How To Grow Cumin Seeds: A Beginner’s Guide to Growing Seeds

Do you like the taste of cumin in your food? Cumin seeds make food delicious, and you can grow them at home! Growing cumin is fun and easy, even for kids. And there’s no better way than to harvest this fragrant spice straight from your garden.

Cumin is a spice made from the seeds of the cumin plant. It is small, brown, and shaped like a small boat, and it is used in many foods around the world to add flavour.

This guide will help you learn how to grow cumin seeds, care for them, and enjoy your cumin plant and flowers. Let’s begin!

What is cumin?

Cumin is used in almost all cuisines of the world. It is grown commercially in North Africa and West Asia but is a head start and will be fruitful in the garden in hot summers.

Before producing its strongly scented seeds, cumin flowers attract beneficial predatory insects that help control garden pests. The guide below explains how to grow cumin from seed.

• Latin: Cuminum cyminum
• Family: Apiaceae
• Difficulty: Easy
• Season: Warm season
• Exposure: Full sun

They have a strong aroma that makes food smell delicious! You can grow cumin seeds in a container in your garden or even indoors.

When to plant cumin seeds

Cumin seeds need a long, warm season to thrive, so start planting them indoors about four weeks before the last spring frost date. Once the temperature reaches a comfortable low of 60°F, you can grow your cumin outdoors.

As a native of the Mediterranean, cumin is not frost-resistant. In warm weather, cumin seeds can be sown directly outside.

Where to plant cumin

Cumin thrives in bright, full sun. It prefers well-drained, sandy loam soil, but it can also tolerate nutrient-rich soil.

How to Grow Cumin Seeds

Growing cumin seeds is easy if you follow these steps. You will learn how to plant cumin seeds, care for the plant and enjoy its flowers.

Get your cumin seeds.

The first step is to get cumin seeds. You can find them at a garden store or even in your kitchen spice cabinet. You can also grow black cumin seeds, which are similar but darker in colour and have a slightly different flavour. Whether you plant cumin or black cumin seeds, the process is the same.

Choose the right place.

Cumin plants love the sun, so find a sunny spot in your garden or choose a place that receives sunlight most of the day. Cumin plants need full sun to grow well, which means they need at least 6 hours of sunlight per day. If you don’t have a garden, you can start the seeds indoors and then move them outside when the weather warms.

The soil where you plant cumin should have good drainage. Cumin can grow in a variety of soils but prefers soil that is loose and not too heavy. This will help prevent root rot, which is when roots get too wet and start to rot.

Add cumin seeds

Now is the time to plant cumin! Here we tell you how to do it:

Prepare the soil

Use a garden fork or stick to loosen the soil. This will help the seeds grow better.

Make rows

Use your finger or a stick to draw lines on the ground. These lines are called rows. Rows should be about 1 inch deep.

Plant seeds

Take cumin seeds and spread them in rows. Do not plant too many seeds in one place; give each seed enough space to grow.

Cover the seeds

Gently cover the seeds with soil. Do not press too hard; make sure the seeds are covered.

Watering the soil

Use a watering can or sprayer to water the soil. Be careful not to overwater the seeds, as overwatering can cause the seeds to rot.

Timing Your Planting

Cumin grows well if planted at the right time. If you are planting cumin seeds outside, it is essential to plant them a few weeks before the last frost. This gives plants enough time to grow before the weather gets too hot. Cumin takes about 120 days to grow from seed to harvest, so it’s essential to plant them early in the growing season.

If you want to start seeds indoors, plant them 4 to 6 weeks before the last frost. Keep them in a warm place, around 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Once the seedlings are a few inches tall, you can move them outside after the last frost date has passed.

How to care for cumin plants

Caring for cumin plants is easy if you remember a few simple things. If you give them proper care, your cumin seeds will grow into vigorous plants.

Water

Cumin plants don’t need a lot of water, but they do need a little! Water the plant when the soil is dry. Do not allow the soil to become too wet, or the plants may become sick with root rot. Water the plants in the morning so they dry out during the day. Be careful not to water over them.

Sunlight

Cumin plants love sunlight. Make sure your cumin plants receive at least 6 hours of full sun each day. If you are growing cumin in a container, you can move the container to a sunny spot during the day.

weed

Weeds are plants that grow where they don’t belong. They can steal water and sunlight from your cumin plants. Check your garden or pot every week and remove any weeds you see. Be careful not to pull your cumin plant by mistake!

Fertilization

Fertilizers are like vitamins for plants. It helps them grow bigger and stronger. Natural fertilizers, like compost, can also be used. Spread some compost around your cumin plant every month. This will help it heal.

