Cress is a quick-growing, cool-weather plant that is easy to grow and care for. It can be grown indoors in a glass jar.
A glass jar is inert; therefore, it will not leach chemicals or interact chemically with any growing medium.
Glass also has a smooth surface, which means that there are no grooves or texture for microorganisms to establish themselves, resulting in fewer issues with mold and disease when growing cress.
To grow cress, you can choose from different varieties, i.e. Greek, common or curled cress. Regardless of the option you choose, it will taste good, and all are quick-growing and easy to grow indoors in a glass jar.
Cress just needs a growing medium to anchor its roots (and take up water) and it can grow in soil, cotton-wool or paper kitchen towels for example.
Steps In Growing Cress in a Jar
Glass is a preferred medium for growing cress since it is easy to clean, it is non-leeching and non-reactive, it is waterproof and aesthetically pleasing too.
To successfully grow garden cress indoors in soil or on cotton wool in a jar, follow the step-by-step instructions below:
Material needed:
- Cotton wool or sterile soil
- Cress seeds
- Jar (wider at the top and narrower at the base work best)
- Felt tips for decorating your jar
- Spray bottle
- Cling film
- Scissors
Get Your Planting Jar Ready
Cress should sprout and start to grow at a rapid rate in any old jar or container.
However it is suggested to use a shallow jar instead of a deeper jar, as cress tends not to grow very tall and a shallow jar or container will be fine.
Once you have your jar or container, you can start to decorate your jar however you like using the felt tips.
Filling the Jar
With your jar all set up, you can now go ahead and start filling them with your growing medium.
Fill the container with sterile soil. Or you can fluff some cotton wool and put enough cotton wool to fill the jar halfway.
Some people use paper towels, and those work just fine as well.
Moisten
Employ a spray bottle to moisten your soil or cotton wool.
Just do not oversaturate your cotton or soil entirely underwater.
Add Cress Seeds
Disperse the cress seeds on the surface of the cotton wool or soil.
As you are populating the seeds, be sure to distribute the seeds evenly so they are not crowded.
A crowded seed bed makes a hard environment for seeds to germinate because there is not enough space for the seeds to grow roots.
Lightly press the seeds into the soil or cotton wool surface.
Mist, Cover, and Wait
Light mist the seeds, wrap up the jar with plastic cling, and place the jar in a bright indoor area, like a sunny windowsill, that allows enough sunlight for the seeds to germinate.
These seeds are quick to germinate. These seeds will often germinate in just 2-3 days in regular condition.
Reminder: There are many factors that can dictate whether the seed germinates quickly or slowly, including how warm or cold the germination environment is and the humidity level.
Care for Plants
After germination, you should remove the cling film before placing your cress in sunlight. This will be hugely beneficial for your cress.
This way, the cress can grow well in sunlight and have bedding leaves which are already beginning to turn green and full of nutrients.
Watering Cress
Monitor your seeds’ growth each day and remember to water them.
They really don’t use much water; if you have the seeds in sunlight on the window sill, perhaps just a little watering each day might be needed.
Be sure to get to the roots when watering.
If you are growing your cress on cotton wool and not soil, therefore, you will need to apply a little moisture more constantly.
Controlling of Pests and Diseases
Cress plants are not affected by any serious pests or diseases at all.
They are practically unaffected by any and all pests when grown inside.
When Is Cress Ready to Harvest and How to Harvest?
When determining whether to harvest or let it grow further, you will need to observe your cress’s height and leaf development.
You will know it is time to harvest cress when the height has reached approximately 1.5-2 inches. This will take approximately 5-10 days after planting.
If the shoots are allowed to develop longer, they will fall over and begin to tumble.
Cress will taste its best when it is developing in its seed-leaf stage, and we encourage you to cut it and eat it before it matures.
You can also eat the cress sprouts if you would like.
Harvesting Down Inside a Jar Can Be Tough
The ultimate way to harvest cress is to take the whole bunch out of the jar by holding all the leaves and stems with one hand and the jar with the other hand.
Then pull back on the cress slightly but vertically until it is completely out without all the soil spilling out everywhere, and now you can trim.
Using scissors or a sharp knife is the easiest method to harvest cress. Cut the stalks at the base, leaving the roots on the soil or cotton wool.
Last: Wash them and they should be fine to eat! Cress should last about a week in the fridge if properly stored.
Use of Cress
Cress is a popular food both in households and restaurants.
Known for its peppery flavor and health benefits, its flavor melds wonderfully with sandwiches and salads, soups, and steamed/boiled potatoes. Its used even as a garnish instead of parsley.
Aside from its signature flavor and culinary appeal, cress is a popular food rich in vitamins and essential nutrients such as:
- enzymes
- antioxidants
- protein
- minerals
As a smoothies ingredient, cress can also increase nutritional value.
Cress is also a high-quality source of vitamins and minerals including iron, iodine, phosphorus, and sulfur-all needed by the body.
The end result is both therapeutic and aesthetic, since the nutrients also serve as natural blood purifiers, cleaning the skin tissues and providing clarity and shine to the eyes.
Make sure cress is always used fresh when consumed.
Cress Growing on Soil Vs on Cotton Wool in a Jar
The solution for increasing cress size, healthiness, flavor, and nutrients is to plant them on the surface of the soil:
- Soil-growing plants extract more nutrients from the soil so the flavor, nutrient, and yield are greater.
- Cress growing in soil grows at various rates, shown by those cress plants growing at much higher rates inherently than the rest of the cress.
Conversely:
- Cress grown in cotton-wool grew uniformly and to about the same height.
- So, while cress does have a better grow with a natural consumption from soil, it is obviously the best type of medium to plant cress in if it is going to be consumed by humans. This is because it is less messy. Plus, because of the other cress being at a more uniform or even rate, it is much easier to harvest.
Final Thoughts
With all the goodness and benefits that cress has provided and given, you should consider adding this superfood in to your diet.
You won’t need to buy cress for your grocery list every other week, after you bill yourself as an indoor cress farmers abiding by the traditional cress growing methods while at home, obtaining and acquiring cress everyday without go to the grocery store is easy and plenty to save you your coins.