Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
done in England, France, and North America. In the German-speaking world as well as in most of the
USA, this brassica is rarely found in markets, and connoisseurs grow it themselves.
GARDEN CRESS
Lepidium sativum
Though it can only be grown for seed in the garden or in large pots, garden cress also makes a fine
container plant, growing well in small pots on the windowsill. It is a diuretic, and its sprouts are rich in
iron and vitamin C. Larger plants can be used in salads or as a seasoning. Eaten fresh, garden cress
cleanses the blood and stimulates the appetite; its bitter taste may be traced to glucosinolates and other
compounds.
WHAT YOU'LL NEED
• 10 ft.
2
(1 m
2
) of well-developed plants
POLLINATION NOTES
Garden cress is an outcrosser, though there are self-fertile varieties. Its very
small, white to pink flowers are seldom visited by bees, yet we have still observed crossing between
varieties. Because of this, multiple varieties should be spatially or temporally isolated. Garden cress
does not cross with bittercress (
Barbarea vulgaris
) or watercress (
Nasturtium officinale
).
GROWING FOR SEED
In addition to water, warmth, and oxygen, garden cress seeds need light to ger-
minate, so simply press seeds very lightly into the growing medium when starting seeds. The plant is
an annual and produces seedpods as its fruit. As plants mature to 16-32 in. (40-80 cm) tall, planting
distances when growing for seed must be greater than when growing for leaf production by about 8 in.
(20 cm). Pods are ripe in midsummer. Plants from seeds sown in summer flower quickly in the high
heat and dry conditions of the season, which makes it impossible to select for good leaf development.
Garden cress seeds
HARVEST
Harvest entire plants when they dry and seeds start to turn yellowish brown. Dry completely
in the shade.
SELECTION CHARACTERISTICS
Different varieties have different growth habits and produce vari-
ously shaped leaves and even seeds. They are not always accurately named and described in seed cata-
