How to Plant Cress

Overview

Cress (Lepidium) is a green used in salads. Cress is a cool-season crop that adds a peppery taste to a salad. Popular varieties include watercress, garden cress and curly cress. Cress is easy to grow and is quite hardy, making it a perfect vegetable for a novice or children's garden. It can be harvested in as little as one week. Plant cress in an area that receives full to partial sun throughout the day. Sow cress seed directly into the garden when the temperatures are between 55 and 75 degrees F. Fall or early-spring crops will taste the best.

Step 1

Remove any vegetation such as weeds or grass, growing in the planting area. The young cress seedlings will not be able to compete with other vegetation taking over the area. Keep the planting site weed-free.

Step 2

Amend the soil with compost, manure or peat. Work the organic material into the existing soil to a depth of six inches. Cress prefers to grow in rich soil that drains well.

Step 3

Plant the seeds ¼ inch deep into the soil and cover lightly. Space the seeds approximately four inches apart.

Step 4

Water the planting site well. Keep the area moist but not soggy, until the seeds begin to germinate in two to seven days. Continue watering the cress to keep the planting site moist.