I recently found a half-empty bottle of Lucozade left behind in the euphorbia trough by one of the scaffolders. A visiting architect commented, “Are you sure that’s Lucozade?” which made me see it differently.
In short, the garden is a bit of a mess. But there’s a lot to be said for negligence; after returning from holiday, I spotted a sunflower growing in the back corner.
Now, however, some urgent tidying is underway. As I’m expecting a baby, I’ve hired a local 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 improving soil health.
A fellow garden writer has previously discussed green manure, as they play a key role in seasonal planting for edible gardens. However, 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 top of the list. To update concerned readers, the scaffold is for roof repairs, and the garden boundaries are still wobbly, but the neighbours agree with the plan.
Cover crops work wonders for soil health. Bare soil invites weeds, which is why weeds appear. But by sowing fast-growing plants, you can suppress weeds, attract pollinators, host pest-eating creatures, and fix nitrogen.
Green manure plants aren’t always showy – though some, like lupins ‘Blue Sonet’ and a flowering legume, have pretty flowers – but their purpose is to grow vigorously rather than look decorative. After they’ve grown, you can dig them into the soil, chop them for mulch, or leave them on the surface for earthworms to pull down. The real magic happens underground.
Now is the ideal time for sowing these cold-season plants. My selection includes rye grass, great for clay soil, Italian ryegrass, a weed-suppressor, and field beans.
There’s satisfaction in sowing something knowing it’s temporary – at least above ground.
