Can broken nasturtiums (dwarf, bushy-type) be saved? In water? Soil?
Question:I've been growing the dwarf bushy type from seed successfully along either side of a path to the back. I think my dog, neighbours' kids w/soccer ball(!) have caused the stems on about a half dozen plants to break. I put them in water and have been scouring the web and books to find out the answer to my query with no luck so far. So FindHomeAnswers, here I am!
Answers:
If they broke above the original first set of leaves, not to worry the stubs should recover quickly. If they were broken below those leaves, the rest of the plants will have to take up the slack to fill in. As to the lonely bits that you've adopted, I like to use a multi-solution approach to find what works best for each type of plant. Plain water is a good start, leave a couple to see what happens. Next you might try water with a little rooting hormone. I've had my best luck rooting by sticking them in a cool, moist, shady spot and just poking them in the ground, with or without hormone. The problem with nasturtiums is they won't bloom in the shade so they would need to be moved again. Depending on where you live, you might be better off to poke a few seeds in the blanks and see what finishes first. RScott
I have not had much success with rooting the stems in water or soil. I have noticed that when they break off due to whatever circumstances, they do tend to produce more growth just at the next lower leave. Sometimes they will sprout more growth right beside the plant where the stem and soil meet if the main stem is broken. They are normally tough little plants and they might be alright. Was there some of the plant left or was it broken completely at the soil level? You can email me and I will try to find more info on this for you as well. I hope this helps.
Whatever is still in the ground will come back, as long as you continue to water the plants as usual. Whatever came off in your hand should be treated as a bouquet, or eaten. (Both the flowers and leaves are edible and spicy. They make great additions to salads). Nasturtiums are fast-growing annuals, so even if you could root them, it wouldn't be worth the effort.
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