Hesperis matronalis 

'Sweet Rocket'

[Ex. Co. Durham, England]

One of my favourites, no garden should be without some!

Brassicaceae: a hairy biennial or short lived perennial to 90cm, associated with hedgerows, wayside places and riverbanks. The beautifully fragrant flowers come in violet or pinkish –white, in terminal clusters flower from May-August. The flowers are followed by long, flattened, pods. The leaves are narrow, pointed and un-toothed. A wildly naturalised garden escape, in Britain. Native to Southern Europe to Siberia.

USES:

The young leaves can be eaten raw, and are rich in vitamin C, they are used as a cress substitute in salads. They have rather bitter flavour, though many people like the extra tang it gives to salads. For culinary purposes, the leaves should be picked before the plant flowers. The seed can also be sprouted and added to salads. The seed contains 50% of an edible oil - there is a potential for cultivation.

The leaves are antiscorbutic, diaphoretic and diuretic, and are best harvested when the plant is in flower. An essential oil from the seed is used in perfumery.

GROWING INFORMATION:

Sow seeds in spring in an outdoor seedbed and plant them out in late summer. Germination should take place within 3 weeks. The seed can also be sown in early spring in a warm greenhouse. 

HARVESTED: 2022*

 
APPROX. 100+ SEEDS