Health Benefits and Hydroponics of Celery
Celery belongs to the same family as one of the most common whole foods, carrots. From stalk to leaves, every part of celery is edible and often used as a spice for cooking purposes. Below is a summary of its vast profile:
Hydroponics of Celery
Some hydroponic growers report that celery grows slower than other crops. Homefarmhydro has experienced the opposite, in fact, celery grow quite fast in hydroponic systems and cultivating the celery and leaving the roots allows for accelerated regrowth. Other than that, celery requires the following three things:
Hydroponic System
All hydroponic system types work well with Celery. Seeds propagation works best in rockwool coupled with 1300 ppm nutrient solution increases the growth and yield of celery. (Awan, 2018)
Optimum Temperature
Seeds of celery best sprout in the temperature range of 15°C to 23°C.
Fertilizer
The use of biofertilizer and 50% NPK increases the height, weight, and nutritional content of celery.
Nutritional Profile of Celery
Compared to the fresh one, the spice form of celery is richer in nutrients. (FoodData Central, 2019)
They consist of the following macro and micro-molecules:
Carbohydrates
A 100g portion of celery contains half as many carbohydrates, including gut-friendly dietary fibers.
Minerals
A tablespoon of celery has about 115g of calcium. Other notable minerals in the order of decreasing amounts are potassium, phosphorus, and magnesium.
Vitamins
Celery seeds have enough vitamin C to fulfill 1/4th of the body’s daily vitamin C requirement.
Health Benefits of Celery
Anti-Obesity
To demonstrate the anti-obesity effects of celery extract, researchers employed the help of mice. The mice treated with celery extract showed a marked reduction in lipid accumulations. Even the high-fat diet couldn’t induce body weight gain. (Gjang, Kang, Jae, Cho, & Che, 2020)
Chemistry of Celery
Celery extracts mainly consist of two types of oils, essential oils, and fatty oils—the two differ in terms of volatility. (H. B., 2014)
Volatile oils give it crucial applications as a food flavor and nutraceutical agent. The important constituents of its essential oils are sedanenolide, sedanolide, and sedanonic anhydride.
The fatty oil in celery has the following chemical makeup: petroselenic, oleic, and linoleic.
Although celery has plenty of health benefits to offer, overconsumption can lead to detrimental effects on health. (Seyedah Parisa, Mirmosayyeb, & Maljaei, 2019)
References
Awan, S. K. (2018). Influence of Planting Medium on Different Nutrient Concentration to The Growth and Yield of Celery (Apium graveolens L.) With The Nutrient Film Technique Hydroponic Cultivation System. Journal of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, 17. doi:https://doi.org/10.31293/af.v17i1.3356
FoodData Central. (2019, April 1). Retrieved from U.S. Department of Agriculture: https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/170920/nutrients
Gjang, S., Kang, H. J., J. Y., Cho, B. O., & Che, D. N. (2020, January). Anti-obesity effects of enzyme-treated celery extract in mice fed with high-fat diet. Journal of Food Biochemistry, 44(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/jfbc.13105
H. B., S. (2014). Chemistry, technology, and nutraceutical functions of celery (Apium graveolens L.): an overview. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 54(3), 389-98. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2011.586740
Seyedah Parisa, Mirmosayyeb, O., & Maljaei, M. (2019, May 6). Effect of Celery Extract on Thyroid Function; Is Herbal Therapy Safe in Obesity? International Journal of Preventive Medicine. doi:https://dx.doi.org/10.4103%2Fijpvm.IJPVM_209_17