Dill: Sowing, planting and harvest calendar
How do you sow dill outdoors?
Sow your dill directly where it will grow once the soil has warmed, generally from mid-spring into summer depending on your climate. A single March-to-May window does not suit every location. Choose a sunny, sheltered place with fertile, loose, well-drained soil. Direct sowing limits handling of its root.
Remove weeds, break up clods and prepare a fine surface. Make drills about one centimetre deep and roughly thirty centimetres apart. Moisten them if the soil is dry, then sow thinly and cover lightly. You do not need to place every seed thirty centimetres apart: establish the final spacing later by thinning, allowing for the variety's eventual size.
Water gently and maintain even moisture during emergence without standing water. Label rows and weed carefully near young shoots. To extend the supply of leaves, sow small batches in succession during suitable weather. Flowering is part of this annual's natural cycle. A well-developed plant tolerates moving less readily; if starting in modules, keep the root ball intact when planting it out. Avoid disturbing the root more than necessary.
When and how do you plant dill?
Plant young dill with its rootball intact when the soil warms in spring and hard frosts are no longer expected. If your plants have grown under cover, gradually acclimatise them to outdoor conditions before planting them in their final position. Choose a sunny spot sheltered from strong winds, with soil that drains freely.
Dill dislikes root disturbance. Choose small plants whose main root has not yet grown long or become coiled inside the pot. Moisten the rootball before removing the pot. Make a hole large enough to accommodate it, gently slide out the whole rootball and plant without teasing out or shortening the roots. Keep the soil surface at its previous level, fill around the roots and firm gently. About 20 cm between plants is a useful starting point, adjusted to the vigour of your variety.
Water after planting to settle the soil against the rootball, then monitor moisture while the plants establish, without leaving them waterlogged. For container growing, choose a pot with drainage holes and adequate depth; around 30 cm deep is a useful starting point. Direct sowing in the final position is often simpler. This planting task concerns young plants already raised in pots, rather than seeds that still need sowing.
How to care for this plant
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Weed
Identify the young plants before starting. If weeds grow between them, remove them gently by hand without loosening the herbs’ roots.
When and how do you harvest dill?
Harvest dill leaves once your plants are established enough to spare a few shoots, often around six weeks after sowing. Judge their vigour rather than waiting for a compulsory height. On a young plant, snip only a few leaves or shoot tips with clean scissors. Always leave enough foliage for continued growth, retaining at least one-third of the plant. Do not routinely cut every stem down to ground level expecting it to grow back.
Leaf harvest is mainly before the yellow flower heads open. Flowering then reduces the production of young leaves. For seeds, instead allow some flower heads to develop. Cut their stems when the fully formed seeds begin turning brown, before they fall. Put the heads in a paper bag and hang them somewhere dry and airy to catch the seeds as they detach. Remove debris and wait until the seeds are completely dry before sealing them in an airtight container.
Use the leaves promptly because they wilt quickly. Keep them in the refrigerator if you need to hold them briefly, and check their condition: storage life depends on how fresh they were when picked. You can also dry small bunches out of direct sunlight in a ventilated place, bearing in mind that drying weakens their flavour.
Dill
- Type : Aromatic plants
- Subtype : Bulb vegetables
- Botanical Family : Apiaceae (umbelliferae)
Characteristics
- Lifecycle : Annual
- Exposure : Full Sun
- Frost Hardiness : Frost Resistant
- Cultivation Difficulty : Easy
- Mature height : 40 cm
Sowing & Planting
- Greenhouse Growing : Not Required
- Sowing Depth : 0.5 cm
- Plant Spacing : 20 cm
- Row Spacing : 40 cm
Maintenance
- Maintenance : Low
- Water Requirements : Moderate
Other characteristics
- Soil Type : Humus-rich
- Soil pH Preference : Neutral
- Pest Sensitivity : Moderate
- Disease Sensitivity : Moderate
- Weed Sensitivity : Low
- Pollination : Insect-pollinated
- Propagation : Sowing