Nasturtium is an exotic beauty with a pungent, aromatic flavor. We will inform you about the cultivation, varieties, care and use of nasturtiums.
Nasturtium (Tropaeolum), also known as nasturtium or Indian cress, is often cultivated as an annual due to its sensitivity to cold. In this article, we will show you how to grow the decorative plant yourself, which varieties are recommended for the garden and pot, and how you can use the tasty flowers of the nasturtium in the kitchen.
Nasturtium: origin and history
Nasturtiums form a family of their own within the plant kingdom, but in German gardens the largest nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) and the small nasturtium (Tropaeolum minus) to be found. Both of these are usually offered commercially under the name nasturtium. Nasturtium originally comes from South America and was brought to Europe by Dutch merchant ships in the 17th century, where it quickly became a popular ornamental plant. It was given the name nasturtium because of its flowers, whose shape is reminiscent of the hoods of the nasturtium monks. Even if the cress-like taste of nasturtium makes you suspect that it is related to the well-known garden cress, these two herbs are not related.
Nasturtium varieties for cultivation
The cultivation of different types of nasturtium has its own charm, because the flowers shine in the most beautiful colors - from soft pink and pastel yellow, to strong red and orange, to velvety dark red. There are even strains that show flowers of different colors on one plant. When buying seeds, the species also plays an important role - while the large nasturtium forms 1 to 3 meter long tendrils, the small nasturtium (as the name suggests) remains rather small and bushy in growth.
An overview of popular varieties of nasturtium:
- 'Banana Split': Attractive,banana-yellow flowers and an overhanging habit make this variety the perfect pot plant for patios and balconies.
- ‘Black Velvet’: This variety impresses with its velvety, black-red flowers.
- 'Phoenix': A real feast for the eyes: The flowers of the 'Phoenix' variety enchant with yellow, red and apricot tones and an unusual shape with fringed petals.
- 'Variegated Queen': This strain doesn't have her title for nothing, because she is truly royal to look at! 'Variegated Queen' has white-green speckled foliage and flowers range in color from bright sunshine yellow to rich red.
You can find a larger selection of different types and types of cress in our special articles.
Planting Nasturtium
Cultivating nasturtiums in the garden or on the balcony is not a problem, since the exotic plant gets by with little care if the right location is chosen. We will show you how to plant nasturtiums in pots and what you need to consider when sowing.
The right place for nasturtiums
Nasturtium thrives well on humus-rich, well-drained soil, because it doesn't like waterlogging at all. It also loves sunny to partially shaded locations. Due to its high water content, the nasturtium is sensitive to even mild minus temperatures and is therefore cultivated in Germany as an annual. Even the first night frosts transform the colorful blossoms into a tangle of dead plant parts within a very short time.
Planting nasturtiums in pots
The nasturtium is also ideal for growing in pots or balcony boxes. It is best to use normal garden soil as a substrate, mixed in with some sand. You should also make sure that the planter has enough drainage holes to avoid waterlogging. Basically, the nasturtium thrives in a pot in any location, but if you want a rich bloom, you should make sure there is enough sun.
Tip: Most varieties of nasturtium grow sprawling with long shoots that either crawl on the ground or climb on climbing aids. It can therefore make sense to use compact growing varieties for growing in pots.
Sow Nasturtium
Due to its tropical origin, nasturtium is very sensitive to cold. Therefore, sowing outdoors should only take place after the ice saints in order toto avoid the last night frosts safely. The seeds are sown about 2 cm deep with a spacing of 10 cm. Alternatively, three grains can be planted together every 20 cm. Incidentally, seeds can easily be obtained from your own plants in autumn.
If you want to start growing earlier, you can prefer plants to nasturtium indoors. However, especially with varieties that climb strongly, sowing should not be started too early, so that the young plants that sprout vigorously do not take up the whole apartment as a living space.
Caring for Nasturtium
Despite its South American roots, the nasturtium has proven to be easy to care for and uncomplicated in the right location. On humus-rich soil, the plants only need to be lightly fertilized with mostly organic fertilizer, because too many nutrients ensure that they shoot into the leaves and produce only a few flowers. Our Plantura organic flower fertilizer with a long-term effect, which releases its nutrients slowly and gently, is very well suited. So there is no risk of the nasturtium shooting into the leaf and hardly forming any flowers. You can safely do without a pruning. However, the nasturtium tolerates a courageous grasp of the scissors if you want to dam the climbing plant a little.
Harvesting and storing nasturtium
The leaves of the Nasturtium can be harvested throughout the growing season. From the start of flowering in June until the first frosts in autumn, the plants produce profusions of colorful flowers and seed pods, which are also edible.
The bountiful harvest of leaves, flowers, and seed pods calls for processing! But preserving the delicious spice is difficult, as the flowers and leaves are not suitable for drying or freezing. However, you can pickle buds and unripe seed pods like capers, make herbal vinegar or use the leaves to make a delicious pesto that can be stored in the fridge for a few weeks.
Ingredients and Uses of Nasturtium
Mustard oil glucosides give nasturtium its pungent, cress-like taste. Their healing effect on bacteria, viruses and fungi is undisputed; 2013 became the big oneNasturtium was even voted medicinal plant of the year. The plant extract is often used to prevent urinary tract infections and colds. But the plant also contains other he althy ingredients - including vitamin C, carotenoids, flavonoids and sulfur. Nasturtium tastes best freshly picked - for example in herb butter and quark, as a spicy salad ingredient or as an edible flower decoration. A special delicacy are the flowers filled with cream cheese. The larger leaves can also be filled like grape leaves.
Nasturtium: diseases and pests
Two pests that can pose a threat to the exotic beauty are the hungry cabbage white caterpillars and aphids. In the past, attempts were made to take advantage of this fact in the vegetable garden: as a "aphid catcher", nasturtiums were supposed to keep the pests away from other endangered plants. However, this method is only successful in exceptional cases, since the different types of pests have specialized in very specific host plants and cannot even be dissuaded from them by the juicy shoots of the nasturtium.
Simple home remedies, such as regular spraying with soapy water, often help against aphid infestation. Heavily affected shoots can be removed. As with all plants that should eventually end up on your plate, toxic sprays are not the product of choice. A biological and harmless means for successfully combating pests such as aphids is our Plantura organic pest-free neem. It is based on the 100% herbal and natural active ingredient neem and is used as a spray. Bees and other beneficial insects are not endangered.
You can find more information about growing nasturtiums in our special article.