Lepidium sativum
Garden cress
Common names: cress, pepperweed
At a glance
- Light
- Partial shade
- Spacing
- 3 cm, rows 10 cm
- Lifespan
- Annual
- Sowing
- Mar–Sep
- Harvest
- Mar–Oct
- Hardiness
- Cold damage below −3 °C
- Water need
- High
- For children
- Well suited
Photo: CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
This description was machine-translated.
Description
Garden cress (Lepidium sativum) is a fast-growing green that can be harvested for its sharp, peppery seedlings within a few days. It thrives on a windowsill or in a garden bed and provides fresh vitamins year‑round. Its peppery flavor makes it a popular seasoning for breads, quark, and salads.
Care instructions
Scatter seeds densely on damp kitchen paper, cotton, or fine soil and keep them consistently moist, spray with a spray bottle if possible. Grow in a bright spot without harsh midday sun; germination occurs in 2 to 3 days. Trim the sprouts with scissors when they reach about 5 cm tall, and re‑seed every few days.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
SowingMar–Sep
HarvestMar–Oct
Germination
- Soil temperature
- from 5 °C, ideally 18 °C
- Days to sprout
- 2 to 5 days
- Light
- Needs light to sprout
- Sowing depth
- Press in, don't cover
- How to start
- Sow straight into the bed
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
sandy, loamy, humus-rich, well-drained, moist
Garden cress is undemanding and thrives in almost any loose, free-draining garden soil. Prefer slightly moist, humus-rich soil without waterlogging; in high summer, some afternoon shade protects against premature bolting into flower.
Brassicas are heavy feeders and prone to clubroot; keep a 4-year break and do not follow directly after other crucifers such as radishes or mustard.
Feeding
Light feeder
Months
Mar–Apr
With normal garden soil, no feeding of its own is needed. Before the spring sowing, simply work in some mature compost shallowly; on very sandy or depleted soils you can do this again before repeat sowings. Because of the very short growing time, a top-up feed is practically never worthwhile.
Overwintering
Garden cress is an annual and dies after the seed ripens or at the first frost. There is nothing to overwinter. For a fresh harvest, sow it all year round on a bright windowsill every 1 to 2 weeks; outdoors, only after the last frosts, safely from mid-May.
Propagation
Methods
- From seed
Garden cress is propagated exclusively by sowing. Vegetative methods such as cuttings or division do not work with this fast-growing annual. On the windowsill it works all year round: scatter the seeds densely on moist kitchen paper, cotton wool pads or a thin layer of seed compost and press them in only lightly. They need no soil cover, but light to germinate. Cress germinates very quickly, after just 2 to 4 days at room temperature, even after 2 to 3 days in a warm, bright spot. Keep the substrate evenly moist until germination, ideally with a spray bottle so you do not wash the seeds away. Outdoors in the garden, sow directly in the bed only from mid-May, because the seedlings are frost-tender and the seeds only germinate reliably from around 15 °C. Harvest with scissors when the plants are 7 to 10 cm tall. For a permanent supply, sow a new batch every 1 to 2 weeks. Then you always have fresh cress to hand.
Companion planting
Good neighbors
legume family (Fabaceae)
particularly well establishedLeguminous plants collect nitrogen in the soil, from which Brassicaceae benefit as heavy feeders.
For example PeaBush beanPole beanBroad beanSnow peaWrinkled pea and 36 more species in the catalogue
Source: classic companion planting (DACH-Gartenpraxis)
carrot family (Apiaceae)
You can pair celery and dill with all Brassicaceae because they repel the cabbage whitefly with their scent, a proven companion.
For example CeleriacDillParsleyFlorence fennelCorianderCelery (Stalk Celery) and 20 more species in the catalogue
Source: Bio-Gärtnerei Mixed-culture Practice
mint family (Lamiaceae)
You will notice that the intense scent of basil, thyme, and others confuses the cabbage whitefly and keeps it away from the cabbage family.
For example LavenderThymeBasilRosemarySageHyssop and 43 more species in the catalogue
Source: bio-gardening intercropping practice
nasturtium family (Tropaeolaceae)
Nasturtium serves as a trap plant for you. Aphids and cabbage whiteflies prefer it over the brassicaceae next to it.
For example NasturtiumMashua
Source: Trap plant practice in organic horticulture
Companion planting is partly traditional gardening lore. Where the reason is known, it is given.
Some of these explanations were machine-translated.
For your garden
Grow Garden cress yourself
Gartenkern tells you when frost is coming, when to sow and when to harvest, for your location.
Free, no time limit
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