Nasturtium

Growing Guide

The nasturtium is a cheerful and easy-to-grow flower! Their bold blooms and edible leaves, flowers, and seedpods make them an especially fun flower for kids to plant and a favorite companion plant in the garden. These lovely plants, with their unique greenery and vibrant flowers, grow well in containers or as ground cover around vegetable gardens. In fact, they are often used as a trap crop in companion planting, drawing aphids and other garden pests away from the more valuable vegetables.

Pests aren’t the only thing nasturtiums attract, however. They are also a favorite of pollinators like bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds, and their pretty fragrance makes them a good choice for cut-flower gardens, too.

Sow outdoors where they are to flower. Prepare the ground well and rake to a fine tilth before sowing. Sow thinly in a weed free flowering site or direct into tubs and hanging baskets about 2cm deep. As the seedlings grow, thin out to 25cm apart. The surplus seedlings can be transplanted into prepared tubs and hanging baskets.



Water regularly until plants are fully established. Growing nasturtiums is easy and once established, they require little attention.

TOP TIPS

Nasturtium is a good companion plant for: bean, broccoli, cabbage, cucumber, kale, melon, pumpkin, and radish.

An important feature of all nasturtiums is their edibility! Nasturtiums’ leaves, flowers, and seedpods have a peppery, almost mustard-like taste, which makes them lovely as a garnish in salads. The seedpods may also be pickled and used like capers.