American sea rocket, named for its rocket-like seed pods,
is native to beaches and sand dunes of eastern North America.
It is an invasive in Japan and Australia.
Plants: Plants are 6-20″ (15-50 cm) high, and about the same around,
with succulent stems. They look rather disheveled, like tumbleweed.
Flowers: Upper stems bear racemes of flowers 2-10″ (5-25 cm) long.
Flowers are up to ¼″ (6.3 mm) around, lavender to white, with 4 petals, 6 stamens, and a pistil with
a single style. Flowers appear from
July to September.
Fruits: Each seedpod is elongated, ½-¾″ (1.3-1.9 cm) long, and
comprised of two segments. The lower segment is roughly cylindrical and about ¼″ (6.3 mm) long.
The upper segment is a cylinder about ½″ (1.3 cm) long, that tapers to a beak. Each segment typically
contains a seed. There is a reason for the complex-seeming design: the upper segment floats, and carries
its payload on a sea adventure to a distant locale. Meanwhile, the lower segment typically sprouts nearby.
Edibility: Young stems and leaves are “pungent,” somewhat like
horseradish. Young leaves are mixed with other greens in salads, and older stronger tasting leaves
are cooked with other leaves as a potherb.