Everything about Watercress totally explained
Watercresses (
Nasturtium officinale,
N. microphyllum; formerly
Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum,
R. microphylla) are fast-growing, aquatic or semi-aquatic,
perennial plants native from
Europe to central
Asia, and one of the oldest known
leaf vegetables consumed by human beings. These
plants are members of the Family
Brassicaceae or
cabbage family, botanically related to
garden cress and
mustard — all noteworthy for a peppery, tangy flavour.
The hollow stems of watercress are floating and the leaves are pinnately compound. Watercresses produce small white and green
flowers in clusters.
Nasturtium nasturtium-aquaticum (nomenclaturally invalid) and
Sisymbrium nasturtium-aquaticum L. are synonyms of
N. officinale.
Nasturtium officinale var
microphyllum (Boenn. ex Reich.) Thellung is a synonym of
N. microphyllum (ITIS, 2004). These species are also listed in some sources as belonging to the genus,
Rorippa, although molecular evidence shows that the aquatic species with hollow stems are more closely related to
Cardamine than
Rorippa (Al-Shehbaz & Price, 1998). Watercresses are not related to the flowers in the genus
Tropaeolum (Family
Tropaeolaceae), popularly known as "
nasturtiums".
Watercress cultivation
Cultivation of watercress is practical on both a large scale and a garden scale. Being semi-aquatic, watercress is well-suited to
hydroponic cultivation, thriving best in water that's slightly
alkaline. It is frequently produced around the headwaters of
chalk streams. In many local markets the demand for hydroponically-grown watercress exceed supplies. This is due in part to the fact that cress
leaves are unsuitable for distribution in dried form and can only be stored for a short period.
However (in the
UK at least), the packaging used by supermarkets using sealed plastic bags under some internal pressure (a plastic envelope containing moisture and pressurised (inflated) to prevent crushing of contents) has allowed the distribution of watercress (and sometimes a mixture of it with other salad leaves). This has allowed national availability with a once purchased storage life of 1 - 2 days in chilled/refrigerated storage.
If unharvested, watercress can grow to a height of 50-120 cm. Also sold as
sprouts, the edible shoots are harvested days after germination.
Like many plants in this family, the foliage of watercress becomes bitter when the plants begin producing flowers.
Huntsville, Alabama now uses the slogan "Rocket City", but before it developed a missile industry it called itself the "Watercress Capital of the World".
Watercress is one of the main ingredients in
V8 Vegetable Juice. Watercress is often used in sandwiches, such as those made for
afternoon tea.
Watercress is grown in a number of counties of the UK, most notably, Hertfordshire, Hampshire, Wiltshire and Dorset, although the first commercial cultivation was along the
River Ebbsfleet in
Kent. Alresford, near Winchester, is often considered the watercress capital of Britain (to the extent that a steam railway line is named after the famous local crop). In recent years, watercress has become more widely available in the UK, at least in the South-East, being stocked pre-packed in some supermarkets, as well as fresh by the bunch at farmers' markets and greengrocers. Value-added produce such as the traditional watercress soup, as well as watercress pesto are increasingly easy to source.
Health benefits and cancer defense
Watercress contains significant amounts of
iron,
calcium and
folic acid, in addition to vitamins
A and
C. In some regions watercress is regarded as a
weed, in other regions as an
aquatic vegetable or
herb. Watercress crops grown in the presence of
animal waste can be a haven for
parasites such as the
liver fluke Fasciola hepatica.
Many benefits from eating watercress are claimed, such as that it acts as a mild
stimulant, a source of
phytochemicals and
antioxidants, a
diuretic, an
expectorant, and a
digestive aid. It also appears to have
cancer-suppressing properties. It is widely believed to help defend against
lung cancer.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Watercress'.
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