13 Reasons Why You Should Grow Nasturtium

Here at Hogs and Hens Urban Farm, one of our absolute favorite plants to grow is nasturtium. This beautiful and colorful plant is an incredible addition to any garden, and here are 13 reasons why you should be sure to include it in your garden plans this year! HERE is a link to order nasturtium seeds right now!

1- The flowers from this plant are absolutely stunning and are very easy to press and dry for use in a variety of craft and decorating projects.

2- The flowers of the nasturtium plant have a very pleasant scent both in the garden and in a vase of fresh cut flowers.

3- This plant is fantastic to feed to your poultry! Chickens especially love the taste of the entire nasturtium plant! Best of all, nasturtiums are a fantastic way to naturally deworm your chickens!

4- Nasturtiums make an incredible garnish for any meal. Not only are the plants visually appealing to your dish, but they are totally edible from the roots to the seeds!

5- Nasturtiums are delicious! They have a mildly spicy flavor and a soft texture. We love adding them to salads, soups, stews, and stir fried meals. Try our delicious recipe for Nasturtium Pesto!

Nasturtium Pesto

INGREDIENTS 

• 1 large colander of fresh nasturtium leaves and flowers
• ¼ cup pistachios or cashews
• ½ cup olive oil (avocado oil works well too!)
• ½ cup fresh Parmesan cheese
• ½ tsp dried red pepper flakes (optional)
• salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

• Wash the nasturtium leaves and flowers and lightly pat them dry. Toast the nuts – put them in a dry pan over medium heat, stirring every 30 seconds or so. Cook for 2-3 minutes – until they start to smell good. Then take them off the heat. Caution- when toasting the nuts, pay close attention and stir often as they will scorch very fast!
• Fill your food processor or blender ¾ with nasturtium leaves. Blend until they are well chopped. Add more leaves and continue this until all of the leaves are blended well.
• Add in the toasted nuts and blend until finely chopped.
• Add in the cheese, red pepper flakes and half the oil. Blend.
• Add additional oil until you get your desired consistency.  This will vary depending on your texture preferences
• Taste. Add salt, black pepper, more nuts or more cheese to match your tastes.
• OPTIONAL – If you like traditional pesto, add a little fresh basil in your leaf mix to add a bit of traditional flavor to your pesto.

6- If you struggle with drought in your area, fear not! Nasturtium are incredibly drought resistant and do not require much water at all to thrive. No need to worry about expanding your irrigation system to the nasturtium patch, just let nature be your watering guide!

7- If you are looking for a plant that flowers for the majority of the season, look no further than the humble nasturtium! These plants grow very quickly from seeds and will bloom from early spring until late into the fall.

8- Soil thrives when it is covered, and nasturtium works great as a living cover crop and natural mulch.

9- Because it grows in nearly any soil conditions and requires little water or care, nasturtium works fantastic as a weed barrier. When planting this crop densely in a garden or flower bed, it will absorb the liquid and nutrition that is available which pulls resources away from potential weeds. As the plants grow, they will shade the soil below helping to prevent weed seeds from germinating.

10- Nasturtium are high in beneficial minerals such as potassium, phosphorus, calcium and magnesium, as well as macro elements, including zinc, copper and iron.

11- If you are looking for a plant to attract beneficial insects, nasturtium is the right plant for the job. Nasturtium is fantastic for attracting aphids and other garden pests. When planting it in a garden, be sure to plant it away from brassicas and other edible plants, as it WILL attract pests. This is a great way to distract the pests from your veggies and sacrifice the nasturtiums in their place. Check out The Urban Permaculture Podcast to learn about adding this plant to your integrated pest management system!

12- Nasturtiums will self seed! While they are an annual flowering plant, nasturtium will drop seeds if you don’t collect them to eat first. This means that when soil conditions become right to germinate, the seeds will begin to sprout all on their own, making them a very easy crop to sow that will come back for many seasons if allowed to drop their seeds.

13- But best of all… every part of the nasturtium is edible! That’s right, not only are the leaves delicious in things like pesto, and salads, but the flowers are entirely edible and look stunning mixed into a salad, and the seeds are slightly sweet and peppery and can be ground in a pepper grinder to add a complex flavor to your favorite dish!

After learning all of the ways nasturtium can be beneficial to you and your garden, what is holding you back from planting these incredible plants today?!