Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses

WATERCRESS

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Nasturtium officinale W.T. Aiton

[=Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum (L. ) Hayek]

Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas

Perennial

Height: Floating on the surface of water

Family: Brassicaceae - Mustard Family

Flowering Period: April, May, June, July, August, September,October

Stems:

Floating or creeping, up to 3 feet long, branching, glabrous; floating roots descend from nodes and take root upon reaching soil.

Leaves:

Alternate, stalked, odd-pinnately compound; leaflets 3-11, ovate to nearly circular, .25 to 2.5 inches long, less than 1 inch wide, glabrous, fleshy; margins entire or shallowly toothed; tips blunt; terminal leaflet largest.

Inflorescences:

Racemes, short, terminal, elongate in fruit.

Flowers:

4-parted, less than .25 inch wide; sepals oblong-ascending; petals white, twice as long as sepals; stamens 6, 4 long, 2 short, with nectar secreting glands at bases.

Fruits:

Pods, linear, .5 to 1.25 inch long, stalked, spreading or curving slightly upward; seeds in 2 rows, nearly round, flattened, brown.

Habitat:

Still or slowly flowing, shallow water of springs, spring-fed streams, ditches, and lakes.

Distribution:

Throughout Kansas.

Origin:

Watercress is an aquatic plant native to Europe, where it is cultivated. It can also be found in Asia and South America and is now naturalized in North America.

Comments:

Native Americans used watercress as a food source, eating it raw or cooked. It has a peppery flavor and sometimes is used in salads or as a garnish and potherb. The juice of watercress is said to have medicinal value in the treatment of stomachaches, rheumatism, and throat inflammation.

Watercress