Green Manure

Green manures are ideal whenever a patch of land is going to be free of crops for six weeks or more, and they are particularly useful to vegetable gardeners and allotment holders. Although many green manures can be sown all year round, they are ideal when sown in the autumn to overwinter, when vegetable plots are generally empty.

They have many benefits. As they grow they form a green carpet that prevents weeds from growing and some have the ability to absorb nitrogen from the air, which is transferred to the roots and released when dug into the soil, giving a boost to the vegetables that follow. Growing a green manure in winter prevents soil from having nutrients washed away by rain or snow, and some varieties have a fibrous root system that helps to give the soil structure.