A vigorous and tireless garden cress, growing upright with dense dark-green leaves — available at the table practically all year round.
About the variety. Upright Cressida variety, 5–10 cm tall, with compact dark-green leaves and very rapid growth; especially prized for autumn and winter cultivation thanks to its vigour in cool conditions.
Itinerário técnico
Como cultivar cressida garden cress?
Um guia de cultivo passo a passo, da sementeira à colheita.
pH ideal 6.0 to 7.0Temperatura ideal 10 to 20 °CCompasso Broadcast thickly, not in rows
Sementeira
Sow direct on the surface or at most half a centimetre deep, thickly and broadcast, or in a seedling tray indoors on cotton wool or fine compost. Germination takes two to four days, among the fastest there is. Sow every two weeks, because the cycle is two to three weeks and the plant bolts straight afterwards. At about 10 centimetres tall, this variety grows well in a pot twenty centimetres deep with drainage holes. Scatter the seed on the surface, press it in lightly for contact and keep it damp with a mister; a very thin covering of soil does no harm.
Solo
It is undemanding: it grows in any moist medium and even without soil, on a damp tray. In a bed, ordinary soil at a pH between 6.0 and 7.0 is perfectly enough. It is a brassica and belongs in the cabbage rotation. In a tray, change the cotton wool or compost for every sowing, because the leftovers of the previous one rot.
Clima
It prefers cool weather, between 10 °C and 20 °C, and part shade in summer. Heat makes it bolt within days and turns the leaf very hot. Indoors it produces all year round. The Portuguese coast offers close to ideal conditions and allows harvests over much of the year. Inland in Portugal and Spain, concentrate the crop in autumn, winter and early spring, because from June onwards heat and long days push it to bolt and turn bitter. In France it grows easily from spring to autumn, and in Germany the whole summer works because it is rarely too hot. Light shade over the middle of the day extends the harvest in any warm climate.
Fertilização
It asks for little and an over rich soil works against it. Soil that was composted for the previous crop is enough, with no extra feeding. Excess nitrogen gives soft, watery growth with little flavour and much greater sensitivity to pests and cold.
Rega
It needs constant moisture without exception. One dry day is enough to make the leaf tough and aggressively hot. Mist or water lightly every day. In a soilless tray do not leave water standing at the bottom: drain off the excess after each watering.
Controlo de Infestantes
Sown densely, the crop covers the soil itself and keeps weeds well in check. The work is concentrated in the first two or three weeks: hand weed or run a hoe very shallowly between the plants. Avoid disturbing the soil once the canopy closes, so you do not damage roots or bring fresh weed seed to the surface.
Controlo de Pragas
Flea beetle is the only pest of consequence and riddles the leaves with round holes in dry weather: keep the soil moist and cover with fine mesh. Slugs attack the sowings. Since the cycle is so short, intervention is rarely needed. Indoors, fungus gnats appear in trays kept permanently sodden: let the surface dry slightly between waterings. In a bed, a sowing that is sown and cut within three weeks escapes most pests: do not leave it standing longer than that.
Doenças
It has practically no diseases because of the short cycle. In very dense, poorly ventilated sowings damping off can appear: sow less thickly and ensure airflow. White mould on the cotton wool of the tray is a sign of too much water and too little air: water less and move the tray to an airy, bright spot. Do not reuse the cotton wool or compost from a previous sowing.
Colheita
Cut with scissors two centimetres above the ground, when the plants are five to ten centimetres tall and still have only two true leaves: that is when the flavour is fresh and peppery without being harsh. It may regrow once, but the first cut is always the best. The cut seedlings keep two or three days in the fridge, but it is best to cut only what you will use at the meal. The reference colour is dark green, and that is what tells you it is ready.
