Garden | Mr. G's Mind

I am not sure why I’ve always liked nasturtiums. Maybe it’s because while I was growing up my dad planted them around the house.

Here’s a good shot of a nasturtium patch.

I’ve never grown them, because where I live the climate is too dry.

Just recently however, I decided that I would try planting some in trays so that I could move them from place to place. That way, it would be easy to keep them in the shade.

To my surprise, they actually bloomed! A friend then told me that the flowers were edible and were often used in cooking. So of course, I had to give them a try.

I removed a single petal, and popped it in my mouth. As she said, the flower did have a ‘peppery’ taste, and was actually quite good. In addition, the leaves are also edible.

Having worked with eye care instrumentation for many years, the leaf of the nasturtium always reminded me of the retina of the eye. Hence the name of this post – ‘The Eye Of The Nasturtium.’

Okay, maybe a stretch, but here is a picture of the human retina (fundus image). The leaves do have a look of retinal vascularization and a point that is reminiscent of the optic disk.

Alright, perhaps you don’t agree – that’s okay. However, here’s the interesting part.

Nasturtium flowers contain “lutein.” Actually, more lutein than any other edible plant. So what’s lutein?

Lutein is a ‘carotenoid,’ which is converted to vitamin A and found in the human eye. Lutein in the eye works to improve and possibly prevent age-related macular degeneration, which is the primary cause of blindness and vision degradation.

Well, well, well – maybe my crazy curiosity with the nasturtium leaf/flower and the retina is not so crazy after all.

Taking lutein is good for your eyes! Read up on it, you will be surprised.

My mother always told me to eat my carrots, which also contain carotenoids.

“Did you ever see a rabbit wearing glasses,” she’d say. Maybe they ate nasturtium flowers as well?

Succulents are plants which can store up to 95% water in their structures. They grow in arid regions of the world, and believe it or not… some succulents really do look like rocks.

So, a living rock garden contains both rocks and succulents.

I began with some cactus & succulent potting mixture.

I selected a low rectangular tray, which already had two drainage holes in the bottom. I covered the holes with screen, so that the tray could still drain, but the soil would not come out.

I then arranged the rocks and succulents, so that I was happy with their positioning.

I chose two Lithops, and one Pleiospilos nelii mesembs succulent plants.

I used my knife to cut around the perimeter of the existing succulent holder, and then turned it upside down to remove it with the soil intact.

I removed some of the dirt where I wanted to set the succulent, and dropped it in the hole. I then tamped down the soil around the plant.

I repeated the same steps for the other two succulents, and added a bit of water around each. Remember – Don’t over water succulents. They are native to arid regions, and hold water.