Rapeseed is an annual or biannual plant in the mustard family (Brassicaceae) and thought to be native to the Mediterranean. The Genus name is Latin for cabbage It prefers moist fertile well-drained soil in full sun to light shade and a pH of 5-8. It needs frequent fertilization including sulfur. Annual varieties are grown in cool summer areas and biannual types are grown further south. They will grow 2-4 feet tall and have escaped cultivation to become weedy in some areas. The seeds of these plants produce an oil often referred to as canola and is the third largest source of vegetable oil in the world. Canola denotes a group of rapeseed cultivars bred to have very low levels of erucic acid. The oil is used in cooking, as a lubricant and as an illuminant. It is also grown as forage for livestock The yellow flowers have 4 petals and bloom times differ with the variety grown. The large leaves are pinnatified with a powdery bloom. The seed pod is elongated with a row of black seeds when mature. It is not generally grown in the home garden but is grown commercially in several countries of Europe, Asia and North America. Click here to see a calendar of planting schedules, time-to-harvest, and recommended spacing. Potential Problems: powdery mildew, clubroot, anthracnose, root-knot and leaf spot. Insect problems can include aphids, cutworms, loopers, flea beetles, root maggots and wireworms.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Soil texture
High Organic Matter; Loam (Silt)
Soil pH
Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist
Mature size
Height: 2 ft. 0 in. - 4 ft. 0 in. | Width: 1 ft. 0 in. - 2 ft. 0 in.
Growth rate
Medium
Maintenance
Medium
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous (3-15 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect
Texture
Medium
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf shape
Lanceolate; Pinnatifid
Leaf margin
Entire; Lobed
Leaf feel
Smooth
Leaf size
> 6 inches long, 3-6 inches wide
Hairs present
Yes
Leaf detail
The leaves are glaucous, the lower ones lyrate-pinnatifid or lobed, with petioles 4-10 inches long, glabrous or with a few bristly hairs. The upper stem leaves are lanceolate, sessile, clasping and more or less entire. Leaves are up to 20 inches long.
Flower color
Gold/Yellow
Flower form
Raceme
Flower size
< 1 inch
Flower detail
1/2 inch yellow flowers with 4 petals and alternating sepals in racemes. Blooms May to Sept. if seeds were sown the fall before.
Bloom time
Fall; Spring; Summer
Fruit type
Siliqua
Fruit size
1-3 inches long, < 1 inch wide
Fruit detail
Sickle-shaped seed pods that dry and split when ripe and contain small shiny black seeds.
Stem color
Green; Purple/Lavender
Stem detail
Erect branched stems are green with purple toward the base