Rocket
Introduction
Rocket is a salad leaf that adds a peppery bite to a salad, and contains many vitamins and minerals. It is ideal for adding fresh to sandwiches or the salad bowl. It is a fast growing plant ready for harvest 6 weeks after sowing.
The leaves can be eaten on a cut and come again basis.
Planting
- Surface sow on top of moist soil and cover with a fine layer of soil
- Provide warmth and light to germinate
- Thin to 15 – 20 cm between plants (or 6 inches)
Harvesting
- Pick leaves from several plants (rather than digging up the whole plant)
- Plants will grow new leaves (and extend the harvest over several weeks)
(inside)
(outside)
(fresh)
(stored)
= jar, 
= freeze, 
= store
Varieties
There are two main varieties of rocket, cultivated and wild. Cultivated rocket has been bred to grow quickly and is the variety commonly sold in shops. Wild rocket is more strongly flavoured.
Some modern varieties of cultivated rocket are attempts at combining the growing rigour of cultivated rocket with the strong taste of wild rocket.
The easy way for a gardener to organise their growing and discover gardening ideas.
Growing
The trickiest part of growing rocket is germinating the seeds. The seeds should be surfaced sown on a moist soil, and covered with a fine layer of soil or vermiculite. To aid germination, I cover the pots with plastic wrap and leave the pots on a sunny windowsill or inside a plastic greenhouse. The seeds need warmth and light to germinate. I find sowing several seeds, or generously sprinkling seed if growing in a trough, worth doing to ensure enough seedlings come through.
Rocket will grow in many different types of soil, but a moist, fertile compost is ideal. The soil needs to be kept moist during growth to prevent the leaves becoming chewy. Dry soil may cause the plants to run to seed.