6 Super Helpful Tips for Growing Arugula

Arugula is a low-maintenance, fast-growing leafy green vegetable. It packs a peppery punch and often gets included in mesclun mixes. Read on to learn all about growing arugula in your home garden to enjoy tasty salad greens at any time of the year.

Arugula grows best in an area with full sun and nutrient-rich, well-draining soil. Arugula plants require little extra care once they become established and are excellent beginner-friendly garden veggies. You can even grow arugula on a sunny kitchen windowsill.

Fresh, tangy arugula microgreens are ready to harvest just a few weeks after planting seeds. Baby arugula leaves are milder and more tender than the larger mature leaves.

Are you ready to find out how to grow arugula in your veggie garden? Let’s dig in!

Easy Tips and Tricks for Growing Arugula

Arugula (Erucavesicariassp. sativa) is part of the Brassica plant family. Other brassicas include bok choy, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, kale, radishes, and turnips. Arugula also gets called “rocket” or “roquette.”

These tender leafy green vegetables have a rich, peppery taste that’s an excellent way to spice up your summer salads. Arugula’s flowers are also edible and provide a milder flavor. If you’ve never tried adding freshly picked edible flowers to your salads, you’re in for a treat.

Arugula plants thrive in cool weather between 45-65℉. They’re relatively frost-tolerant and can withstand temperatures down to 25℉. As such, they’re ideal spring and fall crops. In mild climates, arugula plants may grow through the winter in an unheated greenhouse or cold frame.

However, when hot summer weather arrives, the plants quickly bolt. That’s when they prematurely grow a flower stalk and start producing seeds. Harvest the whole plant as soon as it starts flowering for the best flavor and texture.

How to Grow Arugula from Seed

Start planting arugula seeds in early spring, as soon as you can work the soil. They’re remarkably fast growers, so starting seeds indoors isn’t usually necessary. It’s best to sow arugula seeds directly in the ground.

Arugula seeds will germinate at temperatures as low as 40℉. However, germination is much faster in soil between 60-70℉. Cover the planting area with a thick layer of organic compost, dark-colored mulch, or a black tarp for a few days to warm the soil.

Plant arugula seeds a quarter-inch deep and one or two inches apart in moist soil. Add compost, manure, or all-purpose fertilizer before planting arugula seeds, so the plants have all the nutrients they need. When your seedlings reach three or four inches tall, thin them out to six inches apart.

Germination takes seven to ten days on average. To speed things up, soak the seeds in water overnight to begin breaking down the protective outer coating. Keep the soil consistently moistened while the seeds germinate.

Succession planting is an excellent strategy for having a continuous supply of fresh arugula through the summer. Sow seeds between the established plants every two to three weeks until four to six weeks before your expected first frost. The young seedlings will be ready to start harvesting when the older ones begin to bolt.

Best Arugula Varieties

• Astro (heirloom, heat-tolerant, fast-growing, mildly peppery flavor, bright green leaves, 35-40 days to harvest)
• Dragon’s Tongue (hybrid, nutty and peppery flavor, dark green lobed leaves with red veins, 45-50 days to harvest)
• Italian Cress (heirloom, fast-growing, strong flavor, bright green leaves 30-35 days to harvest)
• Rocket (heirloom, fast-growing, mildly peppery flavor, dark green leaves with red stems, 30-40 days to harvest)
• Slow Bolt (heirloom, heat-tolerant, tangy flavor, bright green leaves 40-45 days to harvest)
• Wasabi (heirloom, heat-tolerant, extra spicy flavor, bright green leaves, 35-40 days to harvest)

Optimal Conditions for Growing Arugula

Plant arugula in a location that gets four to eight hours of direct sunlight throughout the day. In especially hot climates, provide afternoon shade to prevent sunscald and delay bolting.

Arugula prefers a neutral to slightly acidic soil pH of 6.0-7.0. Since they have shallow root systems, it’s essential to provide light, well-draining soil free from rocks and other obstructions.

Use organic material like bark mulch, grass clippings, leaf litter, pine needles, or straw as mulch. Doing so helps keep the soil temperature cooler, retain moisture, and minimize weed growth.

Give arugula plants one to two inches of water per week. However, be careful to avoid overwatering. If the ground stays oversaturated, the root systems cannot absorb nutrients and oxygen from the soil and may rot or develop fungal diseases.

