Curry Recipes Online
Beginners Guide => Grow Your Own Spices and Herbs => Topic started by: fitdog on February 04, 2019, 07:53 PM
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Anyone recently grown curry leaves, i come from Bradford the home of curry lol but the price of fresh curry leaves is horrendous so want to grow my own. I have used the search function but looking for recent growers. Where can i get seeds/saplings from and will they do well indoors?
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I'm growing a healthy plant that presently has a whole lot of great big seed berries (drupes) on. This will not help you much though as I live in a temperate, bordering sub tropical region. You may be able to grow successfully in a pot if you can have it indoors with horticultural suitable lighting or in a glasshouse over winter.
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I heard that last year there was a shortage of fresh curry leaves, leading to panic in the restaurants that I eat in Paris where it is considered an essential ingredient. I don't know if there's some worldwide curry leave shortage or it's just seasonal.
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Hi Fitdog,
Yep i have grown my curry leaf tree from a small plant that i got from "The Citrus Centre" (google) im in surrey, its now 3 years old and a healthy 2ft high bushy tree, last year i got a crop of berries that didn't quite make it to seeds, maybe this year lol,
just avoid frost, keep it away from ponds, (scale insect) and during the winter an outside shed is fine, during the summer feed with citrus food, soak the pot and then let it dry out before watering again, ie stick your fingers in the soil and only water when the soil is dry for at least two inches, its good fun, enjoy
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I heard that last year there was a shortage of fresh curry leaves, leading to panic in the restaurants that I eat in Paris where it is considered an essential ingredient. I don't know if there's some worldwide curry leave shortage or it's just seasonal.
Hi Fitdog,
Yep i have grown my curry leaf tree from a small plant that i got from "The Citrus Centre" (google) im in surrey, its now 3 years old and a healthy 2ft high bushy tree, last year i got a crop of berries that didn't quite make it to seeds, maybe this year lol,
just avoid frost, keep it away from ponds, (scale insect) and during the winter an outside shed is fine, during the summer feed with citrus food, soak the pot and then let it dry out before watering again, ie stick your fingers in the soil and only water when the soil is dry for at least two inches, its good fun, enjoy
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Here's mine in full berry. I'll try to grow some from the seeds this year.
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As a relatively Green fingered individual, growing my own chilli plants, I have been following this thread and others.
Whilst I am not above paying for plants, I prefer to grow from seed if I can, although I have found that sometimes the advertised plant is not always the seed provided.
My son has an 'App' that identifies most plants and I have asked him to identify my Bay Leaf Bush, the next time he is over (I aquired a small bush cutting from a very old family friend). I recently read on here that some are ok and some are Poisonous! I have not harvested any leaves yet, as you can tell from the fact I am still here!
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My son has an 'App' that identifies most plants and I have asked him to identify my Bay Leaf Bush, the next time he is over (I aquired a small bush cutting from a very old family friend). I recently read on here that some are ok and some are Poisonous! I have not harvested any leaves yet, as you can tell from the fact I am still here!
Very wise
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As a relatively Green fingered individual, growing my own chilli plants, I have been following this thread and others.
Whilst I am not above paying for plants, I prefer to grow from seed if I can, although I have found that sometimes the advertised plant is not always the seed provided.
My son has an 'App' that identifies most plants and I have asked him to identify my Bay Leaf Bush, the next time he is over (I aquired a small bush cutting from a very old family friend). I recently read on here that some are ok and some are Poisonous! I have not harvested any leaves yet, as you can tell from the fact I am still here!
Curry leaf seeds have to be wet within its Berry to be viable, if it has dried out it won't germinate, there is quite a bit of good stuff on youtube, I have tried several times with cuttings by buying fresh curry leaves on sturdy stems but none worked, i suspect they were to old, or had been kept chilled so i bought my plant.
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I'll have to read up on harvesting the berries. Thanks for that heads up mickyp. Some may be ready to go.
Propagation from cuttings can be tricky and varies from plant to plant. Some can be grown from hard cuttings (old wood) or soft (new wood) but in different seasons. Others are only easily struck by one or the other during one season. Environmental conditions need to be carefully controlled for some, while others will strike by dropping a piece on the ground. I'd say trying to strike from a leaf sprig would take a bit of practice and some luck. You may have more success trying from your own stock plant as store bought may be completely unviable due to the time lapse after cutting. Rooting hormones may be required as well. There are several nurseryman and horticulturalists in my wife's extended and immediate family.
