On Jun 24, 10:54 am, Martin wrote:
On Tue, 24 Jun 2008 00:48:07 -0700 (PDT), Judith in France



wrote:
On Jun 23, 10:49 pm, Martin wrote:
On Mon, 23 Jun 2008 13:27:33 -0700 (PDT), Judith in France

wrote:
On Jun 23, 8:30 pm, K wrote:
Stewart Robert Hinsley writes

In message , Pam Moore
writes
Is it possible to grow watercress without running water? Has anyone
tried, and if so how can it be done? Pieces of bought watercress will
root in water, but is there a way of growing them on? I often end up
wasting the last of a packet.

If I'm not mistaking some other white-flowered crucifer for
water-cress, then some of the localities that I've seen it growing wild
are standing water rather than running water.

It's not the watercress that is fussy about the water.

It is an intermediate host for liverfluke, and it's thought that it is
less likely to be infected in running water than in still water.

Watercress is a useful way of decreasing the nitrogen level (and hence
blanket weed) in garden ponds - chuck a handful in, wait for it to grow
massivley, then heave most of it out and compost it. Repeat.
--
Kay

My Edward, not your's Kay, is always on about liverfluke and
watercress and he won't eat it!!!! I do and my liver is fine.

Maybe your Edward read a long Guardian article about liver fluke & water cress
long ago. I didn't know anybody who read it at the time who ever ate watercress
again.
--

Martin

Edward is not a Guardian reader, he always read the Times until he got
a bit fed up with the politics and now, when in England, the
Independent and here, he reads a French Newspaper.

If I remember correctly it was something to do with some research that
was being done at IFR that disturbed him and he felt that buying water
cress was unsafe as he didn't know the origin. I presume he would be
quite happy to grow it himself provided there was continually running
water.

In the Times online archive, I found a news report from 1913, that the health
officer in a London borough thought watercress was a possible source of typhus.

The online archive is a good read. I didn't know that during WWII Craven-A
cigarette smokers were supposed to leave the packet at the tobacconist so that
it could be re-used or that the Nazi Admiral who was thought to be in charge of
Hungary had been sacked by Hitler in 1942 and had spent the rest of the war
growing vegetables (ON TOPIC ALERT) in his garden in Garmisch Pattenkirchen.
--
e
Martin

LOL All before I was born, I might take a look but Wimbledon beckons
- which means my poor eyes will be square again.

Judith