Utah’s celery history: a fusion of land and cultures
It’s time to dust off Grandmother’s cutglass relish tray. Celery, once a centerpiece of elegant holiday tables, has a remarkable history in Utah.
When the golden spike completed the transcontinental railroad at Promontory Summit in 1869, it opened a new era of commerce in Utah. Agricultural innovation, favorable growing conditions and the skills of immigrant farmers transformed an unlikely crop into a delicacy. Photos courtesy of Desiree Beaudry.
Prized for tender stalks, sweet hearts and distinctive flavor, Utah celery was once shipped by rail to fashionable hotels, restaurants and households across the nation, including the White House.
Northern Utah’s fertile soils, fresh mountain water and cool temperatures provided favorable conditions for growing celery. At the height of production, Utah farmers harvested more than 400 acres annually at an estimated value of half a million dollars.
Crafting an inedible swamp plant into a vegetable of exceptional delicacy required more than favorable growing conditions; it demanded labor, ingenuity and specialized cultivation techniques. Japanese immigrant farmers and their families brought agricultural knowledge, skill and determination to the fi elds of Utah farmers.
Celery seeds were germinated in hotbeds, then planted in long rows. As the plants matured, growers buried the stalks to induce blanching, producing the pale color and autumn frosts developed the sweetness for which the crop was famous. Harvested and packed by hand, crates of celery traveled by wagon to railroad depots, where refrigerated railcars carried it to markets across the nation from San Francisco to Boston.
In an era when Americans dressed for dinner and formal tables were set, celery became a symbol of elegance and good taste. A fashionable hostess might serve the tender hearts, arranged in a cut-glass or silver celery vase, their leafy tops spread like a bouquet; but celery was more than a relish. Newspaper recipes featured it in soups, stews, salads, stuffings and cooked dishes.
In the 1950s and 60s, Utah’s celery industry declined as agricultural labor, markets and land use changed. Farmland increasingly gave way to housing and commercial development. Yet the crop’s legacy survives. The historic variety Utah Tall Celery No. 15 is preserved in USDA seed collections and Seed Savers Exchange.
A simple stalk of celery offers more than a crisp addition to the dinner table, it is a reminder of what can grow from fertile land, human ingenuity and the blending of cultures.
