Salmon Baby

Nasturtiums thrive in the San Francisco Bay Area and have a dual purpose. They make lush ground cover and are nice to eat when added to salads. The leaves and blossoms, to a lesser extent, have a peppery flavor that adds a bit of spice to a green salad. The blossoms create exciting color on the plate as well.

Luckily for the gardener, nasturtiums are easy to deal with, requiring little care. They easily self sow, propagating themselves from year to year. They shade grass seeds, thereby preventing a good portion of them from germinating, leaving the gardener more time to weed those that have germinated. They come in trailing and mounding habits so they adapt to many uses and they also have a wide array of colors. My preference is for the coral rather than the yellow or orange cultivars, but the Cherry has its charm too. My favorite is the Salmon Baby whose seeds are getting harder to find. I believe it's a hybrid as several generations ago these little beauties had double petals. This year some have reverted to a bright orange. Those go straight to the salad bowl.