Garden Rocket seeds - Eruca sativa

The Garden Rocket is a vegetable plant with highly appreciated seasoning foliage by gastronomes for its taste and texture. Thanks to its ability to regrow quickly, this hardy salad, which is cut back as soon as the foliage reaches 15 to 20 cm (6 to 8in) in height, offers numerous successive harvests. By staggering the sowing periods, rocket can be produced all year round if protected from the cold. Sow outdoors from March to May for harvests from May to September. Sow outdoors in August-September for winter harvests. Sow from October to March, under glass or in a cold frame, for harvests from March to June.

The Garden Rocket, formerly known as "éruce" in Latin Eruca sativa, is an annual plant that belongs to the Brassicaceae family, formerly Cruciferae. It produces long, narrow, oblong, slightly thick, dark green leaves with a pungent and peppery flavor. Pale yellow flowers veined with violet appear at the end of upright stems.

The Garden Rocket is not demanding, it ideally grows in humus-rich, moist and well-drained soil, but also grows well in ordinary soils.

In the kitchen: Garden rocket is appreciated for its unique taste, which varies depending on its cultivation method and the age of its leaves. When they are young, they have a nutty flavor, and when they are older, they have a hint of bitterness. In any case, rocket adds flavor to salads, raw vegetables, sandwiches, carpaccios... It easily blends in with "mesclun", a salad mix composed of lettuce, lamb's lettuce, chicory, oak leaf... It enhances pizzas, accompanies pasta dishes, or fills quiches, savory tarts, lasagnas, and gratins. It is a great addition to soups, creamy soups, or pesto. It is used in cuisines from around the world, such as Portugal, where it is served cooked with fish or meat, or in Turkey as a side dish for bulgur, or in Egypt as an accompaniment to fava bean stews. With its flavors, rocket pairs well with goat cheese or gorgonzola, tomatoes, dry-cured ham, or walnut oil.

Benefits of rocket: Refreshing and invigorating, this leafy vegetable has digestive and antioxidant properties. It is rich in fiber, carotenoids, vitamins A, B, and C, and provides potassium.

Harvest: It is recommended to sow at several periods to obtain beautiful harvests throughout the year. Depending on the period and location, the first harvests occur 6 to 8 weeks after sowing. The leaves are simply cut close to the ground, according to needs. This close cut stimulates the production of new leaves that will be available again for the next harvest and so on, until the appearance of flowering stems.

Storage: Rocket leaves can be kept in the refrigerator for a few days. To fully enjoy its aroma, we recommend consuming it freshly picked.

Gardener's tip: Flea beetles, tiny beetles, are fond of rocket leaves and meticulously puncture them in dry and hot weather. While spraying tansy infusion can limit the damage, installing insect-proof netting from sowing is the most effective method of control while avoiding the use of insecticides, which, even if of natural origin, have consequences on the garden's balance.