Does your garden soil need a boost? Sow green manure in your garden and you’ll reap the benefits.
I recently found a half-empty bottle of Lucozade placed 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. But there’s a lot to be said for negligence; coming back from a trip, I spotted a sunflower growing in the back corner.
This week, though, some urgent tidying is underway. As I’m expecting a baby, I’ve hired a professional gardener to remove invasive plants like a prickly weed and robinia saplings from the neighbour’s tree, but keeping desirable plants. Then, 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 vegetable plots. However, the only things I’m picking from my garden right now are a few scrumped apples and some hardy herbs.
My garden goals are modest and consistent – and improving the soil is top of the list. For those wondering, the scaffold is for roof repairs, and the fences are still wobbly, but the neighbours are on board with the plan.
Green manure work wonders for soil health. Soil likes to be covered, which is why unwanted plants pop up. But by sowing fast-growing plants, you can control weeds, attract pollinators, host pest-eating creatures, and fix nitrogen.
Green manure plants may not look exciting – though some, like lupins ‘Blue Sonet’ and bird’s foot trefoil, have lovely blooms – but their role is to grow vigorously rather than look decorative. Once established, you can dig them into the soil, chop them for mulch, or let them decompose for earthworms to incorporate. Their work happens underground.
Autumn is perfect for sowing these overwintering crops. My selection includes rye grass, which breaks up heavy earth, a nitrogen-lifter, vetch, and beans that aerate soil.
It feels rewarding in sowing something that won’t stay forever – at least above ground.
