Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) is an excellent choice for small-space gardeners who want to make a limited area really work for them: it’s edible, attractive, grows well vertically and in containers, and will rid your garden of certain pests. It is an irrepressible, flowering vine — annual in most climes, but watch it in warmer pockets of the U.S., because it can self-sow and make itself difficult — with distinctively saucer-shaped foliage and summertime blossoms that are typically red, orange, or yellow.

Nasturtium will repel whiteflies, squash bugs, and striped pumpkin beetles, so it’s an excellent companion plant for (you guessed it) squash and pumpkins, in addition to radishes and cabbages. And, if you’d like to single-handedly thin the neighborhood aphid population, then nasturtium is for you: It attracts aphids, enticing them away from other plants in the garden, and gathering them in one spot for you to deal with them as you see fit (read: to neutralize them!).

Growing a healthy nasturtium requires no more than average soil and a sunny spot. In shade, the vine will grow, but you won’t get as many flowers from it.

Its leaves, flowers, and seeds are edible, with a peppery zing.  Here are a few serving suggestions to ignite your culinary imagination:

Young Leaves and Flowers
Use as salad greens and garnishes, or in sandwiches. Add minced fresh flowers to butter.

Seeds
Eat as is, or pickle them: Wash the seeds, boil up some cider vinegar, add enough to the seeds to completely cover them, and keep stored in a sealed jar.

Flower buds
Pickle as you would the seeds.

References:

• The Container Kitchen Garden, A. Atha
• Great Garden Shortcuts, J. Benjamin
• Horticulture Gardener’s Desk Reference, A. Halpin
• The Rodale Herb Book

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