How to Grow Parsley Canada

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

Parsley is notorious for slow seed germination, and growers are advised not to give up on a bed or tray that hasn't sprouted yet — starting from seedlings rather than direct-sowing outdoors is one way to avoid the wait.

The short answer

Site
soil pH 6–7.5
Biggest risk
Parsley virus diseases

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

Parsley (Petroselinum crispum)

A bunch of harvested curly parsley leaves — “Parsley leaves” by Jeffery Martin is licensed under CC0.

9 sources cited · Verified

Quick Facts

Detail of triangular, aromatic parsley leaves
Detail of triangular, aromatic parsley leaves. Photo: “Starr-080731-9590-Petroselinum crispum-leaves-makawao-Maui (24831382061)” by Forest and Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0 us.
Factor Value
Soil pH 6 - 7.5
Optimal growing temp 11-20°C
Drainage Chalk, Clay, Loam, Sand; rich, moist but well-drained soil
Lifecycle biennial
Edible parts leaves
Documented problems 2 diseases, 5 pests

At a Glance

Detail of triangular, aromatic parsley leaves
Detail of triangular, aromatic parsley leaves. Photo: “Starr-080731-9590-Petroselinum crispum-leaves-makawao-Maui (24831382061)” by Forest and Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0 us.
Petroselinum crispum Parsley Parsley virus diseases… Parsley leaf spot (caus… Aphids Carrot fly Snails Slugs Celery leaf miner (cele… DISEASES PESTS

Diseases

A young parsley plant growing in soil
A young parsley plant growing in soil. Photo: “Starr 070308-5407 Petroselinum crispum” by Forest & Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0.
Parsley virus diseases (unspecified/unidentified)
Parsley leaf spot (causal agent not yet confirmed)

Pests

A young parsley plant
A young parsley plant. Photo: “Starr 070308-5408 Petroselinum crispum” by Forest & Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0.

Aphididae (various spp.)

Psila rosae

Snails
low

Gastropoda (snails, various spp.)

RHS names this directly.

Slugs
low

Gastropoda (slugs, various spp.)

RHS names this directly.

Celery leaf miner (celery fly)

Euleia heraclei

Soil & Growing Conditions

A young parsley plant growing in soil
A young parsley plant growing in soil. Photo: “Starr 070308-5407 Petroselinum crispum” by Forest & Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0.

Soil pH range

6 7.5

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

Growth Stages

Parsley leaves at a plant nursery
Parsley leaves at a plant nursery. Photo: “Starr-070906-8879-Petroselinum crispum-leaves-Kula Ace Hardware and Nursery-Maui (24264055374)” by Forest and Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0 us.
Stage BBCH Notes
Sowing 0 Sow seed in situ, in succession from late spring through summer (RHS).
First-year leaf growth 3 Develops rich-green, crisped, triangular aromatic leaves, harvested through the first year (RHS).
Overwintering 6 Can be overwintered, though leaves become coarser in the second year (RHS).
Second-year flowering 9 Produces small yellow-green flowers in its second year as a biennial (RHS).

Harvest & Storage

A bunch of harvested curly parsley leaves
A bunch of harvested curly parsley leaves. Photo by Jeffery Martin, CC0.

When to pick: Cut-and-come-again herb; leaves harvested from late spring through autumn, best before flowering in second year; "seed is slow to germinate"

Plan your Parsley planting

When to sow and plant Parsley depends on your own frost dates. Check the Canada vegetable planting calendar, or the month-by-month guides that cover Parsley: October, November. To work out where it fits in your beds, sketch your plot in the free Garden Layout Planner.

Growing Parsley 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 9 sources behind this guide (Clemson Cooperative Extension, GBIF, NC State Extension and others) is in the references of our UK guide to parsley; they describe the plant itself, which is the same wherever it grows.

Frequently Asked Questions

What soil pH does parsley need?

A pH of about 6–7.5. 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 parsley?

Our data links 2 diseases and 5 pests to this crop. See the sections above for each one and how to manage it.

Plan next season before the problems start

Short-season growing is arithmetic before it is technique: days to maturity against frost-free days decides what will finish at all. The Canada Garden Planner does that subtraction for your region before you sow.

Get the Canada Garden Planner →

Instant PDF download · Written for Canadian 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 Canadian hardiness-zone and frost-date data, with provincial agriculture and university 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.

Vegetable Growing Guides Canada

Last verified 2026-09-02

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This guide in another region
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