Herb · Apiaceae
Caraway
Carum carvi
Offer it full sun and a patient first year, and caraway rewards you with a crop of fragrant seed the next.
Full sun
Every 3–7 days
50–77°F · 10–25°C
70–90 days
Overview
Caraway is a tough, friendly biennial herb in the carrot family, loved for the warm, gently anise-flavored seed that finds its way into rye bread, cheese, and slow-cooked dishes. It lives by a two-year cycle, settling in with a low rosette of feathery leaves the first season and holding its flowers and seed for the second. The taproot grows thick and parsnip-like, which is exactly why the plant prefers to stay put once it has found its spot.
Don't let the nickname Persian cumin fool you. This is a plant in its own right, Carum carvi, carrying a flavor all its own. It grows easily in cool temperate gardens right across USDA zones 4 to 9, asking only for full sun, steady moisture while the slow seed gets going, and a little patience to see it through that first leafy year.
Care
The short version: give caraway full sun, fertile well-drained soil leaning toward neutral, and even moisture while the slow seed germinates, then sit back through a leafy first year before the seed crop turns up in year two. It's a forgiving plant, and small missteps are easy to put right.
Light
Caraway loves full sun to ripen a good seed crop, though it will manage in partial sun if that's what you have. The more direct light it soaks up, the sturdier the flowering stems and the fuller your harvest in year two.
Water
Aim to keep the soil evenly moist and well drained, never soggy. The seedbed especially needs to stay damp through that slow germination, since letting it dry out early is the quickest way to lose a stand. Once your plants are up, water every 3 to 7 days, easing off in cool weather and topping up when it's hot.
Soil
Set caraway into fertile, well-drained loam rich in organic matter. It's happiest close to neutral, somewhere in the pH 6.0 to 7.5 range, and a deep, loose bed gives that long taproot room to grow straight and strong.
Temperature
This is a cool-temperate herb, most comfortable between roughly 50°F and 77°F (10°C to 25°C). It takes the chill of zones 4 to 9 in its stride, overwintering as a tidy rosette to bloom the following year.
Humidity
Ordinary outdoor humidity of 40% to 60% suits caraway just fine, so this is one number you can stop worrying about. Good airflow around the plants counts for far more than any reading on a gauge.
Feeding
Caraway is a light feeder, so a little balanced fertilizer or a scoop of compost in spring during active growth is all it asks. Keep the nitrogen modest, since too much pushes soft leafy growth instead of the seed you're hoping for.
Pruning
There's wonderfully little to do here. Trim back the spent flower and seed heads after harvest, deadhead if you'd rather rein in self-seeding, and just take gentle care not to disturb the central taproot crown as you work.
Repotting
Caraway hardly ever needs repotting and resents root disturbance, so it's best to direct-sow it right where it will grow rather than transplanting. Should you grow it in a container, pick a deep one and leave that taproot undisturbed.
Size & spacing
Plants stretch to 12 to 30 inches (30 to 75 cm) tall once the flowering stems rise in year two. Allow each one around 10 to 12 inches (25 to 30 cm) of breathing room so air can move freely and the rosettes never feel crowded.
When to plant
Caraway keeps a two-year clock, so settle in for the long game and let it unfold at its own pace. Direct sow in spring the moment the soil can be worked, or get a gentle head start in early fall. The plant spends its first year putting on leaves, then blooms in late spring of the second and ripens its seed by mid to late summer.
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere
Typical months for a temperate climate: start earlier in warm zones, later where spring frosts linger.
- Plant: Direct sow in spring as soon as soil can be worked, or in early fall.
- Harvest: Blooms late spring to early summer of the second year; harvest seeds when they turn brown in mid to late summer of year two.
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zones: 4–9
Temperature: down to -34°C
Troubleshooting
Caraway is a relaxed, good-natured herb, and most of its hiccups turn up either underground at the taproot or as patchy, slow germination right at the start. Match what you're seeing to the notes below and step in early, while a little action still makes all the difference. You've got this.
When the taproot hides rusty tunnels and growth stalls
Those winding rust-colored tunnels are the handiwork of carrot root fly, whose larvae feed inside the root and hold the whole plant back. Lift one to check and you'll likely find the tunnels alongside small white maggots. Don't worry, this is recoverable: pull and destroy anything infested, tuck a row cover over the rest right from sowing, and give your Apiaceae crops a fresh bed each year so the flies lose the scent.
