Want to give your soil some TLC? Plant green manure in your garden and you’ll improve your yields.
Just the other day, I discovered a partially finished bottle of Lucozade left behind in the euphorbia trough by one of the scaffolders. A visiting architect commented, “Are you sure that’s Lucozade?” giving me a new perspective.
All this is to say, the garden is in disarray. Sometimes neglect has its perks; coming back from a trip, I spotted a sunflower growing in the back corner.
Now, however, some necessary firefighting is underway. As I’m expecting a baby, I’ve hired a professional gardener to tackle invasive plants like green alkanet and young tree shoots from the neighbour’s tree, but keeping desirable plants. Next, in the newly cleared patches, I’ll be sowing green manure.
Green manure are superheroes when it comes to boosting soil quality.
A fellow garden writer has written about green manure, as they are essential in crop rotation for edible gardens. But, the only things I’m harvesting from my garden right now are a few foraged apples and some hardy herbs.
My garden goals are modest and consistent – and improving the soil is my main priority. For those wondering, the scaffold is for roof repairs, and the fences are still wobbly, but the neighbours agree with replacing them.
Cover crops are like superheroes for soil health. Bare soil invites weeds, which is why unwanted plants pop up. Yet by sowing vigorous crops, you can control weeds, attract pollinators, host pest-eating creatures, and enrich the soil with nutrients.
Green manure plants aren’t always showy – though some, like certain lupin varieties and a flowering legume, have lovely blooms – but their purpose is to grow vigorously rather than be admired. After they’ve grown, you can turn them under, chop them for mulch, or let them decompose for worms to incorporate. Their work happens below the surface.
Autumn is perfect for sowing these overwintering crops. My selection includes forage rye, great for clay soil, a nitrogen-lifter, vetch, and field beans.
It feels rewarding in sowing something that won’t stay forever – on the surface, anyway.