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I tried rooting powder, scratching the bark off, coating it in rooting powder, one stem i bought gave me a run and started to shoot buds but then died, i think the energy / food within the stem caused that, you might be right about my own plant, but that is providing me with my needs for now so i will leave it be.
I shall be cutting back a bit in march to stimulate new growth, last summer which was a good one it doubled in height.
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Great looking curry leaf tree you have there mickyp
Love to grow one myself, but its not going to happen.
I just have to rely on my local Asian Store.
@1.39GBP still cheap enough for its unique flavour.
(http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/pics/218468c40dec2bbe53afb98949ec1920.png) (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/#218468c40dec2bbe53afb98949ec1920.png)
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Great looking curry leaf tree you have there mickyp
Love to grow one myself, but its not going to happen.
I just have to rely on my local Asian Store.
@1.39GBP still cheap enough for its unique flavour.
(http://www.curry-
recipes.co.uk/imagehost/pics/218468c40dec2bbe53afb98949ec1920.png) (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/#218468c40dec2bbe53afb98949ec1920.png)
Thank you,
It was one of those things that through a gauntlet down for me, buying the fresh leaves and thinking could i grow my own, so i looked into it.
After trying to grow cuttings i bought one about 10 ins high for
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Cut my tree back and harvested some leaves, hopefully new growth will kick in over the next month or so
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Cutting, rooted using turmeric, fingies crossed
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That looks a viable cutting. It may help to leave 1 or 2 leaves on the top side shoots. These will allow some photosynthesis to continue. Too many though is no good as you'd know. Did you only use Turmeric below ground? A dab of Turmeric paste on the exposed cut surfaces is also beneficial to promote healing over and reduce risk of disease, mold or fungus attack.
I planted about a dozen seeds yesterday.
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Thanks for that Livo, i didnt know that about the tumeric paste, i will take that on board.
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Well i hope the earth tremor that shook our house last night didn't upset twiglet the baby curry leaf tree,
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Curry leaf cutting 22 days on,
Livo to answer your question which i somehow missed yes i used just Tumeric as a rooting powder nothing else, i also used soil from the garden rather than potting compost, firstly it gives more physical support and has no added nutrients, i wanted the cutting to root which i think its more likely to do if its hungry.
I also brought the cutting in and placed the pot on a heat mat to warm the soil, apparently that encourages root growth, its far from tropical here lol
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My plant would be unrecognisable at the mo as i cut a lot back to harvest, and it's sprouting new branches and leaves, it did have berries forming but i removed most as they take energy which i would prefer to go to leaves, so loads are forming, sadly i check it every day and yesterday afternoon discovered about a dozen greenfly.
All that needs to be said is they are not there now, removed and plant sprayed grrrrrrr.
Chilli plants are doing well too
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Just as a point of interest, with what would you feel comfortable spraying a greenfly-infested edible leaf if you were later planning to eat those leaves ?
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Phil, I'd spray edible leaves with soapy water. Soap always kills bugs, but there is no residual action so you'd need to keep spraying until the bugs are gone.
Natural bug predators like ladybugs or dragon flies would also help.
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Hi Phil ive used an insecticide spray, it say's if using on edible fruit do not harvest for three days from spraying, i will not be harvesting these until late summer or even next year when i will prune, the leaves will be washed, dabbed dry, used or frozen. Bham i do mist it and the chilli plants with water containing a drop of Fairy liquid which will then sit on the leaves rather than roll off, bugs dont like wet leaves lol
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I'm impressed with the efforts on home growing curry leaves and the pictures of full plants shown are great. I've given up on growing stuff now
so obviously have to buy this sort of thing at one of the local Asian stores. However, yesterday I came across a supply at Sainsbury's - 5g (3 sprigs)
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BB, its all about the fun and challenge, it would be 18 months before you could harvest anything but its a tenner well spent.
+ points for you is you dont have to worry when you go on holiday about curry leaves and chilli's lol.
Next time you go to your local Curry House, ask them where they get there's, they may even give you some ;)
,
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Better value for sure.
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Yay curry leaf tree has hatched a sproglet
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You sure that's not a stray weed mate?
