Nasturtium 'Empress of India' (Garden nasturtium) care

Light

Aim for at least 4-6 hours of direct sun on the leaves. Full sun, 6+ hours, gives the most flowers and the deepest leaf and bloom colour. It tolerates part shade but flowers less and produces more foliage there. If your only bright window faces south, that's perfect for nasturtium 'empress of india' — same window any aroid would fry on.

Watering

Crops like nasturtium 'empress of india' reward consistent watering — water until established, then moderately; let the surface dry between, roughly weekly unless dry. The mistake is the daily light sprinkle: it never reaches the deeper roots. A long soak twice a week beats a five-minute splash every day. Fairly drought-tolerant once rooted. Keep container plants from drying out completely, but avoid overwatering, which encourages leaves over flowers.

Soil and pot

Nasturtium 'Empress of India' grows best in light, free-draining, poor-to-average soil. Flowers most freely on poor to moderately fertile, well-drained soil at pH 6.0-7.5. Rich or heavily fed soil produces lush leaves and few blooms, so keep it lean. A pot with a working drainage hole is non-negotiable for this species — even free-draining mix will turn soggy in a closed planter. If you love the look of a decorative pot without a hole, use it as a cachepot around an inner nursery pot you can lift out to water.

Humidity and temperature

Nasturtium 'Empress of India' sits happiest at around 40-70% humidity and 15-28°C (60-82°F). An undemanding outdoor annual indifferent to humidity. Good airflow simply helps keep aphid numbers and any leaf disease in check. If you keep the room above 15 year-round and avoid placing the plant near a cold draught, a hot radiator, or an air-conditioning vent, you have already handled the two biggest indoor stressors.

Fertilising

Feed nasturtium 'empress of india' sparingly. Do not feed for flowers. On very poor soil a single weak balanced feed is enough; nitrogen-rich fertiliser gives masses of leaves and very few flowers, the classic nasturtium mistake. Skip fertiliser entirely on a stressed, recently-repotted, or actively wilting plant — fertiliser salts make damage worse, not better. Wait for a round of healthy new growth before resuming a feeding rhythm.

Common problems

Below are the issues we see most often on nasturtium 'empress of india' in the Growli community. Each is annotated with the most common cause so you know where to start.

• All leaves, no flowers — Soil too rich or over-fertilised drives lush foliage. Grow in poor soil and withhold feed to push flowering.
• Blackfly (aphids) — Black aphids swarm stems and leaf undersides. Hose off, squash, or use as a sacrificial trap crop away from prized plants.
• Cabbage white caterpillars — Chew large holes in the leaves, as nasturtium is a brassica-family relative magnet. Pick off caterpillars or net plants you want to keep clean.
• Frost damage — Tender to frost and collapses at the first hard freeze. Sow only after the danger of frost has passed.

Propagation

Grown from its large seeds. Sow direct where it is to grow after the last frost, or start in pots a few weeks earlier. Self-seeds readily, returning from dropped seed in mild areas. Propagation is the cheapest, most satisfying way to expand a collection — and it doubles as insurance against losing a mature plant to an accident. Take a backup cutting once the parent is established and healthy.

Toxicity to pets

Nasturtium 'Empress of India' is pet-safe. ASPCA lists garden nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) as non-toxic to cats and dogs. It is also edible for people. Do not confuse it with watercress (Nasturtium officinale), an unrelated plant the ASPCA lists as toxic; this true nasturtium poses no recognised pet poisoning risk. If you keep cats, dogs, or curious children in the house, weigh placement carefully — a high shelf or a hanging planter is enough for casual safety. For severe ingestion incidents, call your local vet and the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center (in the US, 888-426-4435).

Pet-safety status is sourced from the ASPCA Toxic and Non-Toxic Plant List, which catalogues the most-asked-about plants for cats, dogs, and horses.

Nasturtium 'Empress of India' deep-dive guides

Every aspect of nasturtium 'empress of india' care, each with its own calibrated guide:

• Nasturtium 'Empress of India' watering schedule
• Nasturtium 'Empress of India' light requirements
• Best soil mix for nasturtium 'empress of india'
• Nasturtium 'Empress of India' fertilizing guide
• When to repot nasturtium 'empress of india'
• How to propagate nasturtium 'empress of india'
• Nasturtium 'Empress of India' growth rate & size
• Nasturtium 'Empress of India' cold hardiness
• Nasturtium 'Empress of India' temperature & humidity
• Is nasturtium 'empress of india' toxic to cats & dogs?
• Is nasturtium 'empress of india' toxic to cats?
• Is nasturtium 'empress of india' toxic to dogs?

Featured in these plant shortlists

Nasturtium 'Empress of India' qualifies for 2 curated Growli shortlists — each one filtered objectively from our structured plant-care library, so the selection is consistent and checkable:

• Best pet-safe trailing & hanging plants — Trailing and climbing plants the ASPCA lists as non-toxic to cats and dogs — safe for shelves and hanging pots in a pet home.
• Best pet-safe low-maintenance plants — Non-toxic to cats and dogs and forgiving of forgotten watering — the easiest safe choices for a busy pet household.
• Browse all 29 plant shortlists — pet-safe, low-light, drought-tolerant and more

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Nasturtium 'Empress of India' is also commonly called Garden nasturtium or Indian cress.

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