Sowing and Growing Arugula, A Salad Full of Spicy!
To add a little spice to your salads, don’t hesitate to sow some arugula. Easy to grow, you will enjoy the leaves, cooked or raw, but also the flowers!
1 – WHEN TO SOW ARUGULA?
Arugula (Eruca sativa) is an annual plant that is sown during the intermediate seasons, namely spring and autumn, because it does not tolerate summer heat very well, which makes it hard and bitter.
Sowing perennial rocket (Diplotaxis ericoides) is done at the same time, knowing that it will be preferable to put the seeds in the ground in spring so that it will have rooted well when the winter cold arrives. If it almost disappears this season, it will reappear as soon as spring returns.
Germination time is only a few days. As arugula is very hardy whatever the climate, and it takes around 40 to 45 days between sowing and the first harvest, spring sowing can be undertaken as early as March; those for autumn can be launched in September.
Do not plan to grow something else instead of arugula after the first harvest because you will generally be able to make 2 cuts again before it goes to seed, so before summer, or winter depending on the growing season. sowing. However, you rarely cut the entire row at once; the leaves and flowers are harvested as needed.
Be careful, arugula is very easy to grow provided that it does not lack humidity and that it is not affected by a lack of watering or by extreme heat in a sunny position in the middle of summer.
Arugula appreciates fresh, fertile and well-aerated soils, which will have had a normal supply of manure before sowing.
For lovers of the lunar calendar, it is better to sow arugula during the waning and waxing moon.
2 – HOW TO PLAN ARUGULA?
Although you can plant arugula from seedlings, it’s usually easier to start from seed. You can start seeds indoors, 4 to 6 weeks before your last frost date, but arugula seeds can handle cold soil, so you can wait and start sowing one to two weeks before your last frost date .
We recommend succession planting every two weeks. This will extend your harvest and take advantage of the short season.
3 – LIGHTING
If we talk about lighting, the planted rocket should receive enough light. If the plant is on a window or balcony not on the sunny side, it will lack light. In such a case, you should worry about providing it with artificial lighting.
Typically, daylight bulbs are placed 50 centimeters above the ground or shoots. In cloudy weather, a plant even on the south side still needs additional light. However, the main thing is not to overdo it, as excess light can cause the plant to grow too tall and thin.
4 – TEMPERATURE
Sprouts must be protected from drafts, which, however, pose a danger to any plant, but arugula is the most sensitive and tender. Do not open a window or window where the container with the planted seeds is located. As for the temperature regime, it is necessary to ensure that the air in the room does not drop below +17 degrees even in winter.
5-Arugula DISEASES AND PESTS
Flea beetles are the only truly problematic pests. These small insects pierce the leaves with a multitude of small holes. The easiest way is to use an anti-insect net.
On the other hand, slugs give us the pleasure of not being fond of rocket leaves.
6 – THE ARUGULA HARVEST
Harvest from May to November by cutting the young arugula shoots close. Except in the event of a water stress type accident, they should produce two or three shoots before the inevitable bolting. Arugula wilts and keeps poorly after harvest, it must be consumed as quickly as possible.
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