John Ladasky wrote in message
om...
Hi, folks,

A bunch of watercress that I bought at the supermarket several weeks
ago had roots. I had never seen that before. So I took several short
cuttings, and planted them in 4" plastic pots with porous potting
soil. I've watered well, and I keep them constantly moist by soaking
the pots in a shallow tub of water between waterings. The plants are
happy and growing!

I've got two questions.

First, I can see that the plants want to grow in a prostrate position.
Of the five cuttings I started, only one is forming a nice, upright
rosette. The rest of the plants are spilling out the sides of their
pots, dangling additional roots. So, should I plant watercress in
flats instead of 4" pots? Will the plants stop expanding if I don't
give those other roots a place to touch down?

Second, many of the plants are developing bronze, rather than green,
foliage. I'm growing these plants on my deck, which faces south.
Could they be getting too much sunlight?


What about setting the pots into a larger (say, 2-foot) tub filled with
large stones, and then rainwater. The pots can rest on topof the stones
so the leaves are level with the water, and the roots can go down into
the water as they would do in a stream. It would be important to keep
the water sweet, with charcoal or whatever, as these plants grow in very
clean water.

They probably are getting a bit of sunburn, which will turn them bronze.

If this doesn't work, you can always consider American land cress.

s.