Watercress - Edible And Healthy

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

Watercress in nature can be found in areas of swamps and other bodies of water in Dagestan, the foothills of the Caucasus, Morocco and Tunisia, Libya and Egypt, Algeria, as well as the Azores and Canary Islands. For quite a long time, it has been successfully cultivated as a vegetable crop in distant America, as well as in Asia and Western Europe. Since time immemorial, it has also been cultivated in Venezuela and Paraguay. A distinctive feature of watercress is that it is all edible and has a spicy mustard flavor

Getting to know the plant

Watercress is a perennial growing at a tremendous speed from the numerous Cabbage family. But in culture, it is cultivated exclusively as an annual. There are other names for watercress: bruncress, keycress, water horseradish and watercress. The hairy cover on its surface is completely absent. The watercress is endowed with an uplifting and well-rooted very thick stem, which is sometimes creeping. This stem, capable of forming root shoots, reaches a height of 50 to 80 cm.

Cirrus-dissected, dark green leaves of watercress are equipped with oblong lateral lobes and rounded tops.

Small white flowers of this plant form semi-umbellate or racemose inflorescences. And the fruits of watercress are bizarre swollen pods, in which reddish-brown seeds are placed in two rows, capable of maintaining their germination for four to five years.

Beneficial features

Watercress is an extremely useful plant, very rich in all kinds of microelements and vitamins important for the human body. It also noted an extremely favorable combination of calcium with potassium. And it is considered especially valuable because of its iodine content (for each kilogram of dry matter - about 0.448 mg of iodine). Due to its low calorie content and almost complete absence of sugar, watercress is also very useful for diabetes and even obesity. He also found its application in medical nutrition.

Many people eat both stems and leaves of watercress. Chopped greens will be a great side dish for main courses (both fish and meat) and an excellent seasoning for soups. Sandwiches with fresh cheese, fish or ham covered with greens of this aquatic beauty will be no less tasty.

How to grow

Areas with mild climates are most suitable for growing watercress. In the temperate zone, it should only be grown under plastic. It is often grown on the banks of streams, streams and other flowing reservoirs, the minimum water temperature in which is 10 - 12 degrees. In running water, it is also able to grow quite well. It is also permissible to grow this healthy beauty in hydroponics in greenhouses. However, it is possible to grow watercress even at home in pots.

During the warmer months, watercress can be grown outdoors, trying to select moist and slightly shaded areas for this. It is only necessary to provide the plant with abundant watering. And for planting, cuttings of shoots 10 - 20 cm in length cut from mother plants are taken. In order for them to take root better, they should be lowered in half or one third of a vessel filled with water. The roots will appear in about a week and a half. Cuttings should be planted in grooves in a slightly inclined position, following a 20x20 cm scheme. Initially, during planting, and then weekly fertilize: depending on the development of watercress, they should be full mineral or pure nitrogen.

Throughout the season, the harvest of greens is harvested repeatedly: under the film in the open field, two mows are often obtained for each growing season, while in greenhouses, the chances of harvesting appear every month or two. You need to cut off the greens with a sickle or scissors. The harvested crop is sent to the refrigerator, after wrapping it in polyethylene.

Excellent watercress propagates not only by cuttings, but also by seeds. And its planting is carried out by means of seedlings grown from cuttings and collected seeds. Sowing seeds for seedlings is carried out in late March or early April, and the first shoots can be observed already on the seventh or eighth day. After 30 - 35 days, the grown seedlings are transplanted into grooves pre-fertilized with good compost or manure. If the temperature drops, young plants should be covered with foil.

Water the moisture-loving watercress daily, in the morning and in the evenings. And in order to form as many shoots as possible on it, the tops of the plant are often pinched. Regular weeding and loosening of the soil are no less important for this crop.

There are currently quite a few varieties of nutritious watercress, and there are no zoned varieties at all.