Latest news with #watercress
CBC
13 hours ago
- Science
- CBC
Is watercress helping or hurting P.E.I. streams? A UPEI student aims to find out
If you're near a freshwater stream or river in Prince Edward Island this summer, you might spot UPEI biology student Julie Goodwin at work. Goodwin is spending the summer tracking watercress, an aquatic perennial herb that grows in slow-moving bodies of water and is also edible. Her goal is to learn where watercress is growing and how it's affecting Island streams. She said not much is known about the plant's history on the Island, so her work is helping create a snapshot for future research. It could also support better decisions about whether the plant should be controlled. "We have baseline data from when it was introduced, but that was quite a while ago," she told CBC's Island Morning. "Since then, there has been no distribution tracking. We don't know now if it has gotten more abundant, if it has moved downstream, if it's moved to other streams. And just because it's not reported somewhere, that doesn't mean it's not there." So far, she said, a lot of what's known about watercress distribution on P.E.I. has come from citizen science through platforms like iNaturalist. The app allows users to share photos and locations of plants and animals, helping researchers gather data for scientific and conservation purposes. "In the world… plant collection and plant identification is a serious issue. There is a lack thereof," she said. Benefits and drawbacks Goodwin said that after speaking with different watershed groups, she learned the impact of watercress varies depending on the environment. "Some watershed groups have mentioned that it grows so abundantly that it over-widens their streams and causes flooding, which damages aquatic habitats, and it out-competes native plants," she said. "However, other groups have just noticed it kind of sitting along the banks, catching sediment, even being nursery habitat... I myself have seen frog eggs laid on watercress early in the season." That variation highlights why more data is needed to better understand the plant's role in Island ecosystems, Goodwin said. "There's lots of relationships in the ecosystems in which the watercress resides, and understanding those relationships is really what this project is about," she said. "We want to understand why it's here, what's interacting with it, what kind of changes it might be having in the ecosystems. And from there, we can then go on to collect more data and more data over the years and be able to track it. And, really, that will move toward proper management and conservation." How Islanders can help Goodwin is hoping Islanders can help her gather data this summer. She's asking people to snap photos of any watercress they come across and upload them to iNaturalist. She said those who want to contribute directly can also send photos to her email along with the GPS co-ordinates, which are easily accessible from most smartphones. That information will be added to her personal monitoring system and help identify at-risk areas that might be more likely to accumulate watercress. "Eventually, once we have enough data, and once we do a bit of a pilot study this summer, hopefully we can develop a practical monitoring system that watershed groups can use to track it every year. And it's not just a summer project," she said.
RNZ News
11-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
David Seymour backs watercress seller facing $600 council fee
Minister for Regulation and Act leader David Seymour is backing a Hastings watercress seller who he says shouldn't be shut down for selling the vegetable. Photo: Hawke's Bay Today Act leader David Seymour is backing a Hawke's Bay watercress street seller told to stop until he paid more than $600 in registration fees after a Hastings District Council officer "observed the activity". Seymour, who is the Minister for Regulation, has written to the Minister for Food Andrew Hoggard, saying the Hastings man has been the subject of "a bureaucratic exercise that risks shutting down a valued community tradition". It follows the Local Democracy Reporting story of Jake* - who declined to reveal his real name out of fear of even more of a crackdown against him - who has been picking and selling watercress in his community for 30 years. Jake said he was now only supplying watercress in Flaxmere "on occasion" and it was now for donation or koha. A council spokesperson said if the man was using a koha box he still needed to register because that was considered taking donations to sell the produce. Seymour said his concern was the current regulations leaned toward a bureaucratic exercise that risked shutting down a valued community tradition and placing barriers in front of makers and innovators. "This case exemplifies how the Act's compliance requirements appear to disproportionately burden small-scale produce sellers, stifling microbusinesses," Seymour said. In an email to Jake, the council said under the Food Act he had to cease trading until he was registered as a National Programme 1 business with the Hastings District Council. The estimated cost was $619 with ongoing annual costs. Seymour said he proposed "we, and our agencies, look for targeted deregulatory measures to ensure this case and similar sellers can continue operating without undue financial strain if the risks remain low". Jake said he was rapt to have Seymour's support. "I never thought he would support someone like me. Maybe there is a silver lining to all of this. "I want to do this right. I have a dream of maybe opening a shop, creating jobs for whānau." He said he loves what he does. "It's hard work but at the same time being out in mother nature is therapeutic." Jake said he had a lot of support from the community after he shared his story, including an offer from a local businessman to pay the fees and offer him some business advice. He was still working through the process. * Jake is not his real name LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
Daily Mail
10-05-2025
- Lifestyle
- Daily Mail
THE CANNY COOK: Watercress soup
From now until autumn we are spoilt for choice with British produce, and I always picture it in my head as a progression of colours. May and June are all about the greens with lots of verdant leaves, the first peep of podded peas and broad beans, asparagus, fennel and willowy fresh herbs. When July arrives it brings with it a flash of bright red berries and plump, juicy tomatoes. Then, by August and September, the spectrum opens up to vibrant sweetcorn, inky blackberries and aubergines as well as sun-blushed peaches and nectarines. There's much to look forward to, but for now we should focus on the greens. Every year, on the third Sunday in May, there's a festival in the Hampshire town of Alresford to celebrate the start of watercress season (see and our feature about it at I think it is a wonderful leaf that we should be proud of. It grows mainly in Hampshire and Dorset in waterlogged soil and is often praised for being rich in vitamins and minerals. With a distinctive peppery flavour, a tangle of its leaves will liven up any salad, while pairing it with lentils and hot smoked salmon is a fine option. It also makes great pesto, although the British classics of watercress soup and chicken and watercress sandwiches are a highlight of my spring menu. 2 x 80g bags watercress, £3; 300g potato, 25p METHOD Heat a knob of butter and a splash of cooking oil in a large saucepan over a medium-high heat. Roughly chop the onion and sweat with a good pinch of salt for 5 minutes until starting to soften. Rinse the potato, then chop into small chunks (don't bother to peel unless the skin is gnarly) and add to the pan. Sprinkle in another pinch of salt and fry for 6-7 minutes. Add the watercress and fry for a couple of minutes until wilted, then pour in 750ml chicken or vegetable stock. Bring to a simmer and cook for 7-8 minutes or until the potatoes are completely soft. Leave the soup to cool a little before whizzing in a blender (or use a stick blender) with the cream until completely smooth. Check the seasoning (adding salt, pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice if you have it) and serve in bowls, hot or cold, with an extra swirl of cream. *This cost assumes you already have some basic store-cupboard ingredients. prices taken from aldi and correct at time of going to press.
