Growing NasturtiumOnce you start growing nasturtium, it will frequently self seed year after year. It is a hardy annual that you grow from seed and it's best, if you want to use it in the kitchen,to sow seeds every year. You can use the leaves in salad - they're quite peppery - and the flowers are also used in salads. A recipe from 1739 for pickling nasturtium seeds (they're a bit like capers once they're done) begins 'gather your little knobs, put them in cold water and salt for 3 days...' so go gather your knobs!
Growing Nasturtium Buy a pack of seeds and plant indoors in spring, to plant out after the frosts have gone. There are quite a variety to choose from. They thrive in poor soil and sun - they will give you a wonderful show of flowers from summer through to the first frost, plus a crop of leaves and flowers to add to drinks and salads. Preserving Nasturtium This is one of those crops that you will only be able to use in its season.
I have heard of people crystallising the flowers, but I don't think it's to preserve them for a great period of time, more for decoration on cakes.
Using Nasturtium Chop the leaves into cream cheese to make a tasty sandwich. Use the leaves in a mixed salad, much as you would watercress, they have a similar peppery flavour. Sprinkle a few flowers into a mixed salad or float them on summery drinks. You can preserve the seeds as you would capers and the like. Looking after your growing nasturtium plants is easy. If you have the climbing variety, then you need to give them something to scramble over, but they look after themselves.
For an explanation of gardening terms that you might not understand, please check out the Growers Dictionary section. I found that I was either skimping on explanations or giving too much information on the individual pages so I have posted all relevant terms in one section - if there's anything you need to know, please drop me an email.
|
