How to Grow Watercress at Home
Watercress is a member of the mustard family, whose other members include broccoli, cabbage and kale. Believed to have come from the Eastern Mediterranean and Asia Minor, watercress is commonly found in North America, lower South America and Europe. This aquatic perennial is used as a garnish and in salads. It is high in alkaline salts, vitamins and minerals. Grow watercress at home, so long as you have access to a running water source. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Drill small holes about 1/10 inch in diameter in a few plastic pots. How many pots you use depends on how much watercress you want. Fill the pots with compost mix.
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Push three or four seeds each into the containers at about 1 inch deep. Fill a high-sided container with water and place the sown container inside. Keep the water level in the container at about 1/2 to 1 inch below the soil level. Place the container outside in indirect sunlight. Avoid doing in high temperature. Changing the water daily avoids fungal infections. The seedlings should emerge in seven to 10 days. Keep the seedlings in their containers for another three weeks.
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Transplant the watercress into their permanent homes, ideally in a running stream, pond with a recirculating pump or a shallow river. Transplanting the seedlings in the early spring or fall gives the seedlings time to establish themselves before being hit with extreme warm or cold weather. Dig a few holes that are about 1 foot apart in the shallows of a stream or river. The leaves should float on top of the water.
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Harvest watercress in July if seedlings were planted in May. Do so by cutting the leaves that are just above the ground, making sure to leave root systems for resprouting purposes.
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Tips & Warnings
Cut mature watercress plants that have sent runners back to 4 inches for growing new leaves.
Cut watercress back to 4 inches in the late spring for reharvesting in the early fall.
If growing watercress in a pond with a recirculating pump, break off plant sections with healthy root systems attached and allow them to float around on the water's surface for propagation.
Those without access to a running stream or pond can buy watercress shoots at the grocery store and grow them in a bucket of water. Change the water daily, as watercress does not thrive in stagnant water.
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