Nasturtium officinale Watercress (Cruciferae)

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Nasturtium officinale
Watercress
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The Nasturtium officinale plant species is found in Britain. It is a member of the Cruciferae family. Common gardeners may know the plant as Watercress. Some home gardeners know the variety as Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum. (L.)Hayek. Sisymbrium nasturtium-aquaticum.

Cultivation | Propagation | General Uses
Medicinal | Edible Uses

Latin Name:  Nasturtium officinale
Common Name:  Watercress
Family:  Cruciferae
Author:  R.Br.

Known Hazards:  Whilst the plant is very wholesome and nutritious, some care should be taken if harvesting it from the wild. Any plants growing in water that drains from fields where animals, particularly sheep, graze should not be used raw. This is due to the risk of it being infested with the liver fluke parasite[5, 244]. Cooking the leaves, however, will destroy any parasites and render the plant perfectly safe to eat[244].

Mature Height:  0.5   Mature Width:  1

Habitat:  Stream margins, ditches, flushes etc with moving water[17, 27], usually in chalk or limestone areas[52].

Edible Uses: Leaves - raw or cooked[2, 5, 7, 9, 16, 27]. Water cress is mainly used as a garnish or as an addition to salads, the flavour is strong with a characteristic hotness[183]. It has a reputation as a spring tonic, and this is its main season of use, though it can be harvested for most of the year and can give 10 pickings annually[238]. Some caution is advised if gathering the plant from the wild, see the notes above on toxicity. The leaves are exceptionally rich in vitamins and minerals, especially iron[200]. A nutritional analysis is available[218]. The seed can be sprouted and eaten in salads[183]. A hot mustardy flavour[K]. The seed is ground into a powder and used as a mustard[46, 183]. The pungency of mustard develops when cold water is added to the ground-up seed - an enzyme (myrosin) acts on a glycoside (sinigrin) to produce a sulpher compound. The reaction takes 10 - 15 minutes. Mixing with hot water or vinegar, or adding salt, inhibits the enzyme and produces a mild but bitter mustard[238].

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Cultivation | Propagation | General Uses
Medicinal | Edible Uses

The information above has been supplied solely via the hard work and dedication of the team at 'Plants for a Future'.
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