Where to buy seeds
Some links are affiliate links — Verdantly may earn a commission at no cost to you. Learn more.
Chinese Leisure Parsley is a fast-growing cilantro variety that reaches harvest in just 40-49 days, making it one of the quickest herbs to bring from seed to table. This heirloom annual thrives in partial shade and grows into a compact 12-18 inch bush, perfect for containers, herb gardens, or tucked into tight spaces. True Leaf Market notes this variety is prized as a microgreen and essential in Asian cuisine, where the leaves, stems, and seeds are all edible. What really sets it apart is its remarkable reluctance to bolt, it stays productive far longer than standard cilantro, giving you weeks of tender harvests instead of days.
Partial Shade
Moderate
?-?
18in H x ?in W
—
High
Hover over chart points for details
The defining trait of Chinese Leisure Parsley is its slow-bolting nature in a genus notorious for rushing to seed. You get weeks of harvestable foliage instead of the typical brief window most cilantro offers. At 40-49 days to maturity, it's quick enough for succession planting every few weeks, yet patient enough to reward steady picking throughout the season. Its dual identity as both a full-sized herb and prized microgreen means you can harvest at any stage, from delicate seedlings to mature plants.
Every part of this plant is edible and useful. The leaves serve as a garnish and key ingredient in Asian cuisines, curries, salsas, and fresh preparations where their bright, distinctive flavor matters. The stems are tender enough to eat alongside the leaves when harvested young. The seeds, coriander, become a warm, citrusy spice once dried. You can harvest Chinese Leisure Parsley at the microgreen stage for delicate, potent flavor, as a full leafy herb for cooking, or let it mature to seed for dry storage and future planting.
No timeline data available yet for this variety.
Direct sow in spring when soil is workable. Press seeds into moist soil and keep consistently damp until germination occurs. Thin seedlings as they develop, keeping the strongest plants spaced 3 inches apart.
Begin harvesting as early as the microgreen stage if you prefer tender, intense flavor, or wait until plants reach 6-8 inches tall for standard leaf harvests. Pinch or cut leaves from the outer edges of the plant, working inward, which encourages continued branching. Continue harvesting throughout the growing season; the slow-bolting nature of this variety means you'll have leaves available much longer than typical cilantro. Once flowers do appear and you want seeds, allow the plant to mature fully, then harvest the dried seed heads.
Pinch off flower buds as they appear to extend the leafy harvest phase and delay seed production. Regular harvesting of outer leaves also encourages a bushier, more productive plant.
Enter your ZIP code to see a personalized growing calendar for this plant.
“This variety carries the designation 'heirloom' and is documented as an organic, non-GMO cultivar within the Coriandrum sativum species. Its widespread use in Asian cuisine suggests deep roots in regional gardening traditions where cilantro's bolt-resistance would have been particularly valued in warm climates. The fact that seed companies highlight its microgreen potential indicates modern recognition of what traditional growers may have long understood: this particular plant has properties that make it exceptionally useful across multiple growth stages and harvest styles.”