Bunias orientalis TURKISH ROCKET

Turkish Rocket Brassicaceae

A wonderfully useful perennial brassica with an unusually long season of edible growth. Bunias orientalis forms a substantial clump of deeply lobed, slightly rough leaves, followed by branching stems carrying clouds of small yellow flowers from late spring into summer. Young leaves have a mild, cabbage-like flavour and can be eaten raw or cooked, while the unopened flower shoots make an excellent broccoli substitute. 

Native from eastern and central Europe through the Caucasus, Türkiye and Iran to Siberia and northeastern China, it has subsequently become widely naturalised, including in Britain. 

Its ethnobotanical story is principally culinary: young leaves and stems have traditionally been eaten as a vegetable, while flowering shoots are cooked like broccoli. It has also been used as livestock fodder. 

Perhaps its most useful modern attribute is drought tolerance. It develops a substantial taproot and, once established, the RHS specifically describes it as drought-tolerant, making it an unusually useful perennial vegetable for drier gardens. It will grow in almost any soil, provided it receives plenty of sun. 

Height: 90–120cm
Spread: 50cm
Flowers: May–August
Hardiness: H5 — −15 to −10°C

A superb plant for the edible border: tough, drought-tolerant, perennial and producing something you can actually eat — although its enthusiasm for setting seed means it may eventually decide where it wants to grow.