What it is
Arugula (Eruca vesicaria) is in the Brassicaceae (Mustard) family. Peppery salad green that's ready in weeks. Cut it young and it regrows; let it bolt and the flowers are edible too.
How to grow it
It wants full sun to part shade, water it even, and give it average soil. Target a soil pH around 6.0–7.0. Space plants about 4–6 in apart. Expect roughly 30–40. Cool-season.
How it's used
Arugula is used: raw salad; flowers edible.
🔎 How to identify it
- Deeply lobed leaves
- Low rosette
- Cream flowers with purple veins
Edibility
PartsLeaves and flowers
UsesRaw salad; flowers edible
CautionGets very sharp and bolts in heat.
🌤 Before you plant: check the live 7-day garden weather to time it right for frost and heat.
Part of the free Texas Roots plant database, compiled by Jordan Polasek from his greenhouse in El Campo, Texas. Free to read and share. If it helped, the best thanks is to grow something.