From Watercress to Wasabi

Available for over a year

Jon Old’s family own around 16 hectares of watercress beds across the Hampshire and Dorset countryside, supplying major supermarket chains. However, since 2010, they’ve also been growing something else: wasabi. Known for its spicy flavour, wasabi is difficult to grow even in its native climate of Japan, but Jon and his team have been able to create a hospitable habitat in a specially adapted Victorian watercress bed. Charlotte Smith heads to Manor Farm near Alresford to learn about the watercress side of the business and meets Tom Amery, who has worked with the Old family for over 25 years. Tom talks about the history of watercress, explaining how the growth of the railways in the Victorian era meant that watercress could be transported rapidly from Hampshire all over the country. Charlotte finds out how watercress is grown and learns about the important relationship between the farm and the area's natural springs. Charlotte then visits the place where the wasabi is grown, to find out more about this enigmatic plant. Like watercress, it is fed on water from natural springs, but instead of the broad, flat, open beds that watercress is grown in, wasabi is cultivated in shady conditions on gravel rows, mimicking its natural habitat in the mountain streams of Japan. Wasabi is a slow and difficult crop to grow, taking around eighteen months to be ready to harvest. It’s also a challenging ingredient to cook with, with chefs needing to understand how to use it to make the most of its short-lived but intense heat and flavour. Charlotte hears about Jon’s passion for this temperamental plant and why, despite the challenges of growing it in the UK, he believes it’s worth it. Presented by Charlotte Smith Produced by Jo Peacey