An early garden memory for me is ordering seed for a specific type of nasturtium when I was probably thirteen years old and growing them on to flowering. It was the first time I remember noticing a clear difference between cultivars. The new seed strain held the flowers up above the leaves more than the old nasturtiums I had grown.

One of the very simple annuals that get taken for granted, nasturtiums have a charm all their own. They are extremely easy to start from seeds, which germinate quickly and the seedlings run to flower very quickly, too. The leaves are unusual and attractive, like land-locked mini waterlilies. The flowers come in vibrant colors and feature intricate, interesting forms.

Another charming feature in my garden and greenhouse is that volunteer seedlings pop up where I never planted them for years after the original plants were grown.

There is a dark side to growing these plants–black fly aphids. These pests will smother my nasturtiums and wear them down to nothing in the early summer. They can be controlled by spraying them off with a strong jet of water, but I often don’t get to that until it is too late. Luckily, the black fly season is a short one and I can start new nasturtiums after the initial aphid attack and get blooming plants from mid-summer on.

My future plans for nasturtiums are to enjoy any volunteers that appear and to order some seeds that I can sneak into my patio pots to fill in early before the slower plants get started.