Barbarea vulgaris
Wintercress
Common names: Yellow rocket, Common wintercress
At a glance
- Light
- Partial shade
- Spacing
- 20 cm, rows 30 cm
- Lifespan
- Biennial
- Sowing
- Mar, Apr, May, Aug, Sep
- Harvest
- Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, Oct, Nov, Dec
- Hardiness
- Hardy down to −15 °C
- Water need
- Medium
- Origin
- Native to Germany
Photo: Didier Descouens · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source
Description
Barbarea vulgaris is a wintergreen biennial herb in the Brassicaceae family. Its dark green, glossy leaf rosettes withstand frost well into winter, providing fresh greens when other garden plants are scarce. In its second year the plant sends up long stems bearing bright yellow flower clusters that attract bees and hoverflies from May to June. The species is tolerant of frost, wet soils, and can thrive in partial shade.
Care instructions
Plant in loose, moist soil with full sun to partial shade. It tolerates occasional dry days. Keep the area weed-free during the first weeks after sowing; thereafter the plant will self‑sustain. Harvest young leaves regularly from the outer edges to encourage new growth. After second‑year flowering, the plant may self‑seed; cut stems promptly if self‑seeding is undesirable. For continuous harvest, stagger sowing in spring and late summer.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
SowingMar–May, Aug–Sep
HarvestJan–Apr, Oct–Dec
Germination
- Soil temperature
- from 8 °C, ideally 18 °C
- Days to sprout
- 7 to 21 days
- Light
- Needs light to sprout
- Sowing depth
- Press in, don't cover
- How to start
- Sow straight into the bed
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
moist, nutrient-rich, humus-rich, loamy
Winter cress likes fresh to moist, nutrient-rich soils, such as you find along ditches, wayside verges and damp meadows. Loamy, humus-rich soil with good water retention suits it best. The plant tolerates short-term wet as long as the soil is not completely compacted. On dry, lean sites it stays much smaller and bolts to flower faster.
Feeding
Light feeder
As a robust wild plant, winter cress needs practically no feeding. A mulch layer of rotted leaves or compost in spring is perfectly enough to supply it with nutrients. Over-generous feeding mainly encourages soft foliage, which wilts faster and tastes less spicy.
Overwintering
Winter cress is hardy and usually comes through winter without problems outdoors, often even with green leaves under snow. A thin layer of leaves gives young plants extra protection from hard frost. In the second year it sprouts again in early spring before moving on to flower.
Propagation
Methods
- From seed
Sowing works directly in the open ground from spring to late summer, best in rows with a loose covering of soil. At suitable sites, winter cress also self-seeds, so that a lasting stand forms over time. Germination is reliable in mild weather within one to two weeks. For a continuous harvest, sow in succession every few weeks.
Companion planting
Good neighbors
legume family (Fabaceae)
particularly well establishedLeguminous plants collect nitrogen in the soil, from which Brassicaceae benefit as heavy feeders.
For example PeaBush beanPole beanBroad beanSnow peaWrinkled pea and 36 more species in the catalogue
Source: classic companion planting (DACH-Gartenpraxis)
carrot family (Apiaceae)
You can pair celery and dill with all Brassicaceae because they repel the cabbage whitefly with their scent, a proven companion.
For example CarrotCeleriacDillParsleyFlorence fennelCoriander and 21 more species in the catalogue
Source: Bio-Gärtnerei Mixed-culture Practice
mint family (Lamiaceae)
You will notice that the intense scent of basil, thyme, and others confuses the cabbage whitefly and keeps it away from the cabbage family.
For example LavenderThymeBasilRosemarySageHyssop and 43 more species in the catalogue
Source: bio-gardening intercropping practice
nasturtium family (Tropaeolaceae)
Nasturtium serves as a trap plant for you. Aphids and cabbage whiteflies prefer it over the brassicaceae next to it.
For example NasturtiumMashua
Source: Trap plant practice in organic horticulture
Companion planting is partly traditional gardening lore. Where the reason is known, it is given.
Some of these explanations were machine-translated.
For your garden
Grow Wintercress yourself
Gartenkern tells you when frost is coming, when to sow and when to harvest, for your location.
Free, no time limit
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