How Long Does Cilantro Take To Grow? [Guide to Cilantro]

Are you thinking of adding the cilantro herb to your garden? But you’re not sure how long it’ll take to grow? You might be wondering if this plant will be able to produce a harvest by the time you need its leaves. This article will explain how long cilantro plants take to grow and more. But, first, we’ll discuss how easy cilantro is to grow and how tall it gets. Then, we’ll go in-depth about how long it takes to grow. We’ll also share tips on how to help your cilantro plant grow faster. Finally, we’ll discuss harvesting your cilantro and the average lifespan of the plant. 

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Is Cilantro Easy To Grow?

Once you know how to care for cilantro, then yes. Cilantro is an easy herb plant to grow.

You can grow it in your garden outside, in a pot outside, or inside your house in water. If it has suitable soil, watering, sun, and temperatures, your cilantro can easily thrive.

How Tall Does Cilantro Grow?

Cilantro is a relatively big plant. So, if you’re going to grow this in your garden, make sure you give it enough space for it to spread out.

Also, make sure your other plants have plenty of room.

For instance, cilantro can grow about one to two feet tall. In addition, it can grow to be about one to 1.5 feet wide.

So, it needs plenty of elbow room to grow well.

Learn more about how big cilantro grows here.

How Long Does Cilantro Take To Grow?

Believe it or not, once you get the hang of growing cilantro, not only is it an easy herb to grow, but it’s also quick to grow.

How Long Does Cilantro Take To Germinate?

You won’t be waiting too long for your cilantro to start growing once you plant your seeds.

Provided the seeds are planted in a good spot, and they’re about one inch deep into the soil, then you can expect the seeds to germinate within five to ten days. 

How Long Does It Take To Grow Cilantro From Seed?

So, how long does it take for cilantro to sprout? If you grow cilantro from seeds, then you can expect your harvest to be in as little as 22 days.

However, the cilantro plant can take anywhere between 45 and 70 days to fully mature when grown from seeds.

How Long Does It Take For Cilantro To Grow From Cuttings?

If you grow cilantro from cuttings, it will take longer to grow than planting seeds.

It seems backward since cuttings are somewhat grown already. First, however, the cuttings need to get reacquainted with the soil and dig their roots down.

So, if you have cilantro cuttings handy that you’re going to plant, you can expect it to be fully grown within a couple of weeks.

Tips To Help Cilantro Grow As Fast As Possible

The best way to help cilantro grow as fast as possible is to take great care of the plant.

If your cilantro plant is well-loved and gets the proper care it needs, then it will indeed thrive, growing quickly and efficiently. 

Choose A Spot And Know When To Plant Your Cilantro

First, you want to decide when and where to plant your cilantro.

You can decide to put your cilantro plant in the garden or keep it inside your house. Alternatively, you can bring the cilantro plant in and out as needed.

Cilantro is a cold-hardy plant. So, the best time to plant this herb is in late summer, early fall, or early spring. Right after the final frost of the winter season is an ideal time.

However, if you choose to plant your cilantro inside your house, you can do this at any time of the year. As long as it stays in a cooler room during the warmer months, you can replant it in your garden when the weather gets cooler.

This way, your cilantro plant will have a head-start on growing for the season. Thus, you’ll be able to harvest it earlier and get more harvest out of it.

On the other hand, you can keep it inside your house all year long. Then, once it’s done being harvested for the season, you can allow it to bolt, producing seeds. Then, you can grow the seeds in a different pot for the following season.

So, growing it inside the house earlier is a great way to jump-start its growth. Then, when it’s ready, you can bring it back out to the garden and either leave it in a pot where it can still get the fresh air, or you can plant it in the garden with other plants.

Read my full guide to when to plant cilantro here and where to plant it here.

Companion Planting With Cilantro

When choosing a spot in the garden, companion planting with cilantro is ideal.

Companion planting is when you place certain plants near each other, so they help one another grow.

