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I started two arugula plants from seeds and they grew like crazy and the wife has been cutting the leaves and we having been eating them for a few weeks.
Now it appears to look like weeds with flowers and very few arugula leaves. I’m guessing we’ve been harvesting it incorrectly ❓
No, you've been doing everything right. Your arugula has bolted, that's what it does after a few weeks and you can't stop that from happening. You can't keep the maturing plants growing and producing for more than a few weeks. A lot of gardeners sow the seeds every couple or three weeks continuously so they have a continuous crop always growing while older plants are bolting and dying back. Arugula is a cool weather plant so if you get really scorching hot summers where you live you probably won't have much success with them growing at the height of summer when weather is hottest. But you can grow more in late summer through autumn when the temperatures are cooler.
Arugula is multi-purpose re: edibility so you still have a few options remaining with your two plants you have now.
- You can harvest and eat the fresh flowers and tenderest stems for as long as the plants are producing them before they give up and die back. The fresh flowers contribute a nice peppery zing when added to salads.
- Or you can let the flowers mature and develop their seed pods and you can harvest and eat the seed pods while the pods are still green and tender. They look rather like tiny pea pods. Eat the pods fresh or cooked. (if you really have a lot of them you can pickle them)
- Or you can let the seed pods naturally develop fully to maturity on the plants then harvest the pods when they're brown but unopened and collect the mature seeds from them. Then you can plant some seeds in late summer when the temperatures are cooling for a new autumn crop that will continue growing until first frost.
- Or save the seeds to plant next spring and remember to set some seeds by so you can continue sowing seeds every few weeks throughout spring into early summer.
Just an added note - the mature, dried seeds can also be used as a peppery, zingy spice in cooking.
Your two plants look strong, very healthy and productive so if it was me growing them I would want the seeds from them for growing future crops. Personally I would now stop harvesting any leaves, let them continue to bolt and produce mature seed pods, then harvest those to have new seeds for new crops in autumn and next spring.
You may have a perennial arugula- by reseeding itself.
Wild arugula especially good at that..
Depending on your climate- the newly formed seeds - may sprout and be ready for your fall harvest.
No, you've been doing everything right. Your arugula has bolted, that's what it does after a few weeks and you can't stop that from happening. You can't keep the maturing plants growing and producing for more than a few weeks. A lot of gardeners sow the seeds every couple or three weeks continuously so they have a continuous crop always growing while older plants are bolting and dying back. Arugula is a cool weather plant so if you get really scorching hot summers where you live you probably won't have much success with them growing at the height of summer when weather is hottest. But you can grow more in late summer through autumn when the temperatures are cooler.
Arugula is multi-purpose re: edibility so you still have a few options remaining with your two plants you have now.
- You can harvest and eat the fresh flowers and tenderest stems for as long as the plants are producing them before they give up and die back. The fresh flowers contribute a nice peppery zing when added to salads.
- Or you can let the flowers mature and develop their seed pods and you can harvest and eat the seed pods while the pods are still green and tender. They look rather like tiny pea pods. Eat the pods fresh or cooked. (if you really have a lot of them you can pickle them)
- Or you can let the seed pods naturally develop fully to maturity on the plants then harvest the pods when they're brown but unopened and collect the mature seeds from them. Then you can plant some seeds in late summer when the temperatures are cooling for a new autumn crop that will continue growing until first frost.
- Or save the seeds to plant next spring and remember to set some seeds by so you can continue sowing seeds every few weeks throughout spring into early summer.
Just an added note - the mature, dried seeds can also be used as a peppery, zingy spice in cooking.
Your two plants look strong, very healthy and productive so if it was me growing them I would want the seeds from them for growing future crops. Personally I would now stop harvesting any leaves, let them continue to bolt and produce mature seed pods, then harvest those to have new seeds for new crops in autumn and next spring.
You're welcome! Good luck with your future arugulas.
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Good luck with your future arugulas. 