Fix:
- Remove and destroy infested plants
- Use floating row covers from sowing
- Rotate Apiaceae crops to a new bed each year
Only a scattering of seedlings showing up
Caraway takes its sweet time to sprout, so a thin or patchy stand almost always means the seedbed dried out before the seed could wake up, or the seed had simply gotten too old. Even in warm soil you might see only a few seedlings two to three weeks on, and that's nothing to panic over. Keep the bed evenly moist until things come up, don't let the surface harden into a crust, and resow fresh seed sown shallow if the first round comes up short.
Fix:
- Keep the seedbed consistently moist until germination
- Resow with fresh seed at a shallow depth
- Avoid letting the surface crust over
Green caterpillars nibbling holes in the foliage
If you spot plump green caterpillars striped with black and yellow, you've met the parsley worm, larva of the black swallowtail. Take heart: on an established plant the damage looks far scarier than it really is. Rather than destroying them, gently lift them onto a sacrificial plant and let them be, because they grow up into the very pollinators your garden welcomes.
Fix:
- Handpick the caterpillars
- Relocate them to a sacrificial plant since they mature into pollinators
- Tolerate minor damage on established plants
Toxicity
The ripe seed is a much-loved kitchen spice, so caraway is perfectly safe on your own plate. The plant itself is a different matter for animals: ASPCA lists it as toxic to dogs, cats, and horses, because its carvone and limonene oils can bring on mild vomiting and diarrhea. Simply keep the aromatic foliage and harvested seed out of reach of curious pets and you'll be fine.
Toxic to
Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds
Safe for
People
Cats Mild
A curious cat tempted by the aromatic leaves may start drooling, bring its meal back up, and pass loose stools soon after. The good news is these signs stay mild and tend to settle on their own.
Dogs Mild
A dog lured in by the fragrance can end up with a sour stomach after chewing on the leaves or seed, and vomiting and diarrhea are the usual outcome.
Horses Toxic
Those same carvone and limonene oils unsettle a horse's gut, so a horse that grazes the plant may drool, show colicky discomfort, and pass loose droppings.
Rabbits Caution
Strong essential oils easily upset a rabbit's delicate digestion, so it's kindest to keep the aromatic leaves off the menu rather than offering them as forage.
Livestock Caution
Grazing animals seldom go looking for the pungent foliage, though a big mouthful could trigger the same mild stomach upset that other animals get.
Birds Caution
Because birds react badly to concentrated plant oils, it's best to keep pet birds clear of the foliage and most of all the oil-rich seed.
People Edible seeds safe
For you, the ripe seed is simply a kitchen spice, happy in bread, cheese, and stews with no trouble at all. Enjoy it as food rather than dosing on the concentrated oil, and there's nothing to worry about.
Aromatic foliage and seeds may tempt pets, so keep harvested seed and plants out of reach.
Helpline numbers
United States
ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435 (fee applies)
United Kingdom
Animal PoisonLine: 01202 509000 (fee applies)
Australia
Animal Poisons Helpline: 1300 869 738
Varieties
Most caraway you'll meet is the standard biennial, but a couple of named types are worth knowing if you'd like seed sooner or a heavier harvest.
Annual caraway (var. annua, e.g. 'Sprinter')
If waiting feels like a stretch, this type kindly blooms and sets seed in its first season instead of holding out for the second year.
'Arterner'
This German biennial selection is the one to reach for when you want a generous yield of seed and essential oil.
Companions
Plant near
Peas: Traditional interplanting companion; its deep taproot helps loosen and break up soil for neighboring plants.
How to propagate
Caraway is grown from seed, and happily there's really just one reliable way to go about it, thanks to that long taproot that won't put up with being moved.
SeedEasy
Direct sow in early spring once soil is workable, or in early fall · Germinates in 1-3 weeks; forms a leafy rosette the first season and produces seed in the second season
The simplest path is to sow caraway seed right where it will live, because that long taproot won't forgive being moved. Pop the seed in during early spring once the soil is workable, or wait for early fall, and watch for sprouts in one to three weeks. The plant happily builds a leafy rosette in its first season and holds its flowers and seed back for the second, so a little patience pays off.
Myths
Caraway and cumin are the same spice.
It's an easy slip to make, since the nickname Persian cumin invites it, but caraway stands on its own as Carum carvi while true cumin is Cuminum cyminum. The two have differently shaped seeds and a distinct flavor, so you can't swap one for the other.
Caraway is completely harmless to pets.
ASPCA actually lists caraway as toxic to dogs, cats, and horses. Its carvone and limonene oils can bring on mild vomiting and diarrhea, so it's worth tucking the plant and any harvested seed safely out of a pet's reach.