How to plant cumin seeds

Soak the seeds for about 8 hours before sowing to increase the chances of germination. Plant cumin in rows, in groups of 4 seeds, every 4-8 inches, with 2 feet of space between rows. Once seedlings are about 2 inches tall, thin to 1 per 8-inch plant, germination takes about 14 days.

What to Expect When Growing Cumin

First week: You won’t see much in the first week. The seeds are busy taking root under the soil.

Second week: Small green shoots will start emerging from the soil. These are baby cumin plants.

Third week: The cumin plant will grow tall and strong. Continue to care for them by watering them and removing weeds.

In the fourth week and beyond, plants will start flowering. Cumin flowers are small and delicate, usually white or pink.

As the flowers fade, seed heads will begin to form. These seed heads will eventually turn brown, indicating that the seeds inside are ready to harvest.

Cumin seed Harvesting

Cumin requires about four months of warm, sunny weather to mature and be ready to set seed. Cumin seeds are ready to harvest when you see white or pink flowers on the plant. Here we explain how to do it:

Wait for the right moment.

The best time to harvest cumin seeds is when the seed heads turn brown and dry. This is when the seeds inside are ready to be harvested.

Cut the trees

Use scissors or a small knife to cut the cumin plant. Cut trees close to the ground, close to the bottom. Care should be taken to stay on time.

Dry the plants

Tie the plants together in small bundles and hang them upside down in a cool, dry place. This will help the seeds to dry completely. Hang the plants for about a week.

Collect the seeds

When the plants are dry, gently rub the seed heads to collect the cumin seeds. The seeds will fall off easily. To keep them fresh, store the seeds in a paper bag or jar.

How to grow black cumin seeds

Black cumin seeds, also known as nigella seeds, are a little different from regular cumin seeds. They are black and have a slightly different taste, but cumin is growing.

Tips for growing cumin seeds

Once seedlings are 2 inches tall, thin out every 4 to 8 inches from one plant; although cumin can grow in a variety of soils, it requires full sun and does best in fertile, well-drained soil.

It tolerates soil with a pH of 6.8 to 8.3, but the ideal range is 7.0 to 7.5. Be careful not to overwater the cumin plants and allow the soil to dry out almost completely before watering again.

Be patient: Cumin plants take time to grow. Don’t worry if you don’t see results right away. Keep taking care of the plants, and they will grow.

Protect your plants: If you see insects on your plants, you can use natural means to keep them away. For example, spray plants with a mixture of water and a little dish soap.

Enjoy the flowers: Cumin flowers are quite beautiful to look at. You can pick some flowers and put them in a vase to decorate your home.

Pests and Problems

Green peach aphid is the most destructive pest of cumin. Since the aphid attacks cumin plants during flowering, control it by using a systemic insecticide such as Metacystox or Dimethoate or an insecticide such as diazinon, malathion, or Gustation.

Ants also commonly attack cumin, taking the plant’s seeds when they are ready to collect them from their umbels. Be sure to collect plant seeds in time before ants enter and destroy them.

Weeds can also be a problem for cumin. Fast-growing weeds can quickly overtake the delicate, straight, feathery leaves of young cumin plants until the plants mature and have significant leaf mass.

How to propagate cumin

Start seeds indoors by sowing three to five seeds per pot. When the seedlings are one to two inches tall, remove the toughest ones and care for the remaining seedlings until they are mature. When cumin plants are in bloom, and the weather is warm, please place them in a wind-protected spot near other flowers to encourage insect pollination.

Cumin Flower

Cumin has a more extended growing season than most herbs, taking 120 days to mature as soon as the seed heads appear but before they fall from the seed heads. Cumin flowers are fragrant and will attract friendly insects that can help control tiny pests. Because cumin flowers are shallow and arranged in an umbel, they attract predatory insects such as parasitoid wasps and ladybugs.

Why is cumin cultivation fun?

Growing cumin seeds is a fun and rewarding activity. You can watch the seeds grow into plants, watch the flowers bloom and finally collect the seeds to use in cooking. This is a great way to learn about plants and how they grow. Plus, when you grow your cumin seeds, you know they’re fresh and natural.

Conclusion

Now, know how to cultivate cumin! Whether you grow common cumin or black cumin, the steps are easy to follow. Be sure to give your plants plenty of sunlight, water them when the soil dries out, and be patient as they grow. Soon, you will have your cumin plant with beautiful flowers and tasty seeds. Happy planting!