About Caraway (Carum carvi)
Caraway is a true biennial, so to grow it for its seed--which is what we want--we need
either to dedicate a patch of ground for two years or to grow it in a pot. (But note that
it is possible, and not uncommon, to use all parts of the plant for food, from cooking the
root, much like a parsnip or turnip-rooted chervil, to using the leaves when young in salads
and when older as a potherb.)
(There are annual varities of caraway, but ther productivity and--more important to the home
gardener--their seed quality are decidedly inferior to the true biennial types.)
Caraway likes warm weather to grow in, but it is said that the farther north it is grown,
the better (that is, most flavorsome) the seed quality.
Note that occasional references to caraway in eastern (especially Indian) recipes are almost
certain to be erroneous translations, and cumin to be the spice actually wanted. Caraway's
main use is in numerous central-European dishes, usually with few or no other spices, as it
is a dominating flavor. (Also note that "caraway thyme" is a thyme, not a caraway.)
Cultivars
There are at least several named cultivars. The variety Arterner is marketed as
high-yielding of seeds with good aromatic-oil concentrations; all other caraways we could
find in home-garden catalogues were, as is too often the case, generic unnamed types.
Planting
Timing
It can be sown either in fairly early spring or in late summer to early autumn; it will not
set seed till its second year of growth, so the exact initial planting-out date is not
crucial. In Sasketchewan, well north of us, the recommendation is to sow in June; we might
go for mid-May here.
The Bed
The general rule for herb and spice plants is that their soil needs are not demanding, save
that the soil must be very well-drained: few herb or spice plants can stand "wet feet".
The soil should not be particularly rich, most especially not for flavoring plants we
grow for their seed (or fruit), common mis-advice to the contrary notwithstanding: a rich
soil will lower the concentration of the "aromatic oils" that give the seed its
characteristic flavor, which is the very thing we are growing them for. Plants that are
slightly nutrient-stressed (which doesn't mean starved) give better-tasting seed.
Caraway generally fits that pattern, with full sun being especially important for best
flavor. But if--because it's a biennial--you plan to grow it in pots, be aware that it tends
to a long taproot. Because of that taproot (which is beneficial to the soil, breaking it up
deep and bringing up nutrients from well below the surface), it is probably better to grow
caraway in-ground, in a place where you can spare the ground. Though it is a biennial, it
reportedly self-seeds easily, so a dedicated patch--possibly with both one- and two-year
plants growing--is quite possible.
As with most plants and especially any Umbellifrae, it should not be planted anywhere
near fennel.
Planting Out
Caraway takes 2 to 3 weeks to emerge. Because it does not compete with weeds well, it needs
to be grown on well-cleared land. Growing it with a companion crop the first year will
often help--coriander is a good companion plants (don't try
to use a heavy vegetative crop as a companion).
Spacing at 12 inches will certainly work, and 8 inches (mentioned by some sources) will
probably work OK. Plant seed ¼ to ½ inch deep.
Caraway is slow to emerge (typically two to three weeks), so cultivate very carefully
both before and after emergence.
Growing
If the first-year winter provides little snow cover and is very dry, some plants may be
lost.
The presence of honey bees will usually increase yields.
In its second year, caraway is typically ready for harvest near the end of July in our
climate. Seed quality is improved if watering is stopped when flowers appear.
Note that you can, if you take care not to outright denude the plant, lightly harvest leaves
throughout the growing season: they make good additions to salads. After seed harvest, you
can pull the plant and cook the root like any root vegetable (that is true for most
Umbellifrae, which family includes many spice-seed plants).
It has all the usual problems with premature shattering, and the standard precautions apply;
loosely tying a permeable bag of some sort (cheesecloth or old row cover) around the seed
heads as harvest time approaches is one such.
The standard spice-seed drying and threshing advice also applies--caraway seed must
be thoroughly dried before storage.
Relevant Links
Besides any links presented above on this page, the following ought to be especially helpful.
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Caraway -
from Gernot Katzer's immensely valuable Spice Dictionary
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Caraway -
an informative page from the Saskatchewan Herb and Spice Association's "Herbs for the
Prairies" site
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Plants For a Future Database: Caraway -
lots of data on the plant, and links to yet more
-
Caraway -
growing it in Alberta
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