For example, cilantro prefers one type of soil over the other. Also, they don’t require too much water. So, you’ll want to place your cilantro herb plant near other plants that need the same type of soil and don’t need to drink a lot.

On the other hand, cilantro thrives on direct sunlight. Since it grows tall, you can put plants that don’t need a lot of sun behind the cilantro. Then, the cilantro will get most of the sun while protecting the other plants.

Using companion planting, your cilantro and the other plants around it will grow well and thrive to their best potential. 

Watering Your Cilantro

As mentioned earlier, cilantro doesn’t require too much water. So, if you want it to grow quickly, make sure you keep up with its watering needs.

For example, in the early stages of growth, this herb likes to have about an inch of water added to its soil per day.

As it grows bigger, you’ll only need to provide it with about one inch of water per week.

Be careful, though. It’s easy to overwater or underwater your cilantro plant.

You can learn more about your cilantro plant’s watering needs here.

Soil And Fertilizer Needs for Cilantro

Now that we know cilantro doesn’t need a lot of water, the type of soil you plant them is important.

For example, cilantro prefers to have well-drained soil. This way, excess water can drain through the dirt without bothering your plant.

Not only is this type of soil helpful in case you give your cilantro a little too much to drink, but it’s always helpful outside. For instance, on rainy days, your cilantro will be okay.

However, if you know you’re going to get a lot of rain within a day or two, you can move your cilantro plant inside. Alternatively, you can protect it with a tarp out in the garden.

In addition, cilantro doesn’t need fertilizer. However, if you want it to grow a little faster and remain healthy, you can add a little bit of fertilizer to the soil about once a month.

Sunlight And Temperature For Cilantro

Remember, cilantro is a cold-hardy plant.

For instance, it prefers to be planted in about 50 to 70 degrees F. In the winter. It can withstand temperatures as low as 10 degrees F. However, you’ll still need to protect it.

You can bring it inside the house in the winter, place it in a greenhouse, or protect it with a cold frame.

Your cilantro plant will grow well with the right protection and proper temperatures.

In addition, this herb thrives on full, direct sunlight. So, you’ll want to provide it with at least six hours of sunlight per day.

If planting it in the garden, make sure it’s in a sunny spot. On the other hand, if you plant it in a pot inside your house, be sure it’s in a sunny room.

You can also get a sun lamp if you have some cloudy days ahead of you.

Even though it likes the sun, be sure that it doesn’t get too hot. Unfortunately, cilantro can burn in hot temperatures, and it will cause it to bolt or produce flowers early.

When To Harvest Cilantro

Given the right growing conditions, you’ll be able to harvest your cilantro plant in as little as 22 days.

You can harvest as much or as little as you want at any time. However, make sure you give the plant about a week in between harvests to grow some more.

How To Harvest Cilantro

Harvesting your cilantro plant is simple.

With a pair of gardening scissors, snip off the stems about one-third from the top of the plant. From the bottom, the stem will regrow, producing more leaves.

Should You Prune Cilantro?

The only time you’ll need to prune your cilantro is if it’s growing too fast for you and you want the plant to remain smaller.

On the other hand, if you want to elongate its life, you can prune the plant once you notice flowers beginning to bud.

How Long Does Cilantro Last?

Cilantro is an annual herb plant, which only grows once per season. So, it has a lifespan of about one year.

After the initial cool season, your cilantro plant will bolt. It’ll produce flowers, thus produce seeds, to reproduce itself.

You can let this happen so you’ll have a new cilantro plant for the following year. 

Final Words on How Long it takes for Cilantro to Grow

Overall, cilantro is easy to grow. If you get the conditions right. Because of that, it’s quick to grow. With proper care, you can expect to have cilantro leaves for your family meals within a couple of weeks.

Want to learn more? Fing out how big cilantro gets here and what to do when cilantro flowers here. You can find all my guides to growing cilantro here.

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