How to Grow Chinese Celery USA

By the SoilCommander Editorial Team, under the guidance of Nitin Sharma, Co-Founder · · How we check our facts

On this page
  1. Chinese Celery (Apium graveolens (Secalinum Group))
  2. Soil & Growing Conditions
  3. Quick Facts
  4. At a Glance
  5. Growth Stages
  6. Harvest & Storage
  7. Diseases
  8. Pests
  9. Plan your Chinese Celery planting
  10. Growing Chinese Celery in another region
  11. Sources
  12. Frequently Asked Questions

Sow chinese celery once soil temperature reaches 59°F (15°C).

The short answer

Site
soil pH 6.6–6.8
Biggest risk
Celery leaf spot

Core growing advice on this page is checked against named horticultural sources — see References.

Chinese Celery (Apium graveolens (Secalinum Group))

A cutting celery plant in a pot, making a clump of slender leafy stalks — “Snijselderij Apium graveolens” by Rasbak is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

2 sources cited · Verified

Soil & Growing Conditions

A labelled heirloom bed of cutting celery alongside savoy cabbage — “CBG Fruit Veg Island - Anniversary Heirloom Beds, Apium graveolens var secalinum Cutting Celery” by cultivar413 is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
“CBG Fruit Veg Island - Anniversary Heirloom Beds, Apium graveolens var secalinum Cutting Celery” by cultivar413 is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

Water: Full sun or partial shade (RHS), and PFAF suggests some shade in summer, which suits a leaf crop being cut repeatedly. Keep the soil consistently moist. PFAF gives an optimal mean temperature of 61-70°F (16-21°C); leaf growth is poor above that, so the plant is at its best in spring and autumn rather than the height of summer.

Soil pH range

6.6 6.8

Span reflects genuine variation between the cited authorities, not a single agreed figure.

Quick Facts

A cutting celery plant in a pot, making a clump of slender leafy stalks — “Snijselderij Apium graveolens” by Rasbak is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
“Snijselderij Apium graveolens” by Rasbak is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Factor Value
Soil pH 6.6 - 6.8
Germination temp 59°F (15°C)
Optimal growing temp 61-70°F (16-21°C)
Soil texture A rich, light, moist soil. RHS lists loam and sand as suitable; PFAF adds that it tolerates mildly acid through to mildly alkaline conditions and will grow in very acid and very alkaline soils, though it prefers pH 6.6-6.8.
Drainage Moist but well drained. The one thing it will not forgive is drying out.
Lifecycle Biennial, grown as an annual for its leaves and cut repeatedly through the season.
Edible parts leaves, leaf stalks, seeds

At a Glance

A cutting celery plant in a pot, making a clump of slender leafy stalks — “Snijselderij Apium graveolens” by Rasbak is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
“Snijselderij Apium graveolens” by Rasbak is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Apium graveolens (Secal… Chinese Celery Celery leaf spot Snails Slugs Celery leaf miner (cele… DISEASES PESTS

Growth Stages

A celery leaf beaded with dew, showing the toothed leaflet shape — “Seledri Pada Pagi Hari” by Kiko1801 is licensed under CC BY 4.0.
“Seledri Pada Pagi Hari” by Kiko1801 is licensed under CC BY 4.0.
Stage Notes
Sowing and germination Surface sow from February under glass and do not cover the seed, which needs light to germinate. PFAF gives two to three weeks at 59°F (15°C), and warns that germination is erratic. Water from below so the seed is not washed off the surface.
Pricking out and growing on Slow to start. Prick out into modules and grow on under cover until the weather settles, keeping the compost consistently moist.
Planting out Set plants about 15cm apart in rich, moist soil in sun or light shade. No trench and no earthing up: this crop is not blanched.
Cutting season Begin taking outer stalks once the clump is established and keep cutting. Growth is best at a mean 61-70°F (16-21°C), so expect the strongest flushes in late spring and again in autumn rather than in high summer.
Second-year flowering As a biennial it runs up to flower in its second June to August and sets seed in August and September. The leaves coarsen at that point, but the seed is itself a useful flavouring if you want it.

