Green manureCover crops

“Feed the soil, not the plants”

Taking care of soil – organic mattergreen manuresmulching

Usually means plants have all they need

What is it?Rapidly growing plants sown in spring or fall

Incorporated into soil before planting

peas

What does it do?

Can supply nutrients to plant

Build productive soil

Protect from erosion

Prevent weed growth

Easy to plant

Requires only basic care to thrive green manure in cut flowers

Proper selection - grow well everywhere

Well suited to all gardens, whether big or small

http://www.organickitchengarden.co.uk/organicconversion.html

Planting

Fall planting

allow plenty of time to become established

four weeks before killing frosts

CareLow-maintenance

Mowing keeps manageable, keeps from competing with vegetables

Water during drought

Turning undermust till cover crops beforeset seed, top growth gets out of control tilling in oats

Timing – flowering or when seed heads emerge

Turning underMow or use weed trimmer

Wait day or two until leaves and stems dry down

Dig under with tiller (or by hand)

Planting crops

Wait two to three weeks before planting beans in rye

Decomposition can tie up nitrogen

Rye is allelopathic - inhibits seed germination

Finding space in gardenFit cover crops right into garden plan

Succession croppingAfter spring crops harvested, plant fast-

growing cover crop such as buckwheat

Allow buckwheat to flower, turn under, plant fall crops

Planted in fall after main season crops finished

InterplantingTrickier

Must provide water, nutrients to cover crops and vegetable crops

Must controlling growth of cover crop

Delay planting of cover crop - one-third of the way through vegetable's growing cycle

InterplantingTransplant young

tomato and pepper plants into mowed mulch of hairy vetch, rye

mulch reduces weeds, maintains moisture, provides nitrogen

Which cover crop?Time of yearSpecies

Cereal rye very cold-tolerant - late-season plantings

Buckwheat very frost-tender

Legumes

Nodules on roots contain nitrogen-fixing bacteria

Bacteria convert nitrogen in air into form plants can use

Used as fertilizer source before synthetic fertilizers were widely available

Rye, oatsannual rye, cereal rye

Cereal rye – planted late summer, early fallgrows until late in fall, resumes in spring

Annual rye – dies in winter, don’t have to wait three weeks to plant

Field peas,oatslegume to fix nitrogengrain for organic matter

peas climb oats

Both crops cold-tolerant good for late summer, early fall

Sorghum-sudangrassCross between sorghum and sudangrass

Large amounts of organic matter5 to 12 feet tall

Mow to 6 inches when reaches 3 feet

Frost-tender

BuckwheatBroadleaf plant

smother crop - shades weeds

Must not let go to seed

Matures in 6-8 weeks- can be planted between spring and fall vegetable plantings

white flowers good cut flowers; attract beneficial insects

Cloverliving mulch tolerates shade, trafficattracts beneficialsattractive

Many kinds: White Dutch Yellow sweet Crimson

SourcesCheck with local farm supply store for seed -

may be willing to order varieties they don't normally carry, split into smaller batches

Peaceful Valley Farm & Garden Supply, Grass Valley, California, 888-784-1722

Johnny's Selected Seeds, Winslow, Maine, 877-564-6697

Seven Springs Farm, Check, Virginia, 540-651-3228

http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/AR/archive/oct09/rye1009.htm