Nasturtium
Tropaeolum majus
Also called Indian cress
Garden plant · Herbs, veg & fruitNever feed it. Rich ground gives you a mound of leaves and not one flower — poor, dry soil is what makes it bloom.
Care at a glance
- Ease
- Easy
- Water
- Every 4 daysWater the ground — water at the base, in the morning, not over the leaves.
- Light
- Full sun to part shade
- Feed
- Not needed
- Humidity
- Average
- Hardiness
- Half-hardy — a light frost RHS H3, to -5°C
- Size
- 2 m tall · 2 m across
- Lifecycle
- Annual
- Origin
- South America
Is it safe for pets and people?
PetsSafe for pets
Signs: no records of toxic ingestion from this plant.
PeopleIrritates skin
Safe to eat: leaves, flowers and seed pods.
HandlingTake care handling it
RHS lists it as a skin allergen.
Checked against ASPCA and RHS on 2026-07-31.
A guide, not veterinary or medical advice. If a pet or a person has eaten a plant and you are worried, call your vet or doctor now — don’t wait for signs to appear. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
First signs of trouble
- A raft of small yellow ribbed eggs on the underside of a leaf in midsummer — cabbage whites lay on nasturtium by choice, and the plant is stripped to the veins within a fortnight.Cabbage caterpillars · pest
- The undersides of the leaf stalks and the youngest stems coated matt black, and ants running steadily up and down the trailing shoots.Blackfly · pest