Cress Garden Common Seeds

Grow a small pot or short row of peppery garden cress for fresh leaf picking. This quick annual suits a bright position and steady moisture, with small repeat sowings while conditions are mild.

Ready to grow tender garden cress? Follow our step-by-step Garden Cress Grow Guide for shallow sowing, regional growing tips and help choosing the right cutting stage.

Before growing microgreens to eat: confirm with the supplier that your purchased seed lot is suitable for edible microgreen production and has no unsuitable seed treatment. Raw seed does not mean untreated or food grade. Do not eat packet seed or use it for jar sprouts.

Quick Grow Facts

• Plant and species: Garden Common cress, Lepidium sativum; an upright annual in the cabbage family, not watercress.
• Seed form: raw seed. Sow as supplied; no soaking, chilling or scarifying is specified on the published label.
• When and where: choose mild conditions; sun in cool weather, morning light with afternoon protection in heat. Year-round sowing needs suitable protection and local conditions.
• Depth: 2 mm of fine, loose mix. Keep evenly moist with free drainage. Give bright light after emergence; no compulsory light or darkness treatment is established.
• Germination: the product lists 3–7 days. About 13–24°C is a general cress reference, not a tested lot guarantee.
• Spacing: the published label shows 1 cm and the earlier description 2–5 cm, without a confirmed stage for either. Ask the supplier which applies. General garden-cress guidance gives around 10–15 cm between plants; this is not verified Common mature spread or a row-gap instruction.
• Harvest stage: the label lists 10–14 days for microgreens, with no stated start point. Use only a confirmed suitable lot and cut healthy young shoots above the mix once. For larger plants, check for leaves about 5 cm long roughly 2–3 weeks after emergence; leave young growth for possible further picking.
• Size and care: the matching supplier listing gives 10 cm without a stage. Plants left to flower grow taller; exact Common mature height and spread are unverified. No routine staking or pinching is needed for the short leaf crop.
• 5 g raw seed: approximately 2,250 seeds.
• 100 g raw seed: approximately 45,000 seeds.
• 500 g raw seed: approximately 225,000 seeds. Counts are catalogue estimates, not lot-tested guarantees.

Growing Notes

Direct-sow into the final pot or bed where possible. Keep shallow sowings moist, thin crowded plants and allow air through the leaves. Short crops need little extra feed. Use clean tools and water for an edible crop, follow the packet's treatment instructions and discard mouldy or contaminated growth. Sow another small batch about every two weeks when conditions suit.

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