Rules for harvesting petiole celery
The timing of harvesting petiole celery depends on the place of cultivation. The vegetable cannot withstand and withers due to non-compliance with the temperature regime - below 20 ° C. Therefore, they harvest, adhering to the rules for harvesting the plant.
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Celery is prepared for the winter using stalks
Vegetables are grown in 2 ways:
- in open beds;
- in a closed greenhouse.
The crop is harvested for both types of cultivation at different times. The crop is harvested from the garden in late summer - early autumn. The dug up greenery is transplanted into a greenhouse or greenhouse for additional growth. In a greenhouse, the crop grows until the first frost, so it is harvested in late October or early November.
The greens are dug up with the root system. The roots are cut off, leaving 1-2 cm. The greens are cut 1 cm above the branching point of the leaves. When harvesting, do not allow physical damage to the vegetable. The spoiled fruit will rot. The harvested crop is sorted, removing specimens with defects. For better storage, the product is left for 2-3 days in the fresh air to dry. Proper cleaning and preparation of the vegetable will ensure its safety.
When to harvest stalked celery
The timing of harvesting petiole celery varies. It depends on the varieties of petiole celery. Thus, self-bleaching species planted by mulching are afraid of sudden changes in temperature and drops to minus values, so they are collected before September, namely before the first frost. But other varieties grown in trenches are harvested much later - after 3-4 weeks.
It is advisable to carry out the bleaching procedure 14-21 days before harvesting: collect the petioles in a bunch and wrap them in “breathable” material. This way, these parts of the plant will retain their tenderness for a long time, and at the same time they will not taste bitter.
The color of the petioles can be different - it depends on the variety. There are green stems - they must be bleached for winter, yellow ones - they bleach themselves, pink ones - they retain their properties themselves, and are very frost-resistant, so they tolerate winter well.
How to store petiole celery
- fresh. Celery is washed and dried, wrapped in foil and placed in the refrigerator. Shelf life – 10 days;
- seasoning. For use in cooking, the vegetable is dried between 2 sheets of clean paper. The process takes a month. The dried fruit is stored in a paper bag;
- frozen. Fresh herbs are chopped and placed in ice trays. Then fill with water and freeze. Also use airtight containers to store celery in the freezer without using liquid;
- saline. 0.5 kg of vegetable is mixed with 0.1 g of salt, placed in jars and preserved. No sterilization required.
The taste and pleasant smell of the crop will be preserved when frozen if harvested before flowering. Petiole celery will become more tender and tastier if 30 days before cutting it is wrapped in material that does not allow light to pass through.
To preserve celery for a long time, it is important to properly prepare the stalks and follow storage recommendations.
Since ancient times, people have known several types of celery: leaf, which is used as a seasoning, stalk, whose stems are eaten raw and boiled, and root. The latter is a small root vegetable from which you can prepare main courses, or add it to soups, stews and salads.
There are several options for storing celery at home all winter. Most often, drying, salting or freezing are used; thanks to these methods, leaf or root celery lasts the longest. Fresh celery can be kept for two to three weeks, but for both long-term and short-term storage it is necessary to choose the right place and take care of suitable conditions.
Harvesting and storing celery for the winter begins in July-August, when the plants ripen but do not yet begin to bloom. Otherwise, the greens will waste all the beneficial substances during the ripening of the seeds, and will also lose their taste.
You can buy celery in the store at any time of the year, but when choosing it you need to carefully consider the shelf life and quality of the product.
- The stems should be hard, smooth, without voids; The hollow petioles will “ring” when tapped.
- Plants are checked for freshness by pressing on the root; if it is soft and slippery, then you should not take such a vegetable.
- Also, good celery has a bright green color, without yellowness or spots on the leaves and stems.
Planting and caring for petiole celery
In order to get juicy and crispy petioles, the bleaching method is used. Don't be alarmed, chemistry has nothing to do with it. This method provides special care for the plant. Let's take a closer look.
Celery is planted in March, but you can start in February. Home first. Before replanting petiole celery
to the garden bed, you need to carry out preliminary preparation of the landing site. In addition to the fact that you will need to dig up the soil, loosen it and fertilize it, you will also need to dig special trenches in which celery bushes will be planted up to the leaves. As the celery grows, you will need to constantly add drops to the very leaves. Caring for the plant is not particularly difficult: watering as needed, periodic feeding. The only thing that will require a little strength and patience is constant digging. But the result will justify itself =)
This is how white, thick and crispy stems are obtained. They don't see the sun. They are constantly in the ground and therefore have a white color. Petiole celery should be harvested in the fall before the onset of winter.