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Lol, checked that Mr Garp, it
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Congrats mate :D
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TY MrG
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Banned Fresh Curry Leaf update. :D ;D
(http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/pics/39c8edb5b809be8bcc9ef024d28edd15.png) (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/#39c8edb5b809be8bcc9ef024d28edd15.png)
Bought a bag of fresh curry leaves this morning GBP 1.29
dispelling an earlier rumour/ media myth that they are banned in the UK.
Making a few BIR South Indian Tamil and Malabar curry dishes this weekend - Yum
You just can
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Lol it thrives in the middle of a moat of Cobra
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Sainsbury sell them fresh but do not state country of origin, Waitrose however state Spain as the originating country which is fine, the ban is India, Sri Lanka, etc, so the Myth / rumour remains trooooooo and intact :)
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There ya go Mr Garp, tis a proper sprog lol
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Haha mate. Looking good. You going to transplant it?
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Yep, next spring I will give it a go :)
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So my curry leaf tree had started to grow, most likely through feeding and misting as well. But I have found a few days ago that the growing tip was broken (dunno how) and has died....will it keep on growing do you think?? Either sprouting from the same place or from elsewhere?
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I recently visited a country homestead not far from home and was absolutely astounded when I realised I was standing alongside the biggest curry plant I've ever seen. It was actually multiple self seeded plants from the original that was planted only a few years ago. When I commented on it and asked if it was used, the owner told me that she regularly delivered fresh leaves to the local restaurant and that her husband used them in his cooking.
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So my curry leaf tree had started to grow, most likely through feeding and misting as well. But I have found a few days ago that the growing tip was broken (dunno how) and has died....will it keep on growing do you think?? Either sprouting from the same place or from elsewhere?
Hi VT
The top of my plant was knocked off by a football which created a fork and new growth, so your plant should be fine, keep feeding it each time you water during the summer and back off from Oct and then just prevent the soil from drying out.
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Good o'le Sunny Surrey
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My son has an 'App' that identifies most plants and I have asked him to identify my Bay Leaf Bush, the next time he is over (I aquired a small bush cutting from a very old family friend). I recently read on here that some are ok and some are Poisonous! I have not harvested any leaves yet, as you can tell from the fact I am still here!
Very wise
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Hi Micky - thanks for this. It is sprouting new growth so I may get another couple of small branches this year....there is no denying that they grow slowly - yours is a monster compared to mine :)
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your welcome Vino, remember cutting back in the spring will promote new growth, as does cutting back during the summer, misting the leaves with citrus food in the water is like taking an aspirin via IV instead of swallowing it, and bugs don't like wet leaves ;)
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George you can get Curry leaf trees from "The Citrus Centre" keep them out of the frost and don't overwater, they are quite a resilient
plant.
Waiting for spring to arrive for new growth
You make it sound easy. I bought small plants similar to those sold by the Citrus Centre and found them the most impossible plant to grow EVER. I kept them at around 25C so it wasn't frost damage. Give slightly too much water - they die. Give slightly too little water - they die. Touch the ultra fragile roots and they fall off. It was an expensive experiment which failed. I am very envious of your success.
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If its any help i kept my tree when i first got it in the conservatory, not good, it got scale insect.
So i moved it outside on the edge of the pond, where kids pllaying football broke the top off and knocked it into the pond.
After swearing and drying it out it has grown well, during the summer it lives in the garden away from footballs and in the winter it live in an outside cabin where temps can drop to 1 0r 2 deg but no frost. I have loads of leaves frozen and i take them fresh also.
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Spring is in the air
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Strong wind from the East where you live, Micky !
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Gusty at times Phil, watering cans tumble across the back garden which is fortunately south facing.
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Would you like me to set the pot upright, Micky ?
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That went straight over my head lol....don't claim on me for a strained neck.
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Right way up now, Micky (except for Livo, of course, who will have to stand on his head).
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Thank you Phil :smile:
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I notice you said you have a pond, Micky; do you have fish in there? I inherited a small garden pond when I moved house three years ago. Just got goldfish and shubunkin(s) in there.
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I notice you said you have a pond, Micky; do you have fish in there? I inherited a small garden pond when I moved house three years ago. Just got goldfish and shubunkin(s) in there.
Yep Koi and Carp, they started in a half oak Barrel, then moved to a brick/render pond then fibreglass, had some of them 15 years, lost a big one that i called blackie two years ago and was gutted, vowed not to give any others names, they feed from my hand.
