How to Grow Watercress? Latest Cultivation Techniques and Methods Tutorial

Watercress is native to Europe and is a perennial aquatic herb in the Brassicaceae family, genus Nasturtium, also known as watercress, water field mustard, water cress, etc. It is cultivated in regions of China including Heilongjiang, Hebei, Shanxi, Shandong, Henan, Anhui, Jiangsu, Guangdong, Guangxi, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan, and Xizang, and now let us take a look at watercress cultivation techniques together!

Growth Habits of Watercress

Watercress prefers a cool and humid environment. The suitable growth temperature is 15-25°C, with the optimum temperature around 20°C. Below 10°C growth is slow. It can tolerate multiple short periods of frost. In winter, when the temperature is around 0°C, it can overwinter safely in the open field. If the temperature is above 30°C, growth stagnates, and the leaves tend to turn yellow or wither. During the growing period, it requires good light; when light is insufficient, the stems and leaves grow weak and thin, and yield is low. It prefers neutral loam soil with strong water and fertilizer retention capacity, with a suitable pH of 6.5-7.5.

Cultivated Varieties of Watercress

1. Guangdong Small-Leaf Watercress: small-leaf type, plant height 30-40 cm, stem thickness about 0.9 cm, 2-3 pairs of small leaflets on each side, terminal leaflet ovate-round, 2.6 cm long and 2.2 cm wide, brown, blooms in late April but does not set seed, and can only reproduce asexually.

2. English Large-Leaf Watercress: large-leaf type, plant height 40-50 cm, stem thickness about 0.79 cm, 1-3 pairs of small leaflets on each side, terminal leaflet round or nearly round, 3.2 cm long and 3.4 cm wide, green, with relatively strong cold resistance, and it does not change color under low temperatures and in winter.

3. Jiangxi Large-Leaf Watercress: large-leaf type, plant height about 40 cm, stem thickness about 0.75 cm, 1-3 pairs of small leaflets on each side, terminal leaflet long ovate, 3 cm long and 1.6 cm wide, leaves green, leaf veins red, and it does not change color in winter or under low-temperature conditions.

Propagation Techniques for Watercress

1. Seed propagation: Watercress seed propagation is mostly sown and raised in early September to late September when the temperature drops to 20-25°C. It can be divided into dryland seedling raising and semi-paddy field seedling raising. When the seedlings are 4-5 cm tall, irrigate to maintain a thin layer of water on the bed surface, and afterward, as the seedlings grow, gradually deepen the water layer to 1.5-2 cm.

2. Cutting propagation: Watercress cutting propagation is mostly carried out in mid-September. When the temperature drops to around 25°C, cut tender middle-to-upper stems about 15 cm long from the seedling field and transplant them into a field that has been previously plowed, harrowed, and leveled for propagation. When the seedlings grow to 15-20 cm tall, lift the seedlings and transplant them into the main field.

Cultivation Techniques for Watercress

1. Timely planting: In the Yangtze River Basin, planting is mostly done in mid-October. Before planting, select robust seedlings, requiring thicker stems, short internodes, and intact green leaves. The stem base of the watercress plant grows semi-prostrate and often has a distinction between the sunny side and the shady side. When planting seedlings, place the sunny side facing up and plant the base two nodes together with the root system at a slant to facilitate survival. Row spacing 15 cm, hill spacing 10 cm, 2-3 plants per hill.

2. Land preparation and fertilization: Choose paddy fields with relatively low terrain, convenient drainage and irrigation, and fertile, loose soil for planting. Before planting, plow and harrow in shallow water, and combine with plowing to apply 3000 kg of human manure or 5000 kg of barnyard manure per mu as base fertilizer. After plowing, harrow fine and level, and keep the field in a muddy state or with a thin layer of shallow water before planting. For semi-dryland planting, after applying base fertilizer, level the land and make beds, and keep the soil moist before planting.

3. Water management: For semi-dryland planting, water thoroughly after planting. In the early stage, weeds are likely to grow in the field, so weed in time, and afterward water once every 3-4 days. If planting in paddy fields, maintain a 1-2 cm water layer in the early stage, and afterward, as the plants grow, gradually deepen the water level to 3-4 cm, but it should not exceed 5 cm to prevent rusty roots.

4. Reasonable fertilization: Watercress can be harvested 30-40 days after planting. After each harvest, timely apply 1 quick-acting fertilizer. Generally, broadcast 15 kg of urea per mu or spray 0.5% urea solution on the leaves, or use 1200 kg of decomposed manure per mu, dilute with 5 times water, and apply it; fertilization time should preferably be in the morning or evening.

5. Timely harvesting: After planting, it can be harvested when the plant height is about 25 cm. There are two harvesting methods. One is to pick tender shoots plant by plant, then bundle them in handfuls after picking; this method is relatively labor-intensive. The other is to harvest level with the mud, cutting three-quarters of the whole field each time, treading the old roots into the mud, then applying fertilizer and raking level, and replanting the remaining one-quarter of the seedlings.

6. Pest and disease control: Watercress has relatively strong adaptability, and there are fewer pests and diseases in cultivation and production. The main insect pests include aphids, diamondback moth, and striped flea beetle, which can be controlled with dimethoate, Bt, fenvalerate, etc. Diseases include leaf blight and rust. For leaf blight, spray mancozeb or chlorothalonil solution; for rust, spray triadimefon solution.