Rocket salad, rocket – cultivation, care and harvest

Rocket needs a sunny location where it is protected from the weather. While it still tolerates wind relatively unproblematically, heavy rainfall can significantly decimate the yield. A light canopy or a bed under a tree is therefore ideal. A raised bed that can be covered is also a sensible alternative. Of course, there is also the option of growing the rocket on the balcony or on the windowsill.

Substrate

Arugula only has shallow roots, so it doesn’t need deep soil. However, the substrate should still be loose and permeable, because the plant does not tolerate waterlogging. For this, the soil must be rich in nutrients. A preparation with organic means, ideally compost, should therefore take place before the rocket salad is cultivated. In the best case already in the autumn before the planned sowing. However, it is also sufficient to mix some compost for the nutrients and sand for loosening under loose garden or plant soil.

pregermination

On a sunny windowsill in the house, the rocket can be grown all year round. This does not even require high temperatures. As little as 15 °C is sufficient for this. If the rocket salad is given a slightly moist substrate, the first germs will appear after two weeks at the latest. It is therefore not necessary to pre-germinate the seeds for cultivation in the garden or in a container.

If you still want to give the plants a head start, you can of course start pre-germination indoors. This can be done as follows:

1. Fill a box or bowl with herbal soil or potting soil and moisten the substrate
2. Spread the arugula seeds on it and only lightly cover them with substrate.
3. Place in a sunny and moderately warm place. At 15°C to 20°C, the first germs appear after just three days.
4. Keep the soil slightly moist throughout, but avoid waterlogging at all costs.
5. From a height of five centimeters, the young plants can be pricked out and placed in the substrate described above.

From March or April, the rocket plants can go outside. Then rocket salad can also be sown directly into the bed.

cultivation

As mentioned earlier, growing the arugula salad outdoors can start as early as March or April. Then it can also be sown directly into the bed. Depending on the temperature, germination takes a little longer here, but usually only takes about two weeks to come.

To do this, the following factors must be taken into account:

• There is no need to consider spacing between plants for a quick harvest
• The higher the plants are to be, the larger the planting distance should be
• For an easier harvest, form rows no more than 30 cm wide
• Sow staggered by one to three weeks for a continuous harvest
• Choose a bed for growing that has not been used for cabbage for at least two years

pour

Rocket is easy to care for when watering, especially when growing in the bed. Here it takes care of itself, at least to a limited extent, through rain and the moisture in the soil. However, since it only develops shallow roots, the extent of supply is limited. Even in dry phases, it is therefore important to supply the plants with additional water. Soft, low-lime water is good for this. Collected rainwater, wells, pond water, but also filtered or stagnant tap water are therefore suitable sources. Instead of occasionally compensating for dryness – which is particularly necessary for indoor cultivation – the substrate can also be kept consistently moist.

The only thing to avoid in any case is the waterlogging that has already been mentioned several times. If this is not observed, rot will quickly set in. This can destroy the entire harvest.

Fertilize

Although the rocket needs a nutrient-rich soil, it can easily do without additional fertilization during cultivation. Too many nutrients even damage it quite quickly. The soil should therefore be prepared with well-rotted compost. Subsequent fertilization may only be carried out to a small extent and very gently. Suitable means are:

• Heavily diluted plant manure
• Compost that is lightly incorporated into the soil
• Small doses of herbal fertilizer

However, subsequent fertilization is only necessary if the bed or substrate has not been prepared accordingly. In any case, nutrients should be used sparingly during growth.

harvest

Arugula can be harvested when the leaves are about four inches long and a fresh to dark green color. When this happens, of course, depends on the time of sowing and the weather conditions or incidence of light and temperatures in the house.

If you leave the lettuce leaves about a hand’s breadth above the ground, i.e. don’t cut them too short, you can harvest up to three times from the same plant. In this way, too, multiple and overall larger yields are possible on a fairly small cultivation area. In addition, the rocket can be harvested at least for a while as required and used fresh. It can be washed and dried, but can also be frozen.

