Arugula, also known as mustard rocket or salad rocket, is very easy to grow in the garden. The leaves are mainly used in the kitchen. But is rocket still edible when it blooms? Are the flowers even edible?

In a nutshell

  • Leaves have a spicy to mild and pungent taste
  • Use in salads, as a condiment or as an accompaniment to the main course
  • Flowering time from June
  • Flowers are edible
  • Taste of the inflorescences very mild

Hot and spicy

You can harvest arugula four to six weeks after sowing. As a rule, a harvest is possible until October. Leaves will normally sprout again and again throughout the growing season. Mainly the leaves and stems are used in the kitchen. They have a very spicy, nutty taste, and are very tender and mild when young. As they age, they become spicier and bitterer in taste. Rocket is often used in salads and as an accompaniment to main dishes. Older leaves are good as a condiment. The harvest takes place:

  • with a leaf length of 10 to 15 cm
  • Cut leaves 2 to 3 cm above the ground
  • drive out again
  • on sunny afternoons
  • then nitrate level low

If the young, tender leaves are not used immediately, they can be kept fresh for three to four days in a damp cloth in the refrigerator.

Notice: There are two types of rocket, on the one hand the annual garden, oil or mustard rocket (Eruca sativa) with white flowers and the perennial wild rocket (Diplotaxis tenuifolia) with yellow inflorescences.

Flowering time from June

The rocket blossoms from June to September. The flowers themselves, the buds and seeds are also edible. Among connoisseurs, the flower is considered a real delicacy. In taste it is:

  • spicy, slightly sweet
  • milder than the leaves
  • slightly reminiscent of watercress
Left: mustard rocket; Right: wild rocket

The flowers should be harvested either in the bud stage or just after they have opened, when they are very mild and delicate. Use can fresh in

  • salads
  • spreads
  • desserts or
  • cocktails

respectively. At 2 to 5 degrees, the flowers stay fresh for up to five days. In addition, they can also be dried. The plant needs all of its energy to form the flowers. In other words, no leaves are newly formed at this time. However, the leaves present are still edible when arugula is in bloom. You are then:

  • narrower and smaller
  • harder in structure
  • bitter and pungent in taste and
  • contain a high nitrate content

Notice: The leaves owe their pungent and sometimes bitter taste to the mustard oil glycosides they contain. These are health-promoting.

flowers fourfold

Depending on the variety of rocket, it flowers in yellow or white. However, their structure is the same:

  • fourfold and hermaphrodite
  • initially umbrella-like
  • grape-like with age
  • many single flowers
  • Sepals 4 to 7 mm long
  • partly downy hairy with a white border
  • Petals 7 to 15 mm long and 5 to 8 mm wide
  • six stamens
  • Ovary with 20 to 32 ovules

The seeds are in elongated capsules, these are on the side of the stems. The seeds are also edible.

prevent flowering

If harvesting only leaves throughout the growing season is desired, it is important that the plant does not flower. To prevent this, the inflorescences are simply removed at the outset. Simply snapping it off is sufficient. However, if seeds are also to be harvested, it should be noted that not all inflorescences are removed, but some remain. The dried seed is then harvested, then post-dried and threshed out of the capsules. Storage is in airtight containers, cool and dark.

frequently asked Questions

Is it true that arugula is toxic to humans?

Like other lettuce, it also contains nitrates. It is one of the most nitrate-rich types of lettuce. Consuming large amounts of this nitrogenous substance can be hazardous to your health. Mainly in small children, this impedes the transport of oxygen in the blood.

What should be considered when sowing arugula?

The soil must be deeply loosened. Two liters of compost are worked into one square meter. The soil temperature should be 15 degrees. Sowing is done in rows, one centimeter deep and thinly covered with soil. The distance between the rows should be 20 cm.

What care is required after sowing?

The rocket is quite easy to care for. The soil should be regularly loosened and kept weed-free. Fertilization is not necessary. The plants must be watered sufficiently. However, no waterlogging should occur.

Category:

Vegetable garden