The Bee-Friendly Garden - Nasturtiums



 Nasturtiums have to be one of the cheeriest flowers in the garden.  They tangle and twine and climb and add hot spots of colour wherever you plant them.  They self-seed easily, and hopefully, come back year after year. 

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And the best thing about them, is that they are edible.  They give a nice peppery twist to salads and the flowers add a lovely hit of colour.  The name comes from the Latin 'Nasus Tortus'  meaning twisted nose which refers to the reaction of peoples faces when eating the spicy plant.


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They look pretty when brought indoors for decoration too.


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Nasturtium buds can also be pickled in place of capers, and as the summer gets hotter so does the pepper in the plants - more heat, more sun - more spice.



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Originally they are from South America - the Conquistadors brought them back to Spain in the 1500's.  If you use them as a companion plant they should hopefully draw the pests away from your precious brassicas.  The large, soft, umbrella-like leaves attract Cabbage White Butterflies to lay their eggs - not good for the Nasturtiums but good for your cabbages.



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They come in beautiful jewel colours from pale lemon to the darkest red and when the flowers die back they leave behind a seed cluster that dry on the plant and fall off.  If you check the ground around the plants you will find some of this dried seed -  save it in paperbags in a cool place -  then sow them from March to July when they will bloom until the first frosts.

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Monet was rather fond of them and planted them in the border of the pathway that led to the front door at Giverny.

Monets painting of A Girl in the Garden

They put on a better show of flowers in poor soil - last year I planted some in between the rows of potatoes but  the soil was too rich and all I got was a load of leaves.  Whereas in my front garden where the soil is thin and stoney they bloom beautifully.  They carry on flowering right through to the first frosts - but when the frosts hit them they become a slimey mess and should be removed tout suite.
 
 So, for the price of a cheap packet of seeds and  a cheerful way to get bees into the garden - plant a few Nasturtiums - I don't think you will be sorry (unless you hate orange flowers, that is).

This is what Christopher Lloyd has to say about them

"Natsurtium could be described as a hardy annual, for even though it succumbs to the first frosts of autumn you can push its seeds into the ground where you wish them to develop and they will germinate at quite low temperatures.  Self-sown Nasturtiums will often appear in mid-winter if it is mild.  Their hot colours show up in shade and they grow excellently against a shady fence or hedge, preferably in moist conditions.  They are no less satisfying when garlanding a garden rubbish heap.  Valuable plants, they provide a splash of colour towards the end of the year when the garden can look a bit tired."

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