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Tending the crop…
🥕 Vegetable
How to Grow Arugula
A fast, peppery salad green — sow directly, harvest in 3-4 weeks, and re-sow every two weeks for a continuous crop. It bolts in heat and shines in cool weather.
Harvest
40 Days
Sunlight
full to partial
Watering
moderate
Medium
in-ground, container, or raised-bed
Spacing
1 sq ft
329%
Return on Investment
One arugula plant produces roughly 3 lbs. Worth $14.97 vs a $3.49 seed cost.
Practical Maintenance
- Light:
- Water: Moderate — water 1-2x per week
- Spacing: 1 sq ft per plant.
Champion Varieties
Lineages for your homestead goals
Arugula (Roquette)
Standard Italian arugula — nutty, peppery, fast (38 days).
Sylvetta
A wild arugula with deeply lobed leaves — slower, spicier, and more heat-tolerant.
Astro
A milder, faster rocket with broad leaves — ready in 35 days.
Wasabi
A Japanese hybrid bred for an intense, wasabi-like kick.
Guilds & Companions
Permaculture Allies
Resource Competitors
Complete Care Guide
Soil · Water · First 30 days · Monthly care · Troubleshooting · Harvest
Soil
Moist, fertile, fast-draining soil. pH 6.0–7.0. Arugula is a 40-day crop — it wants rich soil that keeps it growing fast, because slow-grown leaves turn bitter. Compost in, keep it cool.
Watering
1 inch per week; never let seedlings dry out. Arugula's two killers are heat and thirst — hot, dry conditions make it bolt and go peppery-bitter overnight. Cool, steady moisture buys you weeks more harvest.
🗓️ The First 30 Days
- Days 1–3Direct sow 1/4 inch deep, 1 inch apart in rows 8–10 inches apart — or broadcast into a bed and rake in. Soil at 50–70°F germinates in 5–7 days. Arugula is happy in cool spring soil where other greens stall.
- Days 4–10Thin to 3–4 inches apart once true leaves show. Crowded arugula bolts faster and grows thin. Keep the seedbed evenly moist — dry spells at germination are the #1 cause of patchy stands.
- Days 11–20Begin harvesting baby leaves when plants are 3–4 inches tall — snip outer leaves at the base and let the center keep growing. This is the 'cut and come again' style that makes one sowing last a month.
- Days 21–25Side-dress with compost or a nitrogen feed if growth slows. Flea beetles love young brassica-family crops, so check leaves daily for shot-hole damage.
- Days 26–30