Arugula

Arugula is a familiar leafy plant from shops and gardens and can be a useful supplement in the diet of herbivorous reptiles. It is not a complete staple on its own, but it is practical when wild plants are limited.

🌿 Description and Distribution

Eruca vesicaria is an annual plant in the Brassicaceae family, also known as rocket or salad rocket.

Identified by:

• Deeply lobed green leaves with a peppery smell and taste
• Cream to pale yellow flowers, often with darker veins
• Slender upright flowering stems

It is widely cultivated as a salad plant and also occurs as a casual or naturalized weed in disturbed ground, gardens, and field edges.

🍽 Edible Parts

• Leaves — the main food part; suitable fresh
• Flowers — safe and readily accepted
• Young flower buds — suitable in small amounts

Seeds are not normally used in reptile feeding.

📊 Nutritional Value

• Calcium: moderate
• Phosphorus: moderate
• Ca:P ratio: acceptable but not outstanding
• Fiber: moderate, lower than many tougher wild weeds
• Vitamin A precursors: useful levels
• Glucosinolates / mustard oils: naturally present

Arugula is best treated as a supplementary green rather than the basis of the diet, especially for tortoises.

🐢 Suitable For

• Tortoises (Testudo spp., Centrochelys sulcata, Geochelone elegans, and others)
• Iguanas (Iguana iguana)
• Uromastyx (Uromastyx spp.)
• Bearded dragons (Pogona vitticeps) — as a supplement

🌱 How to Source It

From the shop

• Readily available year-round
• Prefer fresh, unwilted leaves
• Wash well before feeding

Growing your own

Arugula grows easily from seed in pots, raised beds, and gardens. Home-grown plants are a reliable clean source.

⚠️ Precautions

• Use as part of a mixed diet, not as the only green
• Wash thoroughly, especially shop-bought leaves
• Do not feed wilted or mouldy material
• Avoid plants from treated gardens or field margins with pesticide exposure

📌 Conclusion

Arugula is a practical supplementary food plant for herbivorous reptiles, especially outside the main wild-foraging season. It works best in rotation with more fibrous and mineral-rich wild plants.