Celery needs soil that never dries out, which Scotland's damp climate supplies. What it doesn't like is cold: low temperatures can make young plants bolt. So the choice is mostly about boltingA plant switching early into flowering and seed production, usually triggered by stress, after which leaves, roots or bulbs turn bitter or unusable. Full page →, leaf spot and how you want to blanch the stems.

Quick answer

Tango for most gardens: self-blanchingExcluding light from part of a growing plant, usually by earthing up, wrapping or covering, so it grows pale, tender and less bitter. Full definition →, fast-growing and resistant to bolting. Granada if celery leaf spot is a problem, Victoria for one of the best flavours, Tall Utah 52/70 for crisp, stringless stems, and Loretta for a shadier bed.

What Scotland means for the choice

Celery grows from a wild plant of boggy riversides, so it wants moisture-retentive soil that never dries out, and it's a poor choice in a garden with summer droughts or very free-drainingSoil that lets water pass through quickly rather than pooling, so roots aren't sitting in wet ground after rain. Full definition → soil. Scotland's wetter climate suits it. Cold is the risk: low temperatures can cause bolting, so celery is started indoors and planted out only once the weather has settled, and a variety with good bolting tolerance helps in a late spring. Celery also dislikes acid soil, and much of Scotland's soil is naturally acidic. The celery growing guide covers sowing, planting out, blanching and soil pH.

A compact self-blanching celery plant next to a taller celery plant growing in an earthed-up trench
Self-blanching celery (left) and trench celery (right).
VarietyHardinessHeightKnown for
TangoH2The RHS's H1a–H7 scale for how much cold a plant can survive outdoors, H1a being tender indoor-only and H7 hardy anywhere in the UK. Full definition →0.1–0.5mSelf-blanching; fast; resistant to bolting; no side shoots
VictoriaH20.5–1mOne of the best flavours; slow to bolt; stands well
GranadaH20.1–0.5mSelf-blanching; resistant to celery leaf spot; high-yielding
Tall Utah 52/70H20.1–0.5mCrisp, stringless stems; high yield; no earthing upDrawing soil up around a plant's base as it grows, most often potatoes, to keep light off developing tubers and support tall stems. Full definition →
LorettaH20.1–0.5mSelf-blanching; sweet, smooth, thick stems; sun or partial shade

Tango, Victoria and Tall Utah 52/70 hold the RHS Award of Garden Merit (AGMThe RHS's Award of Garden Merit: a UK-wide trials award for reliable performance, not a Scotland-specific recommendation. Full definition →). Granada and Loretta don't. All five are H2: tolerant of low temperatures but not frost.

Tango and Victoria

Tango is a self-blanching celery with pale green stems and good flavour. It's reliable and fast-growing, tolerates less than ideal conditions, has good bolting tolerance and makes no side shoots. Victoria is one of the best-flavoured celeries, with a good nutty flavour. It's vigorous and quick-growing to about 1m, slow to bolt, performs well in a difficult spring and stands well in the ground, which makes it ideal for mid-season cropping. It isn't described as self-blanching, so expect to blanch the stems yourself.

Granada, Tall Utah and Loretta

Granada is a strong, high-yielding, self-blanching celery with tightly bunched pale green stalks and good disease tolerance, including resistance to celery leaf spot, which helps in a damp summer. Tall Utah 52/70 has tightly folded hearts and gives high yields of thick, crisp, stringless pale green stems, and doesn't need earthing up. Loretta is a vigorous, British-bred celery with smooth, thick, fleshy stems that are sweet and crunchy, with reduced stringiness. It's self-blanching, and it grows in full sun or partial shade.

Which one for your situation

  • Most gardens, or a late, cold spring: Tango.
  • A damp garden where leaf spot builds up: Granada.
  • One of the best flavours: Victoria.
  • Crisp, stringless stems: Tall Utah 52/70.
  • A bed with some shade, or sweet, smooth stems: Loretta.

Protect young plants from slugs and snails, and keep the soil moist throughout the season whichever you grow.

Common questions

Which celery is least likely to bolt?

Tango, which is resistant to bolting, and Victoria, which is slow to bolt. Low temperatures can cause bolting, so plant out only once the weather has settled.

Which celery is self-blanching?

Tango, Granada and Loretta. Self-blanching types are planted close together in a block so they shade each other. Tall Utah 52/70 doesn't need earthing up, and Victoria isn't described as self-blanching.

Does celery grow well in Scotland?

It can. It needs fertile, moisture-retentive soil that never dries out, which a wet climate suits, but it must be started indoors and kept away from cold.

Sources

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