🥗 When to Plant Arugula

🥬 Vegetable
Cool Season

Fast-maturing salad green; bolt-prone in heat so succession sow every 2-3 weeks

📅 Planting Calendar by USDA Zone

Select your zone to highlight your exact planting dates. Dates are calculated from each zone's average frost dates.

Find my zone
Zone Last Frost Start Indoors Transplant Direct Sow
Zone 2A May 30 Apr 18
Zone 3B May 15 Apr 3
Zone 4A May 8 Mar 27
Zone 4B May 1 Mar 20
Zone 5A Apr 25 Mar 14
Zone 5B Apr 18 Mar 7
Zone 6A Apr 21 Mar 10
Zone 6B Apr 10 Feb 27
Zone 7A Apr 5 Feb 22
Zone 7B Mar 28 Feb 14
Zone 8A Mar 20 Feb 6
Zone 8B Mar 12 Jan 29
Zone 9A Feb 28 Jan 17
Zone 9B Feb 15 Jan 4
Zone 10A Feb 1 Dec 21
Zone 10B Jan 15 Dec 4
Zone 11A Jan 1 Nov 20

Arugula is the fastest salad green in the garden. Its peppery, nutty flavor is best when harvested young, and it’s ready to eat in as little as 30 days from seed.

Top Growing Tips

  • Direct sow in early spring 6 weeks before last frost — no starting indoors needed
  • Succession plant every 2-3 weeks for continuous harvest before summer heat
  • Sow again in late summer/early fall for a second season
  • Harvest at 3-4 inches for baby arugula; let it grow to 6+ inches for full flavor
  • Allow a plant to flower and set seed for self-sowing in future seasons

Companion Planting

Good companions: lettuce, spinach, herbs, cucumbers

Avoid planting near: fennel (allelopathic — inhibits growth of nearby plants)

Harvest Timeline

30-40 days from seed; cut leaves 1 inch above soil level for regrowth