CELERY

Celery also known as Karnauliis. It is known for its medicinal properties. It is used to cure joint pain, headache, nervousness, gout, weight loss, blood purification etc. It is rich source of vitamin C, vitamin K, vitamin B6, folate and potassium. It is used in making stews, salads and soups. It is found mainly in Mediterranean area, mountainous parts of Southern Asia, marshes of Europe and North Africa and in some parts of India. India is major producer and exporter of celery seeds. Ladhwa and Saharanpur districts of western Uttar Pradesh, Panipat in Haryana and Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Jalandhar districts of Punjab are major celery growing states in India.

It is grown in variety of soils ranging from sandy loam to clay, black soil and red soil having proper drainage. It gives best result when grown under loamy soil rich in organic matter. Avoid cultivation in waterlogged soils, alkali and saline soils. It requires soil pH of more than 5.6 for its good growth. 

•    RRL-85-1: Developed by Regional Research Laboratory, Jammu. It gives 2-3% of yellow volatile oil. 

•    Standard bearer: Developed by IARI, New Delhi. It is used for salad purposes.

•    Wright grove giant: Developed by IARI, New Delhi. It is used for salad purposes.

•    Fordhook Emperor: The variety matures late and the tender leaves of this variety are short, solid and are white thick.

•    Giant Pascal: It grows best in winters. The height of this variety is 5-6cm long.

Other State Variety
•    Golden Plume
•    Golden self-Blanching
•    Cornell 619
•    Golden Detroit
•    Utah 52-70
•    Florida 683
•    Tall green light
•    Tender crisp
•    Summer pascal
•    Giant Pascal
•    Slow Bolting Green no 96
•    Slow Bolting Green no 12

For celery plantation, it requires well pulverized and leveled soil. To bring soil to good level, 4-5 ploughings should be done followed each by planking. Transplantation of celery is done on prepared nursery beds.

Time of sowing
Prepared nursery in the month of September-October and transplant in mid December to first week of January. 

Spacing
Transplanting in main field is to be done at the distance of 45cm x 25cm.

Sowing Depth
Sowing depth should be 3-5 cm.

Method of sowing
Can be direct sown or Transplantation of seedling in main field (60-70days after sowing).

Seed rate:
For open pollinated varieties use seed rate of 400 gm/acre.
 

Before sowing apply mixture of calcium ammonium nitrate and single superphosphate @150g on the raised beds. Sow celery seeds on raised beds of 8m x 1.25m and of convenient width.  After sowing cover the seed beds with FYM and mix well in the soil.  After sowing immediate water sprinkler is necessary.
12-15 days after sowing germination of seed starts. When germination begins, application of calcium ammonium nitrate at fortnight to each bed is given. For good plant size application of calcium ammonium nitrate @100g is given to each bed at the interval of one month.
Seedlings are ready for transplantation in 60-70 days after sowing. Before transplanting light irrigation is given to beds so that seedlings can be easily uprooted and be turgid at transplanting time. Transplanting is mainly done in the month of mid-November – end of December.

Fertilizer Requirement (kg/acre)

Nutrient Requirement (kg/acre)

At the time of land preparation, apply well rotten FYM or compost@15 cartloads/acre and mix well in the soil. Apply Nitrogen@80kg, Phosphorus@40kg and K2O@60kg/acre in form of Urea@175kg, SSP@250 and MOP@100kg/acre. At the time of transplanting half dose of nitrogen and full dose of phosphorus and potash are given. Apply one-fourth dose of nitrogen after 45 days of transplanting and then apply remaining dose of nitrogen 75 days after transplantation.

Celery requires too much water for its good growth. Frequent but light irrigations are required for celery. Frequent irrigation is necessary after nitrogen application.

Do hand weeding and light hoeing to keep the field weed free. If weed left uncontrolled then it will reduce the crop yield. For effective weed control, application of Linuron @6 kg/acre is given. Mulching is also an effective way to control the weeds. Blanching of crop is also required to increase its flavor and to maintain its sensitivity.
 

• Disease and their control:
  

Celery Mosaic Virus: It is virus which gets transmitted to other plants by aphids. The symptoms are vein clearing, vein mottling, leaves gets curled, twisted and has stunted growth.

Treatment: Removal of umbelliferous weeds and field must remain celery free for 1-3 months will help to prevent virus. 
 
 

Damping-off: It is a fungal disease which is caused by Rhizoctonia solani and Pythium spp. The symptoms are rotten seeds which decreases seed germination rate or slow germination rate.

Treatment: Prevent the planting of celery in wet or cool soil. Seeds must be treated with fungicide before sowing in the soil to prevent from damping-off disease.

Downy mildew: It is a fungal disease which is caused by Peronospora umbelliferum. The symptoms are lesions which gets darker with the maturity of plant, yellow spots on the upper surface and white fluffy growth on the lower surface of leaves.
 
Treatment: Use plant pathogen free seeds for germination and avoid crowd of the plants in the main field.

Early blight (Cercospora leaf spot, Cercospora blight): It is a fungal disease which is caused by Cercospora apii. The symptoms are small yellow spots on both upper and lower surface of leaves.

Treatment: Use pathogen free seeds and avoid crowding of the crop.
 

Fusarium yellows: It is a fungal disease which is caused by Fusarium oxysporum. The symptoms are stunted growth, brownish color roots and fainted color of vascular tissue. The disease mainly gets transfer by the use of contaminated agricultural equipment’s.

Treatment: Use pathogen free seeds and disease resistant varieties.
 

• Pest and their control:

Leaf miner: It affects the foliage as it gives the appearance of been scorched.

Treatment: Use of insecticidal spray is done to get rid of leaf miner.

Carrot weevil: It affects the fresh leaves by tunneling larvae into it.

Treatment: Suitable insecticidal treatment is required to treat carrot weevil pest.

Aphids: They affect the plant growth by sucking the cell sap of the leaves.

Treatment: Spraying of Malathion 50 EC @400ml/acre at the interval of 15 days is done to get rid of aphids.

Harvesting is mainly done 4-5 months after sowing. Harvesting of plant and seeds are to be done. Plants are cut just above the ground with the help of sharp knife. Seed harvesting is mainly done when most seeds turn light brown in color in umbel. Immediate harvesting is required as delay in harvesting results in seed loss.
 

After harvesting, trimming is done. Then celery is packed into cellars, trenches and cold storage for transportation purposes and to increase its self-life.