Blue fenugreek (Trigonella caerulea) is native to the Caucasus, the Alps, and the Eastern Mediterranean. It has been traditionally used in Swiss cheese-making (Schabziger), and is a key ingredient in Georgian spice blends like khmeli suneli known as utskho suneli. This aromatic annual legume is valued for its milder flavor compared to common fenugreek. Blue fenugreek grows upright to 30–60 cm tall, sometimes reaching 100 cm, with obovate to lance-shaped leaves, 2–5 cm long, toothed upper margins. It blooms in blue, fragrant, globular flower clusters on stalks longer than the leaves during summer (April–September). After flowering, it forms small elongated seeds in erect or slightly curved pods (4–5 mm long) that mature in late spring to early summer.
Scientific Name: Trigonella caerulea
Plant Life Cycle: annual
Optimal Germination Temperature: 18C
Germination time in days: 7-10 Days
Indicative Days to maturity: 120-151
Sunlight: Full Sun
Soil requirement: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils
Sowing and cultivation: Soaking seeds for ~12 hours or lightly scarifying improves germination. Direct-sow outdoors from late spring (after frost) to mid-summer, or start indoors early for transplanting. Sow 5 mm (0.5 cm) deep in drills spaced about 20–30 cm apart, with 5–10 cm between seeds.
