A robust-stalked celery, with fleshy stems and well-developed green leaves.
About the variety. Tall Utah 52/70 produces fleshy stems of 25–30 cm on a plant reaching 40–50 cm; it is very vigorous, thriving in rich soil and moderate temperatures.
Itinerário técnico
Como cultivar tall utah 52/70 celery?
Um guia de cultivo passo a passo, da sementeira à colheita.
pH ideal 6.0 to 7.0Temperatura ideal 15 to 21 °CCompasso 25 to 30 cm in the row, 30 cm between rows
Sementeira
Sow in trays ten to twelve weeks before transplanting, on the surface or barely covered, because the seed needs light. It germinates slowly, in two to three weeks, at 18 °C to 21 °C. Keep the compost constantly moist. Transplant without burying the collar and never let the plant sit below 10 °C for many days, because that makes it bolt. At about 50 centimetres tall, this variety grows well in a pot twenty centimetres deep with drainage holes. Use a pot at least twenty five centimetres deep with drainage holes, and expect to water more often, because a pot dries out far faster than open ground.
Solo
It wants soil very rich in organic matter, deep and highly moisture retentive, at a pH between 6.0 and 7.0. It is a plant of marshy origin and the soil must stay moist at all times. On dry light ground the crop is rarely worth it.
Clima
It prefers cool damp weather, between 15 °C and 21 °C, and hates dry heat. It is a difficult crop inland in Iberia in high summer and much easier on the Atlantic coast, in France and in Germany. Unlike the cabbages, it is cold that makes it bolt: many days below 10 °C after transplanting and the plant runs to flower instead of thickening. On the Portuguese coast plant in spring and in late summer; the winter crop only works where there is no frost. Inland in Portugal and Spain plant in April, once the cold has passed, water and shade it in summer and harvest in autumn, because the winter is too cold for it. In France, in Germany and in northern Italy it is a summer crop: plant in May and harvest from August to October. Light shade over the middle of the day keeps the stalks tender in any warm climate.
Fertilização
This is a hungry crop. Work two to three kilos of well rotted compost into each square metre before planting, with a handful of wood ash for potassium. Once growth is away, feed with a liquid organic fertiliser every two or three weeks, moving from a balanced formula to a higher potassium one as cropping begins. Avoid excess nitrogen, which gives lush leaves, a poor crop and a lot of aphids.
Rega
It needs constant abundant water, more than any other common vegetable. A single dry spell makes the stalks stringy and hollow beyond repair. Mulch the soil with straw and water almost daily in summer.
Controlo de Infestantes
Hoe often and always shallowly, because the roots are short, near the surface and break easily. The best method is to prepare the bed two or three weeks in advance, let the first flush of weeds germinate, remove it and only then sow: that gives you a decisive head start. A thin layer of sieved compost between the rows greatly reduces later work.
Controlo de Pragas
Celery fly draws pale tunnels in the leaves: pick off affected leaves by hand and cover with fine mesh. Slugs hide between the stalks and eat the base of the plant. Aphids settle in the heart. Potassium soap and hand picking handle most cases. Fine mesh put on at planting keeps off celery fly and most other problems at once. Pull the straw back from the base if slugs multiply and pick them off at night with a torch.
Doenças
Septoria leaf spot makes brown blotches speckled with black on the leaves and is the commonest disease in damp weather: use clean seed, space well and remove affected leaves. Boron deficiency splits the stalks lengthways. Use a three year rotation away from carrot, parsley and fennel. Overhead watering in warm weather is what spreads septoria most: always water at the base.
Colheita
Pick the outer stalks one by one as needed, or cut the whole plant off at ground level once it reaches the size you want. Harvest in the morning and use it quickly, because it wilts easily. Harvesting too late gives stringy bitter stalks. For whiter, sweeter stalks, wrap the plants in cardboard or earth them up two or three weeks before harvest. The reference colour is green, and that is what tells you it is ready.
