There sowing of rocket it is simple and within everyone’s reach, in fact, a few tricks are enough to always have this exquisite herb available, the absolute protagonist of summer dishes. It can be sown a little in all ways, for example directly in the garden, or in seedbed and transplanted in pots for one cultivation on the balcony.
The plant is rustic and therefore easy to manage. Despite being very small, moreover, it gives great satisfaction in terms of harvest, and for these reasons it cannot be missed in home crops. Finally, the organic rocket from your own garden has nothing to do, in terms of flavor and healthiness, with the packaged one that we find for sale in supermarkets. Precisely for this reason, therefore, it seemed important to us to tell everything there is to know about the sowing of this plant.
When sowing arugula
Rocket can be sown at different times of the year. Spring is the most suitable season ever, as we will have abundant harvests in a very short time. The best months are April and May.
Another interesting period for sowing is the beginning of autumn, in September and October. However, in this case we will have a late autumn-winter harvest.
Less suitable is summer, if you intend to sow it in large quantities. This is because the rocket plant grows very quickly after sowing, so the harvest must be constant, otherwise the leaves will harden and, in general, will lose quality.
Where are the seeds of rocket
There are many varieties of rocket that can be sown in the garden. The choice depends on your tastes rather than agronomic considerations. For example, we have varieties of arugula with large leaves, others with narrow leaves, some with a spicier flavor, others sweeter, etc. In the specialized shops you will be spoiled for choice.
The advice we give you, however, is to choose rocket seeds produced in Italy. Even a single packet of seeds is enough to start a grow. Keep in mind that these are very small seeds, in 1g of weight there are 500!
How rocket is sown in the vegetable garden
Arugula is perfect for direct sowing on the ground of the vegetable garden as it has very short germination times. From the moment of sowing it takes, in fact, about a week to see the first sprouts appear. This is essential in the case of direct sowing in order not to suffer from the competition of weeds.
Broadcast sowing
After prepared the ground quite finely, the sowing of rocket can be done with the broadcasting technique. For the success of this type of sowing we advise you to mix the seeds with sand, in order to spread them more evenly.
After sowing it is necessary to sprinkle the soil with a very fine jet of water, so as not to wash away the seed. Since they are very small seeds, there is no need to bury them, the water will send them to the right depth.
After the emergence of the shoots, it is necessary to thin out, that is to remove the excess seedlings in the points where they have accumulated too much. With broadcast sowing, in practice, we will have a carpet of rocket, to be harvested continuously. The drawbacks of this technique, however, are two: the difficulty to carry out the weeding for cleaning weeds and the need for rain irrigation (in spring-summer).
Sowing in regular rows
To remedy the “defects” of broadcast sowing, rocket can also be sown in regular rows. In this case, a drip irrigation systemusing the hoses (like these).
In practice, a handful of rocket seeds is left along the line of the hose, in correspondence with the hole from which the water drips. In this way the seeds will germinate only in that precise point and it will be easier to clean the weeds and the irrigation itself.
How to sow the rocket in pots
Rocket can also be sown in pots, so you always have it close at hand. Sowing in pots can be done with the broadcasting technique seen above. The advice we give is to use a good quality soil for vegetable plants and above all gods quite deep rectangular vessels.
This way you can make the most of the space on the balcony. Finally, it is also important to use someexpanded clay (like this one) or simple pebbles at the bottom of the vase. In this way, the problem of water stagnation, which could cause yellowing of the leaves, will be avoided.
How rocket is sown in a seedbed
A further alternative to achieve a correct sowing of rocket is that which provides for theuse of the seedbed (in particular, those with a honeycomb structure, i.e. where for each hole there is a plant). In this case the hole is filled with soil, a small quantity of seeds is scattered and covered with a thin layer of soil.
On each hole in the seedbed, within a week, several rocket sprouts will emerge, which, for about 10/15 days, will be made to develop. When the roots have occupied all the space of the seedbed, then we are ready to transplant the rocket in the field or in a pot. The plants thus formed are planted at 20 cm from each other in a regular row. With this technique, the plant will form a compact head, able to give, by cutting the head each time at the base, abundant harvests repeated over time.
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