Saflax - Organic - Nettle - Urtica dioica - 2000 seeds - Not a weed, but a super-herb – tasty in salad and as vegetable. With germ-free and air-permeable coconut fiber substrate for successful cultivation. Worth knowing: Most people consider Nettle as a pesky weed, but foremost it is a tasty plant. During blooming from May until November, the leafy Nettle plant develops rather inconspicuous greenish-white flowers that are arranged in hanging heads and are pollinated by the wind. It’s an annual herbaceous plant that reaches growing heights between 10 and 60 cm. . To avoid the unpleasant stinging of the nettle hairs, you might want to wear leathery gardening gloves for harvesting and wrap the leaves afterwards in a piece of cloth and roll them with a rolling pin. Nettle can be picked throughout the whole vegetation period. However, the best time for harvesting would be between the end of April until end of June, before blooming. Nettle should be processed quickly after plucking, as its flavour and active agents are fading. Young nettle leaves provide a delicate sour and somewhat nutty flavour and can be used in combination with dandelion, sorrel and bear’s garlic to prepare a delicious wild herb salad. The aromatic Nettle goes also really well in soups, in a tarte, in a risotto, in spaetzle, in casseroles or in homemade herb butter. If you want to use Nettle as a vegetable, you prepare it the same way as you would spinach – blanch in boiling salt water. The green seeds of the Nettle plant are usually harvested in June and July and make a tasty bread topping or can be roasted for a snack. Natural Place: Nettle is real cosmopolitan plant as it can be found in all temperate zones of Europe, Asia and the Americas. Cultivation: Initially, place the seeds in a refrigerator for about a week to stimulate germination. The best time for propagation is starting in February at a sunny place indoors as the seed is a light germinator. Scatter the seeds onto moist coconut substrate or organic herbal soil and slightly press them on. Cover the seed container with clear film to prevent the soil from drying out, but don’t forget to make some holes in the clear film and take it every second or third day completely off for about 2 hours. That way you avoid mold formation on the potting compost. Place the seed container somewhere bright and warm with a temperature between 20°C and 25° Celsius and keep the surface of the earth moist, but not wet (ideally using a water sprayer). Depending on the propagation temperature the first seedlings will come up after two to five weeks. Seedlings that are already raised indoors can be planted out with beginning of May. As soon as there is no more night frost expected, you can move the seedling with its complete root ball, to avoid stress for the plant. Place: The plant needs the sun, warmth and a wind-sheltered place to produce its full aroma. Care: Keep the soil always moist, but not wet. Water your plant as soon as the top layer of the earth has dried out. Fertilize the plant either very modest with compost or organic fertilizer for herbs, or don’t fertilize at all. During Winter: Sow again the next year. Bonsai: No Picture credits: Because of technical limitations links are shown as text. 25321-urtica-dioica-seed-package-front-german.jpg - About © : Contact SAFLAX - - saflax.de/copyright 15321-urtica-dioica-cultivation-instruction-german.jpg - Frank Laue - © Saflax - saflax.de/copyright 15321-32-urtica-dioica.jpg - About © : Contact SAFLAX - - saflax.de/copyright 15321-33-urtica-dioica.jpg - About © : Contact SAFLAX - - saflax.de/copyright 15321-34-urtica-dioica.jpg - About © : Contact SAFLAX - - saflax.de/copyright 15321-34-urtica-dioica.jpg - About © : Contact SAFLAX - - saflax.de/copyright 15321-35-urtica-dioica.jpg - About © : Contact SAFLAX - - saflax.de/copyright 15321-36-urtica-dioica.jpg - About © : Contact SAFLAX - - saflax.de/copyright 15321-37-urtica-dioica.jpg - About © : Contact SAFLAX - - saflax.de/copyright