How to File Nasturtium Seeds

Nasturtium seeds require scarification before planting.

Nasturtium, or Tropaeolum minor, is a tropical species of flowering plant. The standard variety grows as a long vine but there are also trailing and dwarf versions that grow to shorter lengths. Nasturtium flowers produce a light fragrance in the summer, and the flowers and berries of the plant are edible. To grow nasturtium flowers from seed, file down the hard outer shell prior to planting.

Things You'll Need

• Paper
• Tweezers
• Nail file
• Nail clippers (optional)
• Sandpaper (optional)

Instructions

1. Spread the nasturtium seeds on a piece of paper in a brightly lit location. Pick up a seed, using tweezers if needed to get a firm grip on it.

2. Hold the tweezers and the seed tightly in one hand and use a metal nail file in the other hand to file off the end of the nasturtium seed. Keep working until you see the seed change color or become dull, which means you have penetrated the outer hull.

3. Set the filed seed apart from the others and then repeat the process on all remaining nasturtium seeds to prepare them for planting.

Tips & Warnings

• If desired, you can nick the ends of the seeds using nail clippers instead of filing them down.

• You can also file the seeds with fine-grit sandpaper, but the nail file makes the process much easier.

• Plant filed seeds immediately since they do not store well.

• You can plant the nasturtium seeds outdoors starting in May, or you can plant them indoors in pots or seed trays while the temperatures are still cool and transplant them outdoors later.

References

• North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service; Overcoming Seed Dormancy: Trees and Shrubs; Erv Evans et. al.; January 1999
• "Horticulture & Home Pest News"; Direct-Seeding Annual Garden Flowers; Linda Naeve; May 1997
• University of Vermont Extension; Nasturtium: A Favorite Old-Fashioned Flower; Leonard Perry