Re: Nasturtians I live in Charleston,Sc and love Nasturtians-However when i plant them i plant them in half sun in a fairly dry raised bed and i only get plants with about three tiny leaves. What am i doing wrong ?
The first thing is that they like semi-shade and they can need a bit of water, also try fertillizing them, this will get lots of new growth but the more fertillizer the more foliage and less flowers.
I grow nasturtiums in full sun and they do wonderfully, good soil, fertilizer and lots of water. I do find that aphids love them though. Try ammending your bed with lots of compost and adding a layer of mulch to retain moisture, Janet
http://xrl.us/ofjk 6 July 2006 My experience. Zone 5. I am coming to the view that Nasturtians prefer a slightly cool climate. http://xrl.us/ozft 11 July 2006 Showing Growth Nasturtian seeds were put in the ground in the spring. It is interesting just how small the root system is on this plant to support such a large amount of foliage. The foliage is almost as interesting as the flowers. These were planted on the edge of the Clematis bed and the Fritillaria bed. They sort of hide the bed after these two finish flowering. Sometimes I throw the flowers in a salad to make a display. http://xrl.us/rm95 8 September 2006 Nasturtiums seem to like the cooler later summer weather. They are blooming profusely. Absolutely nothing attacks my Nasturtians. I consider them immune. The seeds are planted where I have a suitable space, often I pull some nasturtian plants out, since they are crowding others. I suspect the aphids probably have tastier plants to munch. Actually I don't have many nasties. They are present but not in sufficient quantities to destroy. I may have an advantage, since there are no gardens of any consequence in my sub-division. Gardening is fast becoming a lost art in our civilization. http://www.durgan.org/Blog/Durgan.html Durgan.