as annual
UC Sacramento: parsley is a biennial, growing during its first season and blooming during its second; many gardeners prefer to grow it as an annual. Two culinary types are treated under P. crispum: curled (var. crispum) and Italian flat-leaf (var. neapolitanum).
UC Master Gardeners of Sacramento County
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Present (Sonoma)
Year-round harvest there
UC Master Gardener Program of Sonoma County: parsley may be harvested in Sonoma County year-round; a few plants started in spring usually last all winter there. For continued presence, set out new plants each year or allow an existing plant to reseed.
UC Master Gardener Program of Sonoma County — Parsley
Cool to know
UC Sacramento treats Italian flat-leaf as Petroselinum crispum var. neapolitanum. UC Marin prints a separate binomial Petroselinum neapolitanum for flat leaf. Kew and GRIN accept one species, P. crispum; GRIN flags var. neapolitanum Danert as nom. inval.
UC Sacramento; UC Marin; Kew; USDA GRIN
Chinese parsley / cilantro is Coriandrum sativum (UC Sonoma; GRIN). Garden parsley is Petroselinum crispum.
UC Sonoma; USDA GRIN
UC Sacramento: biennial that sends up white flowers in the second summer, when leaf flavor turns bitter, which is why many gardeners grow it as an annual.
UC Master Gardeners of Sacramento County
UC Sonoma MG: expect parsley worms, larvae of the swallowtail butterfly, feeding on a few sprigs; larvae go through 5 stages from black/brown with orange markings and spines to smooth, pale green bodies with black and yellow stripes before emerging as yellow and black butterflies.
UC Master Gardener Program of Sonoma County — Parsley
Kew POWO habit is “biennial or perennial” of the temperate biome. UC Sacramento treats it as a biennial grown as an annual.
Kew POWO; UC Sacramento
UC Sacramento MG notes that parsley is a natural breath sweetener due to its high chlorophyll content.
UC Master Gardeners of Sacramento County
Growing notes for this plant live on the Plant Wiki.
Want parsley in a San Diego pot? See the easy-herbs guide for keeping culinary parsley going here. Get a quote or write yourgardenofgold@gmail.com.