Growing Celery

I live on the edge of zones 6a and 6b.   We have 46 inches of rain per year.   I do have a high tunnel.   I am in the long process of putting in a greenhouse.   Is there any way I can grow celery?  So far, I have not been successful.

I grow celery in my garden every year in zone 3.  I just seed it.  Full sun. My celery is a bit different than the big juicy store variety.  It’s more leafy; less juicy and WAY more intense in flavor.  

I cut the leaf on half all summer and dry it.  I let the other half go to stocks, harvest in fall, then chop and freeze.  I also use it in everything all summer!

This year I grew a red stalked celery..not as big as other varieties.

When you grow it yourself you will not believe how intensely celery the flavor is.

my old boss at the farmstand i worked for in vermont could do it, so it should be possible…but i don’t know that i’d ever expect anything like the watery ones they sell at the grocery store. the ones he grew were generally pretty skinny, and seemed about a third as juicy, and at least twice as strong as far as pronounced celery flavor.

Hi Janet and Greg, my problem seems to be that I am in a much warmer climate.

most celery is grown in california (the south and central coast) and mexico. they grow a lot in ventura county - tempered by the ocean, average summer highs in the upper 70’s…so, yeah, you’re probably warmer than that, but i bet not too far off the vt and wa examples.

Hi John. I grow it as a perennial in 7b. It’s growing in four hours of full sun in a fairly moist area. I love pulling off the leaves and using them when a celery flavor is appropriate.

I grow it in 9b, and I`ve started it from seed in 9b.
I have not successfully seeded it and had it grow to maturity in 9b, unfortunately, I've only managed to do it using starts.
Nobody has given me any info on how exactly it's done here but I suspect there is some trick as to when/how you start the seeds. Right now ("deep winter," my kale and cauliflower and peas are trucking to give you an idea) I have 3 in the ground that are super happy. They require regular watering and are big prima donnas if I miss a day. They'll survive a bit into spring but then they'll mysteriously get stem rot and melt away, from one day to the next. I put them on slopy, sandy ground to try to extend it, even if it means I have to water more.

It’s 101 here today…I think I can match you warmth.  115 2 weeks ago….celery doing fine

The only way I've been able to grow celery is by regrowing store-bought heads, rooting them, and keeping them indoors. I also live in an area where it gets too warm. If your climate is like mine, the temperature outdoors goes very quickly from too cold to too hot for growing celery.

When I am able to regrow it indoors, isn't "stalky", but very "bushy." I am only able to use the leaves and small stems for flavoring soups.

I'm going to follow your thread, John. I'd like to know other wisdom about this crop!