Obtaining seeds Arugula
salad is relatively more expensive commercially, but the seeds are quite cheap in comparison. But if you also want to save here or want to continue growing particularly tasty varieties, you can obtain the seeds yourself from existing plants. It is only necessary to let some of the plants stand until flowering. These should therefore not be used to obtain lettuce. After the flowers begin to dry up, they can be cut off and dried completely. Afterwards, the seeds can be shaken out quite easily, preferably in a bag or paper bag. They are stored dry and dark until the next sowing.

Alternatively, the plants can be left in place, complete with flowers and seeds. They then see themselves again. If every third to fifth plant is left untouched in this way and only removed after self-sowing, you can plant the same bed the following year without any further action. Only the application of organic fertilizer should not be forgotten.

Cultivation in the house

The rocket in the trade is not always available or fresh, and then usually expensive. Fans of the spicy rocket salad who don’t want to do without it in winter or don’t want to dig too deep into their pockets don’t have to either, thanks to the possibility of growing it indoors. Planted in a pot, bowl or box, small yields can be achieved all year round.

Here, of course, it is necessary to water more often. A light fertilization after three complete harvests, i.e. pruning, is also recommended. Alternatively, a change of substrate and the germination of new seeds can take place.

Of course, you should think about this in good time so that the new plant has the first leaves ready for harvest when the old plant is coming to an end.

Plant rotation and plant neighbors

Arugula salad gets along quite well with other plants, such as herbs. However, unfavorable combinations are varieties of cabbage. These should not be in the immediate vicinity, nor should they have been planted in front of the rocket on the bed. A time interval of two to three years must be observed.

Typical pests, diseases and care mistakes

If the location is unfavorable, if cruciferous plants are grown too often on the same bed, or if there are mistakes in care, arugula tends to be infested with the following problems:

• leaf spot disease
• rot
• downy mildew
• Kohlhernie
• cabbage fly
• flea beetles

The leaf spot diseasemanifests itself – as its name already suggests – by spots on the leaves. These are usually yellowish or brownish. The disease is triggered by a fungus that thrives in high humidity, lack of sunlight and incorrect fertilization and spreads quickly. As a preventative measure, a sunny, well-ventilated location should be selected and sufficient distances between the plants should be maintained. If you fertilize the substrate before cultivation, but then do without further nutrients, you can also reduce the risk of leaf spot disease. Unfortunately, once the infection has broken out, it can hardly be cured. It is better to destroy the affected rocket plants immediately and generously. Including the roots and at least the surface soil.

Rotting , wilting and mold can be avoided if the soil is loose and permeable and not burdened by waterlogging. If the soil is allowed to dry out between waterings and if it is covered with sand, the risk is also lower.
Downy mildew shows up in damp, cool to warm weather and when there is too much nitrogen in the soil as a fungal coating that can have different colours. It can be fought with appropriate means, but this is not useful on the rocket. Instead, infested plants should be removed and destroyed.

Above ground, clubroots show up as weak growth and excessively quickly withered leaves during drought. However, only the roots show the extent of the infestation. These are clearly thickened and appear inflated, but are not hollow. Responsible is a pathogen that spreads primarily in warm and humid weather and in wet soil. Planting cabbages frequently can also increase the risk of the disease.

Cabbage flies – or better, their larvae – may seem inconspicuous, but they are really something. They can destroy entire crops in a very short time thanks to their enormous appetite. The white larvae can be recognized above all on the undersides of the leaves in the lower area of ​​the plants and on their feeding marks. As a preventative measure, crop rotation must be observed, and nets or the plants can be stretched. Once infested, affected plants must be destroyed along with the pests.

Fleas can be prevented relatively easily by repeatedly hooking up and loosening the soil. Since these pests are very stubborn, introducing natural enemies is also advisable. Ichneumon wasps in particular have proven themselves in the fight against flea beetles.