Abstract
Watercress is an aquatic perennial herb belonging to the family Brassicaceae, which is commonly found in the wild in cool stream margins and ditches as well as cultivated in tanks or moist soil for its edible leaves. The most common and widespread species of the genus Nasturtium are N. officinale R. Br. and N. microphyllum Boenn. Rchb., which originated from Eurasia and North Africa and widely spread in Europe, including Britain, from Sweden and Denmark, and to North America. Watercress is consumed fresh or as an ingredient in soups or other recipes. It contains vitamins, phenolic compounds, folic acid, carotenoids, minerals, fibers, lipids, proteins, and a high level of glucosinolates. It purportedly possesses antioxidant and anti-carcinogenic properties and a possible role in the prevention of other diseases including cardiovascular, neurodegeneration and diabetes. The best site for a watercress bed is on a relatively flat area with a slight slope below a spring that supplies water. The beds should be protected from floods, which could cause severe damage to both the watercress and the beds. It is propagated by seeds and vegetative reproduction. This chapter presents watercress biodiversity and distribution, cultivation practices, conservation, traditional breeding, molecular breeding, functional genomics and genetic engineering.
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Appendices
Appendices
1.1 Appendix I: The Countries Where Watercress (Nasturtium officinale R. Br.) Is Present in Various Continents
Continent/Country | Origin |
---|---|
Africa | |
Algeria | Native |
Democratic Republic of the Congo | Introduced |
Egypt | Native |
Eritrea | Introduced |
Ethiopia | Introduced |
Kenya | Introduced |
Lybia | Native |
Morocco | Native |
South Africa | Introduced |
Tunisia | Native |
Uganda | Introduced |
Asia | |
Afghanistan | Native |
Armenia | Native |
Azerbaijan | Native |
China | Native |
Himachal Pradesh | Native |
Jammu and Kashmir | Native |
Iran | Native |
Iraq | Native |
Israel | Native |
Jordan | Native |
Japan | Introduced |
Kazakhstan | Native |
Kyrgyzstan | Native |
Lebanon | Native |
Pakistan | Native |
Syria | Native |
Tajikistan | Native |
Turkey | Native |
Turkmenistan | Native |
Uzbekistan | Native |
Yemen | Introduced |
Europe | |
Albania | Native |
Austria | Native |
Belgium | Native |
Bulgaria | Native |
Czechia | Native |
Denmark | Native |
France | Native |
Germany | Native |
Greece | Native |
Hungary | Native |
Ireland | Native |
Italy | Native |
Netherlands | Native |
Poland | Native |
Portugal | Native |
Romania | Native |
Russia | Native |
Serbia and Montenegro | Native |
Slovenia | Native |
Spain | Native |
Sweden | Native |
Switzerland | Native |
Ukraine | Native |
United Kingdom | Native |
North America | |
Canada | Introduced |
British Columbia | Introduced |
Manitoba | Introduced |
New Brunswick | Introduced |
Newfoundland and Labrador | Introduced |
Ontario | Introduced |
Prince Edward Island | Introduced |
Quebec | Introduced |
Saint Pierre and Miquelon | Introduced |
United States | Introduced |
Alabama | Introduced |
Alaska | Introduced |
Arkansas | Introduced |
Georgia | Introduced |
Hawaii | Introduced |
Idaho | Introduced |
Kentucky | Introduced |
Maine | Introduced |
Massachusetts | Introduced |
Michigan | Introduced |
Minnesota | Introduced |
Mississippi | Introduced |
Nebraska | Introduced |
New Hampshire | Introduced |
New Mexico | Introduced |
New York | Introduced |
North Carolina | Introduced |
Oregon | Introduced |
Pennsylvania | Introduced |
Tennessee | Introduced |
Virginia | Introduced |
Wisconsin | Introduced |
South America | |
Argentina | Introduced |
Chile | Introduced |
Oceania | |
Australia | Introduced |
New South Wales | Introduced |
Queensland | Introduced |
South Australia | Introduced |
Tasmania | Introduced |
Victoria | Introduced |
New Zealand | Introduced |
1.2 Appendix II: Research Institutes Relevant to Watercress (Nasturtium officinale R. Br.)
Institution name | Specialization and research activities | Address / Country | Contact information and website |
---|---|---|---|
Centre for Biological Sciences, Institute for Life Sciences, University of Southampton | Plant adaptation to the changing environment, genomics studies linked to phenotypic analysis | Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK | Gail Taylor G.Taylor@soton.ac.uk |
Vitacress Salads Ltd, Lower Link Farm | Suppliers of fresh produce, specialising in watercress, salads and fresh herbs | St Mary Bourne, Andover, Hampshire, SP11 6DB, UK | Graham Clarkson gjjclarkson@hotmail.com |
Genetic Resources Unit, Wellesbourne Campus, The University of Warwick, UK Vegetable Genebank | Vegetable Genebank | Wellesbourne, Warwick CV35 9EF, UK | |
Vegetable Crops & Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, University of Turin | Medicinal plants | 10095 Grugliasco Turin, Italy | Silvana Nicola silvana.nicola@unito.it |
Idaho Department of Agriculture Idaho Invasive Species Council | Invasive species | Â | Amy Ferriter aferriter@agri.idaho.gov |
Department of Crop Science, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Chungnam National University | Agriculture | 220 Gung-dong, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305–764, Korea | supark@cnu.ac.kr |
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Hassandokht, M., Jafari, S., Ebrahimi, R. (2021). Watercress (Nasturtium officinale R. Br.) Breeding. In: Al-Khayri, J.M., Jain, S.M., Johnson, D.V. (eds) Advances in Plant Breeding Strategies: Vegetable Crops. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-66969-0_6
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