Petiole celery is a versatile vegetable, suitable for making soups, main courses, etc. It is much easier to grow it in your own garden than to find it on the store counter. Therefore, many summer residents are puzzled by the question of what to do with stalked celery for the winter? In order to eat a healthy vegetable at this time of year, it is necessary to properly preserve it.
How to store celery after harvesting?
The right time to harvest stalked celery for the winter is before frost sets in. To ensure that the stems remain juicy and firm, the lower part is tied with opaque paper a couple of weeks before harvesting.
To fully preserve the vitamins of the vegetable, you need to know how to store celery after harvesting. After waiting the allotted time, cut the stems at the root and place them in a box with plastic wrap. It is important to observe the temperature and humidity conditions. They should be from 8 to + 1ºС and within 90-95%, respectively.
This way you can store celery for a couple of months. Therefore, when thinking about how to store stalked celery for the winter, they most often use the refrigerator. In this case, it will be possible to preserve the beneficial properties for a long time. The cut stems are washed and dirt removed. Then dry. To prevent them from turning yellow, maintain a certain humidity. This can be achieved using foil or a plastic bag.
How to store stalked celery in the cellar?
The box is also filled with sand, in which celery is planted. It must be positioned strictly vertically. The box with the stems is sent to the cellar for the winter. The main thing is to maintain the temperature from 0 to 10 degrees. The roots can also be dried and frozen. In all cases, celery will retain all vitamins.
Proper organization of storage of petiole celery for the winter will allow you to use this healthy vegetable for a long time for preparing various dishes.
A crop such as celery is of great value, since this plant is a storehouse of vitamins and microelements. Storage can be organized in such a way that a batch of this vegetable stays fresh all winter. There are a number of simple rules for collecting and storing celery, following which you can significantly enrich your diet.
Storing fresh celery
Fresh celery can be stored for 10-14 days in the vegetable section of the refrigerator. Plants must be thoroughly washed, free of dirt, damaged leaves and stems. All parts of the vegetable must be thoroughly wiped with paper towels and then packaged in a plastic bag and placed in a cool, dark place. Instead of a bag, it is permissible to take foil; it is believed that it extends the shelf life of products. But the best option is food containers. If you place fresh celery sprigs in paper towels, the plant can sit for more than three weeks without spoiling.
It is possible to keep celery fresh at home if you cut off the root of the plant and put the stem in a jar of water, so it can stand without a refrigerator for about seven days, but every day you will have to change the water and trim the stem.
How to prepare petiole celery for the winter
Celery petioles for long-term storage are carefully selected. They should be brittle, elastic, bright green and without a seed arrow. If the vegetables are overgrown and seeds begin to form on them, the petioles will be tough and taste bitter.
You can store celery stalks at home in the freezer or as preparations for the winter.
In the freezer
Frozen petioles will retain almost all their beneficial properties. They can be added to both hot dishes and salads.
Store pre-washed and dried petioles in the freezer, placing them in freezer bags. You can chop the stems and place them in a container with a lid.
Preparations from petioles
There is not always room in the freezer for frozen vegetables, so you have to prepare them for the winter. Here are some simple and quick recipes:
- Dry salting.
The stems, sprinkled with salt, will be stored in a cool, dark place until the next harvest. They must first be washed, dried and cut so that they fit into a glass jar. The petioles are sprinkled with salt at the rate of 0.5 kg of stems - 100 g of salt. The jars are rolled up with lids. - Drying
. Wash the stems, dry them and cut them both lengthwise and crosswise to form thin slices. Heat the oven to 60 degrees and place the baking sheet with the preparations in it. Dry with the oven door open. Dried petioles are stored in glass jars with a tightly closed lid. - Pickling.
To marinate 1 kg of stalked celery you will need one and a half liters of water, 80 grams of salt, 400 grams of 9% vinegar, 200 grams of sugar. Petioles, bay leaves, garlic and any other seasoning to taste, cut into small pieces, are placed in a jar. Prepare the marinade and pour it while still boiling into jars, which are sealed and sterilized for 20 minutes in a water bath.
Celery stalks can be stored simply in the refrigerator for two to three weeks. They should first be washed, dried and wrapped in foil.
Freezing
A popular way to store vegetables for the winter - freezing - is applicable for celery. If the leaves are to be used as an additive to soups and main courses, it is more convenient to store them cut into large pieces. For sauces, it would be better to chop the leaves, fill them into ice cube trays, add water and put them in the freezer. After freezing, the cubes are poured into plastic bags.
