ROCKET, Dame's Violet, or queen's gillyflower: A genus of the filiflora order, belonging to the tetradynamia class of plants; and in the natural method ranking under the 39th order, Siliflorae. The petals are turned obliquely; there is a glandule within the shorter stamens; the filiform almost upright; the stigma forked at the base, connivent, or closing at the top; the calyx close.

Species 1. The matronalis, or common sweet scented garden-rocket, hath fibrous roots, crowned with a tuft of long, spear-shaped, rough leaves; upright, single, hairy stalks two feet high; garnished with oval, lanceolate, slightly indented, clove-fitting leaves; and the stalk and branches terminated by large and long spikes of sweet-scented flowers of different colours and properties in the varieties, of which there are a great number. All the varieties of this species are so remarkable for imparting a fragrant odour, that the ladies were fond of having them in their apartments. Hence they derived the name of dame's violet; and, bearing some resemblance to a stock-gillyflower, were sometimes also called queen's gillyflower; but are now most commonly called rocket. 2. The inodora, or scentless rocket, hath a fibrous root; upright, round, firm stalks, two feet high, garnished with spear-shaped, acute-pointed, sharply indented, clove-fitting, leaves; and all the branches terminated by large spikes of scentless flowers, with obtuse petals, of different colours and properties in the varieties. This species makes Hesperus makes a fine appearance, but hath no scent. The triflitis, or dull-flowered night-smelling rocket, hath fibrous roots; upright, branching, spreading, bristly stalks, two feet high; spear-shaped pointed leaves; and spikes of pale purple flowers, of great fragrance in the evening.

Culture. All the species are hardy, especially the first and second, which prosper in any of the open borders, and any common garden-foil; but the third, being rather impatient of a severe frost, and of much moisture in winter, should have a dry warm situation, and a few may be placed in pots to be sheltered in case of inclement weather. They may be propagated either by seeds, by offsets, or by cuttings off the stalks.