Where To Find Watercress In The Wild

Watercress is in the brassicaceae formerly cruciferae family which makes it a mustard like its relatives kale cabbage collard greens arugula broccoli and of course mustard.

Where to find watercress in the wild.

Watercress forms a carpet of small round leaves. Watercress nasturtium officinale by dave moore. Like most mustards watercress has a spicy peppery flavor. All parts of the plant are edible.

Watercress is a glossy looking mostly hairless medium sized aquatic or sub aquatic. Its flowers are small and white and occur in long clusters like other mustards. Watercress is an extremely healthy plant when consumed however it can also be deadly if you select the wrong plant. I was driving through one of our canyons and came across some wild watercress so i made this video to show everyone how to id it.

Hence an old name cruciferae for the mustard family to which watercress belongs watercress is commonly found in cold alkaline waters of springs spring runs and similar streams throughout the state of missouri as well as. Watercress blooms through much of the growing season from spring through fall so you can often use the flowers to help identify the plant. It is acknowledged as one of the oldest of the wild edible green species consumed by humans and although once native to europe and asia has now naturalized to many parts of the world conducive to its growth. One always in demand item is watercress which thrives in northern alabama s many natural springs growing almost year round in some because of their consistently favorable temperatures.

Watercress grows in shallow running water so it is easy to find. Interest in wild edibles has never been higher among the adventurous chefs who rely on pfitzer and other foragers. Along with nettles lamb s quarters and amaranth it forms the foundation of the wild salad mixture that i ve served in restaurants for a number of years now it s relatively easy to find and identify tastes great lasts in the fridge and doesn t quickly wilt if handled. This video will teach you how to recognize the good and bad kinds of watercress in the wild and use them as an effective wilderness food source.

White flowers appear above the water from march through october. Warnings be careful if you harvest plants from the wild. Watercress is one of the building block plants of easy foraging.