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| Online Flora of the Maltese Islands by Stephen Mifsud |
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Nasturtium officinale (Watercress) |
Nasturtium officinale (BRASSICACEAE.)
Images for this profile are taken from the Maltese Islands after year 2000.
Website launch: Oct-2002
Taxonomic update: Aug-2026
Code update: Jul-2026 |
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| Nomenclature and General Information |
Species name : |
Nasturtium officinaleR. Br.
Published in Hort. Kew. ed. 2, 4: 111 (1812) |
Synonyms :
(basionym or principal syn.) |
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Plant Family : |
Brassicaceae Juss. (The Mustard or Cress Family) Previously included in Cruciferae
47 species from the Brassicaceae family are recorded from the Maltese Islands. | English name(s) : | Watercress |
Maltese name(s) : |
Krexxuni, Sija |
Status for Malta : |
Indigenous. Present on the Maltese islands before man |
Frequency : |
Very Common Common Frequent Scarce Rare Very rare Extinct |
Growth form : |
Germination type [info]: Dicotyledon
Raunkiaer lifeform [info]: Hemicryptophyte ( perennial herbaceous plants with vegetative buds close to the ground ) |
Legal Protection : |
Protected by law: Schedule III of [S.L. 549.44] (Conservation requires the designation of SAC) |
Red List (1989) : |
Not listed in the Red Data Book of the Maltese Islands |
Flowering Time : |
February – May |
Colour of Flowers: |
White |
Toxicity: |
Not particularly toxic |
Name Derivation : |
Nasturtium: ()
officinale: Commercially or 'officially' used and sold in shops for medicinal or healing applications. This epithet was given in the past to plants with well-known medicinal properties. (Latin origin)
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Planting in rural areas : |
Can be planted in rural areas according to ERA Guidelines |
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Description, Habitat and Distribution | |
Botanical Description |
Perennial 10-100 cm with fleshy, hollow stems, procumbent and rooting at the lower nodes, upwards ascending, sometimes floating; more or less glabrous. Leaves petiolate, often auriculate, pinnate, with 2-9 pairs of lobes, which are rounded to broadly elliptical and more or less entire. Pedicels 8-12 mm, patent to somewhat reflexed. Petals 3.5-5(-6) mm, white to pale purplish, about twice as long as the sepals. Fruit 10-18(-24) x 2-2.7(-3) mm, straight or curved; style 0.5-1.8(-2) mm. Seeds in 2 distinct rows in each loculus, with c. 25 polygonal depressions on each face. | |
Habitat in Europe |
Wet places
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Preferred habitat in Malta |
Data will be available in the next update of this website.
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Chromosome number(s) |
2n=32 | |
Distributional range |
Europe, northwards to Scotland, S. Sweden and to c. 55° N. in Russia
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Native region outside Europe |
doubtfully native in Az
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Distributional maps from various sources |
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Occurrences in Europe
(from Flora Europaea till 1993) |
All Europe except Faroe Islands, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia and former USSR, Svalbard archipelago
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Occurrences in Europe
(from Euro+Med Checklist till 2024)
Country codes
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AE(G) Ag Al Ar Au(A) dAz(C F G J L M P S T) Be(B) Bl(I M N) Br Bu Cg Co Cr Cs Ct Cy Da Eg Es Ga(F) Ge Gr Hb(E) He Ho Hs(A S) Hu IJ It Li Lu Ma Md(M P) Mk Mo Po Rf Rm Sa Si(M S) Sk Sl Sn Sr Su Tn Tu(A E) Uk(K U) [nCa(C F G P T)]
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| Links & Further literature
(0 papers) |
Google Web |
Google Images |
Google Scholar |
Research Gate |
Wikipedia |
JSTOR |
GBIF |
Med Checklist |
Cat. of Life |
EoL |
IPNI |
World Flora Online |
Plants of the World Online |
Vienna Virt. Herb. |
RBGE Herbarium |
KEW Herbarium |
MNHN |
Garden Database |
IUCN |
TROPICOS |
Kindly Email if there are papers and publications about local
studies or information about this species to be included in the list above.
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Sales and Donations
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Sales of seeds of wild plant from Malta: Seeds of selected wild plant species may be available for academic studies, research purposes, or personal use. Please note that not all species can be supplied or exported. Availability is subject to seasonal seed production, stock levels, and applicable regulations, including Maltese legislation and CITES requirements where relevant. Protected and endemic species cannot be sold (at least without the relevant environmental permits).
How it works: First, submit a quotation request by completing the Online Quotation Form (link provided on the right side of this table). Once your request has been reviewed, you will receive confirmation regarding seed availability, export eligibility (where applicable), pricing, and any transport charges. Payments are accepted by Revolut, bank transfer (IBAN), or PayPal only; credit and debit card payments are not accepted.
Please note that local orders are currently not being accepted. Seek Maltese nurseries and NGOs for local orders.
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Online Quotation (Seeds)
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Buy Images: Purchase photographs from this extensive online collection of Maltese flora by Stephen Mifsud. Images are available at reasonable prices, with rates varying according to image size and resolution. Your purchase helps support the maintenance and development of this website. When placing an order, please note the image code displayed beneath each photograph on the corresponding species page, as this is required when completing the online order form. Images are normally supplied under a license agreement, with copyright retained by the author; however, the sale of copyright for exceptional images may be considered on request.
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Online Purchase (Images)
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| Contribute Information or Report Errors |
Use this form to submit additional information about this species or to report any inaccuracies on this webpage.
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Atlas Flora Europaea
GBIF Distribution Map
WFO Distribution map
