Marsh samphire
Salicornia europaea
Also called Glasswort, Sea asparagus and Pickleweed
Garden plant · Herbs, veg & fruitIT NEEDS SALT WATER, which is the whole difficulty — a teaspoon of sea salt per litre, and it will not grow in an ordinary bed however wet you keep it. Never add salt to the soil itself; grow it in a pot standing in a tray of brine.
Care at a glance
- Ease
- Hard
- Water
- Every dayKeep it moist — water at the first hint of dryness — don't wait for a dry pot.
- Light
- Full sun
- Feed
- Not needed
- Humidity
- Average
- Hardiness
- Hardy — an average winter RHS H4, to -10°C
- Size
- 0.3 m tall · 0.2 m across
- Lifecycle
- Annual
- Origin
- Salt marshes across Europe
Is it safe for pets and people?
No animal-poison authority lists this plant either way.
Nobody has checked this one against a source for us yet, so treat it as unknown rather than safe.
Neither authority names Salicornia. That is an absence and not a clean bill.
Checked against ASPCA and RHS on 2026-09-22. Where a source says nothing, we say nothing.
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
- Bare compost weeks after sowing. It needs SALT water from the start — about a teaspoon of sea salt to a litre — and fresh water alone will not start it.Nothing germinates · disorder
- Shoots that snap rather than bending, with a thin string inside. It has gone over; cut hard for young growth and expect the crop to be a summer one only.Woody by midsummer · disorder