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:like:
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Yep Koi and Carp, they started in a half oak Barrel, then moved to a brick/render pond then fibreglass, had some of them 15 years, lost a big one that i called blackie two years ago and was gutted, vowed not to give any others names, they feed from my hand.
I lost my largest Koi and a ghost carp when we were still in Kent (before moving to Cornwall
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So this is the current state of play of my curry leaf tree (more of a shrub!) It seems to be sprouting new branches quite frequently but its still less than 20cm in height. Still resides in my kitchen where its warmer. Should I be doing anything else with it or is it all in good shape?
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Yes, taking cuttings and sending them out to members !
** Phil.
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During nice weather keep it outside, use citrus feed in the water each time you water it and let the soil dry before watering, they dont like wet feet. If its cooler than 4 deg c at night i bring my plant into an outside building. Next year in the spring cut it back to induce more growth, good luck
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Thanks Micky. Phil - if it ever turns into a tree I'll send one out to you
:smile2:
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I have tried taking cuttings without much success, however when you get shoots from the roots they are quite easy.
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OK thanks Micky I was going to try it.
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Nearly 2 years after my previous attempt, I bought some further curry plants from sellers on eBay and am having another try. The first two plants were from the same seller and are relatively small. The other two plants are something like four times the size, from a different seller. Three are being grown in soil. I am experimenting by growing one of the smaller plants in nutrient solution (hydroponics) in a beer tin. I think some people here previously mentioned the idea of getting cuttings to root from grocery-sourced curry leaves. So I tried that, too. Only one stem has sprouted some roots, in water with air bubbles for oxygen, and I don't know if this will lead to some new growth higher up. Far right in photo. My house is now between 3C and 5C so the cutting and plants are in a chamber I made. It is heated to 20C and has a small LED based growing lamp. That's where the colour come from in my photo.
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Here's a further photo, just over 4 months after the previous one. For anyone who likes the flavour of curry tree leaves, the plants are recommended and quite easy to grow.
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Looking good George. Curry leaves are great in some dishes and I’m looking forward to planting season for those and chillies galore. Let’s see pics of your curries with them?
Robbo
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Robbo - I have only used curry leaves bought from an Asian store, in cooking so far. I will wait a while longer before trying leaves from my relatively young plants. In June, at the start of the brief British summer, I will put them outside in a greenhouse. My aim is to see if I can get them to flower and produce seeds, so I can try to grow even more plants.
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After being given a couple of curry tree seedlings from the bottom of her huge curry tree that my friend in Goa presented to me, I brought them home and have had them on the window sill where one is doing better than the other about the same size as yours George. My moan is that I can never get them to grow large enough to enable me to take enough leaves from them for the amount of curries I cook.A previous specimine I had which was larger got covered with tiny red mites and was discarded after being unable to eradicate them. I will persevere as I love the smell of curry leaves.
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Update: more than two years after my previous post on this thread. All but one of my curry tree plants have died. For a start, none of them grew a very dense root system. I'm not even persuaded that my variety of curry leaf plant has aromatic leaves. I gave up using energy to keep them warm in a heated chamber. Last winter, and so far this summer, the two surviving plants were being grown hydroponically in nutrient solution. But they can't have liked the winter temperatures, down to almost freezing in my house. Not only did the leaves all fall off but the branches fell off, too, leaving simple upright stems, now 4 or 5 years old. I think one of the two plants has now died. The remaining one is growing new branches and leaves fast and there is a new plant growing out the bottom of the pot.
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Disappointing George, but I don't think plants from the tropics are going to thrive in near freezing temperatures. IMHO Curry Leaf is an ingredient that I can usually omit without much impact on the dish. I do have the benefit of growing my own plant but to me it is an underwhelming ingredient anyway, and I rarely use it except in Sri Lankan Fish curries.
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Livo, my findings are that you are spot on with your comment about trying to grow tropical plants in near freezing conditions. Seeing as one plant has bounced back, I may try building a very small chamber which can be kept warm with minimal electricity from my solar PV system, for next winter. All my power comes from solar. I no longer use any mains electricity and. as a result I save a small fortune. I may also try growing plants from grocery bunches of branches and leaves. But, as you suggest, is it even worth it, if it's not a very useful ingredient?
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I'm sure it has uses George, and I do occasionally use it, but I just don't come across many recipes I cook that require it. When I do use it, I really doubt it is an essential (in my dishes anyway). If the recipe calls for it, I'll go and pick a sprig, but it isn't that often.