This storage is also applicable for root celery, but it is not recommended to freeze the whole vegetable - it is better to grate or chop it. It is important not to defrost food so that it does not lose all its best qualities.
Storage and processing methods
There are several ways to store and process stalked celery for the winter. Each of them has its own pros and cons.
In a cold cellar, the vegetable lies without loss of appearance and nutrients, but not for long - up to 2 months.
The advantage of the refrigerator is the ability to store trimmed petioles, ready for use, but the period is even shorter (2-3 weeks).
Frozen celery lasts up to a year, but you can’t make a fresh salad from it or squeeze out juice.
Dried petioles have an even longer shelf life. They retain a lot of useful substances, but are only suitable as an aromatic additive to dishes.
Thrifty housewives use different options for storing and processing stalked celery and provide their family with a healthy vegetable throughout the winter.
In a refrigerator
Vegetables purchased or picked up from the cellar for current consumption are stored in the refrigerator. The task at hand is to ensure that the stems retain their elasticity and juiciness, but do not begin to rot. Before putting them in the refrigerator, they are washed, dried, then one of the packaging options is used:
wrapped in foil;
wrap the bundle with a paper towel and place it in a plastic bag;
dry product can be wrapped in cling film.
Before consumption, the dried edges of the petioles are cut off; otherwise, they retain their original quality.
Cellar
As practice shows, it is best to store the grown crop of petiole celery in the cellar.
Before lowering it into the basement, the foliage of a dug plant is cut off, and a small piece of rhizome (2–3 cm) is left at the bottom. The sockets are placed vertically in a box, half covered with sand. Alternatively, individual specimens with roots can be buried in damp sand (peat). Instead of a basement, an unheated balcony, a cold veranda, or a glazed loggia will do, but only if the air temperature there does not drop to 0⁰ C.
Options for freezing petioles
A popular storage method is freezing stalked celery for the winter. Despite the abundance of recipes, the fundamental difference is one thing - whether to heat-treat the vegetable before freezing or not.
The first option is freezing and blanching the product. The scheme is similar to preparing Brussels sprouts, step by step it looks like this.
The petioles are washed, hard fibers (veins) are removed, and cut into small pieces.
The crushed mass is immersed in boiling water for 2-3 minutes.
Remove with a slotted spoon into a bowl of cold water or pieces of ice for quick cooling.
Before freezing petiole celery, lay it out in one layer on a cloth napkin, and after draining excess moisture, place it on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.
Pickling
A common way to store vegetables is pickling. Salt is a good preservative that prevents food from spoiling for a long time. To pickle celery for the winter, take the ingredients in the following proportions:
- 500 grams of celery. The root and leaves can be salted either together or separately.
- 100 grams of table salt, not iodized and without additives.
- Currant leaf for flavor or a little hot pepper for spiciness. Spices should be added based on your own preferences.
Celery is finely chopped or minced, sprinkled with salt and placed in jars. After this, the jars are tightly closed and put in a cool place, with a constant temperature of 5-7 degrees. In such conditions, salted greens will last all winter.
Drying
If you need to get seasoning from celery, drying is considered the best way to do this. The washed celery root is peeled and cut into strips, the leaves are rinsed with water and laid out on paper towels to remove excess moisture. Then pour the chopped greens in an even layer onto the paper and leave in a dark, cool place. The entire drying process will take about a month.
In the oven, celery is kept on a tray covered with paper at 40 degrees for three hours, after which the temperature is increased by 15-20 degrees, leaving the greens to dry. The oven must be opened slightly to prevent steam from accumulating, which can not only lengthen the drying time, but also spoil the greens.
When the celery is well dried, it will need to be poured into glass jars with an airtight lid or in paper bags and stored, protecting the seasoning from direct sunlight. High humidity is dangerous for greens kept in bags, so they need to be stored away from possible sources of dampness.
Your brownie.
Hello, dear readers!
Celery
was known since ancient times to the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans. In the burial of one of the Egyptian pharaohs, dated 1200 BC, a wreath of celery leaves was preserved at the head of the mummy. The ancient Greeks depicted it on coins, and the poet Homer sang it in his works “Iliad” and “Odyssey”. Beauties prepared anti-aging masks from celery, and doctors prescribed drugs from it for many diseases. In Ancient India, Tibet, China, they even treated oncology.
In medieval Europe, the first cultural forms of celery arose in the 15th-16th centuries. At first, leaf and petiole varieties were cultivated, and in the 17th century. root vegetables were bred.
According to legend, celery juice was included in the magical love drink of Tristan and Isolde.