In general, arugula plants aren’t heavy feeders. As long as you refresh your garden soil with organic compost or well-rotted manure every few years, they don’t usually require supplemental fertilizer. In fact, too much of a good thing can be problematic. Learn more about the issues associated with overfertilizing in this article from the University of Minnesota Extension.

Harvesting Homegrown Arugula

You might be wondering, “How long does arugula take to grow?” In most cases, baby arugula leaves are ready in about three to four weeks. Expect mature arugula leaves in five to six weeks.

Start collecting baby greens once the plant forms a rosette of six or more leaves two to three inches long. Pick the outer leaves first and allow the new leaves to keep growing.

When you notice flower buds, cut the whole plant a few inches above its base and use the remaining leaves while they’re still enjoyable. After bolting, the leaves turn bitter and inedible.

If you’re interested in saving seeds to plant next year, let some of your plants continue flowering. Leave the seed pods to dry out on the plant. Then, collect them in a paper bag and store them in a dark, cool, dry place until spring.

Best Ways to Store Arugula

Arugula typically stays fresh in the fridge for up to ten days. After harvesting, thoroughly rinse and air-dry the leaves. Then, place them in a lidded container or produce bag for storage inside your refrigerator’s crisper drawer.

Keep leafy greens away from other fruits and veggies that give off ethylene gas. Some of the most common culprits are apples, avocados, melons, pears, peaches, and tomatoes. Ethylene gas is a natural chemical that quickens the ripening process. It causes leafy greens to wilt and spoil faster.

Solving Common Pest and Disease Problems

While growing arugula is usually quite simple, it’s still imperative to monitor your plants for signs of distress. Keeping your plants healthy by supplying appropriate amounts of light, nutrients, and water is their best protection.

Organic pesticides like horticultural oil, neem oil, and insecticidal soap kill soft-bodied insects. These include pests like aphids, cabbage worms, flea beetles, and leaf miners.

Spread diatomaceous earth to keep slugs and snails away. Cover your arugula plants with floating row covers throughout the spring to keep insects from laying eggs on them.

However, pesticide use also affects beneficial insects like pollinators and predators. Use cultural controls like companion planting and row covers to keep pests at bay whenever possible. Learn more about pollinator-friendly pest control in this article from Michigan State University.

Some of the most commonplace plant diseases for arugula are downy mildew, powdery mildew, and septoria leaf spot. Treat any affected plants with an organic copper or sulfur fungicide.

Prevent plant disease in your garden by providing adequate drainage and air circulation. Keeping leaves dry by watering with a soaker hose or drip irrigation is beneficial. Additionally, practice crop rotation every several years to prevent pathogens from building up in your garden soil.

Companion Planting with Arugula

Companion planting is a time-tested garden design strategy that mimics a natural ecosystem. Certain plants attract beneficial insects, while others repel garden pests. Many plants reportedly enhance one another’s flavor and overall vigor. However, some species must grow separately because they stunt each other’s growth.

Legumes like beans and peas form a unique relationship with certain soil bacteria that gives them the ability to fix nitrogen in the surrounding soil. As such, they make fantastic companion plants for leafy greens.

Root veggies like beets, carrots, and parsnips fit nicely between shallow-rooted arugula plants. They won’t compete for soil space, and you’ll maximize your available planting space. These plants also have similar preferences for cool temperatures and moist soil.

Aromatic herbs like basil, cilantro, catnip, and mint repel various insects, including aphids, cabbage worms, flea beetles, and slugs. Borage, chamomile, calendula, dill, feverfew, marigold, and tansy are fabulous herbs and flowers that attract beneficial predatory insects and pollinators. Also, alliums like chives, garlic, and onions fend off numerous pests – aphids, cabbage worms, flea beetles, spider mites, slugs, deer, and rodents.

Strawberries reportedly stunt the growth of brassicas like arugula, broccoli, kale, radishes, and turnips. Additionally, it’s beneficial to grow plants in the same family separately. Pest and disease problems spread much faster between similarly susceptible plants.

Growing arugula in your home garden is terrific for spicing up your veggie menu. These zesty salad greens flourish in part shade to full sun and require moist, nutrient-rich soil. Make sure you harvest arugula before it begins bolting. Or, let the plants continue flowering and collect seeds for next year.

Do you have any suggestions or questions about planting arugula? Please share them in the comments! If you enjoyed learning how to plant arugula, please share this post about growing arugula with your fellow gardeners.