Harvest & Storage

A tied bunch of harvested Chinese celery, showing how much slimmer the stalks are than stick celery — “Chinese celery - Arlington, MA” by Daderot is licensed under CC0.
“Chinese celery - Arlington, MA” by Daderot is licensed under CC0.

When to pick: Cut and come again rather than one harvest. Take the outer stalks at the base once the clump is established and leave the centre to keep growing; done that way a plant crops for months. The flavour is considerably stronger than stick celery, so a little goes further than you expect. In its second year the plant runs up to flower between June and August, and the leaves coarsen once it does.

Storage

Use fresh, or freeze chopped leaves. The stalks do not keep like blanched celery and are better left on the plant until needed.

Diseases

Chinese celery in its second year, carrying white umbels of flower — “Apium graveolens v secalinum, Saikung, Hong Kong” by 阿橋 HQ is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
“Apium graveolens v secalinum, Saikung, Hong Kong” by 阿橋 HQ is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
Celery leaf spot
moderate

Septoria apiicola

Named by the RHS among the problems of this crop. Worth knowing that a related fungus carries a handling risk too: PFAF records that where plants are infected with Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, skin contact with the sap…

Pests

Leaf celery growing in an open bed — “Celeri a couper” by Spedona is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
“Celeri a couper” by Spedona is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Snails
moderate

Gastropoda (snails, various spp.)

Named by the RHS among the problems of this crop. A young clump being cut repeatedly is soft, low and permanently damp, which is exactly what they want.

Slugs
moderate

Gastropoda (slugs, various spp.)

Named by the RHS among the problems of this crop, alongside snails.

Celery leaf miner (celery fly)
high

Euleia heraclei

Named by the RHS as a pest of this crop. The larvae mine blisters through the leaf, which matters more here than on stick celery because the leaf is the crop.

Plan your Chinese Celery planting

When to sow and plant Chinese Celery depends on your own frost dates. Check the USA vegetable planting calendar. To work out where it fits in your beds, sketch your plot in the free Garden Layout Planner.

Growing Chinese Celery in another region

Sowing dates, frost timing and local advice differ by country. Use the guide for where you garden.

Sources

The full list of 2 sources behind this guide (Plants For A Future (PFAF), Royal Horticultural Society) is in the references of our UK guide to chinese celery; they describe the plant itself, which is the same wherever it grows.

Frequently Asked Questions

What soil pH does chinese celery need?

A pH of about 6.6–6.8. That span reflects genuine variation between the authorities we cite rather than a single agreed figure — the References section lists each source's exact range.

What problems affect chinese celery?

Our data links 1 disease and 3 pests to this crop. See the sections above for each one and how to manage it.

Plan next season before the problems start

Almost everything on this page resolves to your own frost dates rather than the calendar — the last spring frost moves by roughly two months between zone 3 and zone 10. The USA Garden Planner works from your zone so the timing is already decided before the season starts.

Get the USA Garden Planner →

Instant PDF download · Written for US growing conditions

SoilCommander Editorial Team — under the guidance of Nitin Sharma, Co-Founder

Every growing guide is checked against RHS, USDA Cooperative Extension, and other named horticultural authorities before publishing. How we check our facts.

How this guide is put together

The growing data on this page — sowing windows, pests, diseases, soil and site requirements — comes from named horticultural sources, listed in References below, checked against USDA hardiness-zone and frost-date data, with Cooperative Extension sources cited directly where one exists for a crop. An automated pipeline assembles that verified data into the page you're reading: it selects which facts to lead with and builds the surrounding prose and layout. It does not invent a date, a source or a number — where a verified value for a field isn't available, the page leaves it out rather than guessing. A person reviews and publishes each page; nothing goes live unverified.

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Last verified 2026-09-07

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