Celery was brought to Russia as an ornamental spicy-flavoring plant. At the beginning of the 18th century. it was grown in the German settlement, in the gardens of noble estates, and near canneries even more often than cucumbers. However, it was leaf celery; both then and now, petiole is grown here in small quantities only by amateur enthusiasts, while in the USA, India, China, Korea and Japan it is cultivated everywhere.
Useful properties of petiole celery
are not calculable. It is used in cooking, pharmacology, folk medicine, cosmetology, food and canning industries.
Useful properties of petiole celery, use in cooking
The petioles are boiled, stewed, pickled, pickled and even frozen. The fiber in celery stalks is digested slowly, accumulating a lot of water, as a result, when absorbed, it creates a feeling of fullness and reduces swelling. Nine-component essential oil, the basis of which is sedanolide, gives a stable pleasant aroma and has a stimulating effect on digestion and kidney activity.
Celery has an antiseptic, blood purifying, wound healing, anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, mild laxative and good diuretic effect. In traditional medicine, preparations are prepared from the seeds for the treatment of arthritis, gout, edema and cystitis. Decoctions, infusions, oils, juices from various parts of celery are used for malaria, urticaria, liver disease, and neuroses.
Favorable ratio of mineral salts and group vitamins. Celery has a beneficial effect on the nervous system, increases brain activity, concentrating attention, accelerates the speed of thinking, and improves memory. The petioles contain up to 7 mg% carotene, which is necessary to normalize vision and prevent night blindness. Vitamin C (100-150 mg%) supports the human immune system, protects body cells from damage by free radicals and premature aging.
Celery has a unique ability to lower blood pressure in hypertensive patients. This happens due to the high content of potassium and magnesium, which relax smooth muscles; flavonoids that strengthen blood vessels; and fiber, which removes about 10% of cholesterol from the body.
Tea made from brewed leaves is useful for older people suffering from constipation; a decoction of roots and leaves eliminates bloating and relieves cramping pain. Celery juice enhances the elimination of toxins from the body, helps cleanse the blood, and is useful for people prone to excessive consumption of sweets and smoking.
Petiole celery soup is included in the menu for people suffering from diabetes, obesity, diseases of the thyroid gland and genitourinary system. Eating petioles has a beneficial effect on the body during shortness of breath, scurvy, and salt deposition. They are recommended for sleep disorders, neurasthenia, insomnia, and excessive excitability.
This useful plant also has contraindications. It is not recommended to use celery for pregnant women, mothers, breastfeeding, infants, with caution - patients with hepatitis, as well as during exacerbation of stomach ulcers, duodenal ulcers and colitis. Its use should be limited to people suffering from epileptic seizures and urolithiasis, so as not to provoke an exacerbation and active movement of stones.
Botanical description, biological features of petiole celery
In addition to celery, the celery family includes many spicy herbs, as well as root vegetables: parsnips, carrots.
In the first year, stalked celery
forms dense stems without voids, and in the second year - seeds. Its leaves are noticeably larger than those of leafy varieties. The thickness of the petioles is 8-9 mm, width 2-3 cm, length 22-50 cm. They can be green, pale green, pink and red, requiring bleaching or self-bleaching. The latter are more thermophilic. From the emergence of seedlings to the cutting of the petioles, 80-180 days pass, depending on the variety. The root system is located at a depth of 20-25 cm.
In the second year of life after planting the mother plants, flower stalks are formed. They bloom in about 2 months. Within 3 weeks, the flowers are pollinated by insects, giving birth to the fruit - a small achene. At first it is greenish-crimson, then, when ripe, gray or brownish-brown, breaking into 2 parts. The seeds are very small, up to 800 pieces in 1 g. Germination remains for 2-4 years.
Petiole celery
– a cold-resistant plant with a long day (13-17 hours), it is grown by sowing it in the ground or through seedlings. Seeds can germinate at 3-4 degrees, but this process will be long, since the optimal temperature for germination is 20-25 degrees. Young plants tolerate frosts of 4 degrees without loss, adults - up to 8 degrees. During prolonged cold weather below plus 10, celery shoots. For normal growth and development, the most favorable temperature is 12-20 degrees.
Celery forms large and juicy petioles on sandy and loamy soils rich in humus and nutrients, on cultivated peat bogs. At the same time, it does not tolerate acidic soils.
Petiole celery is moisture-loving, but suffers from flooding. During the seedling period, it is responsive to soil and air moisture. Mature plants need abundant watering only during dry periods. For normal development they need a lot of potassium and nitrogen. The roots need oxygen and, accordingly, frequent loosening of the soil.
