Nasturtium flowers make a fantastic addition to your home garden.
The nasturtium flowers, seeds, and leaves are edible. They also add beauty to your vegetable garden and are great for companion planting.
Nasturtiums come in many colors and have two growing habits: bush and climbing.
The climbing nasturtiums will also grow around your veggies, or upwards. They can spread quite far so be mindful of where you plant them. I love adding the bush nasturtiums into a flower border.
Growing Nasturtium Flowers
You can directly sow them outside, or you can start them indoors if you wish for earlier blooms. Start 2-4 weeks before last spring frost if growing indoors. They can handle full sun or partial shade.
They are drought tolerant making them a great choice for areas with hot summers. In partial shade you’ll get more leaves and sprawling. I tend to do both, start some a few weeks before the last spring frost, then I also directly sow them outdoors in mid-May.
Many companies grow a specialty mix exclusive to them like the many from Renee’s Garden. If you want to grow them in containers, then bush compact varieties are best. You can also create a trellis for them in a container, or let them sprawl everywhere!
Nasturtiums are annuals but seeds are very easy to save. Many people pickle them as ‘capers’.
Nasturtium Flowers are Edible
Besides being beautiful additions to your garden, nasturtium flowers are edible. Their leaves are especially delicious.
Companion Planting Nasturtium Flowers
- The flowers make a trap crop for aphids as they are drawn to them
- They deter whiteflies and cucumber beetles
- Attract predatory insects
- Plant around your Brassicas (broccoli, cauliflower, kale, cabbage, brussels etc). Also cucumbers, melons, radishes, lettuces, squash, and tomatoes
- Bees enjoy them so they can increase pollination of fruiting crops that need pollinators
Hummingbirds love nasturtium flowers too!
Pictures of Nasturtium Flowers
Orange Nasturtium
Nasturtium Flowers Varieties
There are many different types of nasturtium flowers in many wonderful colors.
Great climbing nasturtium varieties
- Empress of India (red flowers)
- Amazon Jewel (many colors)
- Moonlight (creamy white and pale yellow)
Compact bush varieties (great for containers)
- Jewel Mix (many colors)
- Tip Top Alaska mix (cream-on-green foliage with single yellow, orange, and deep red flowers)
- Tip Top Alaska Salmon (soft salmon pink color)
- Buttercream (white)
What is your favorite variety?
Indeed one of the perfect work, I have ever came across!!