Just the other day, I discovered a half-empty bottle of Lucozade placed in the euphorbia trough by one of the scaffolders. A visiting architect joked, “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; 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 enlisted a local gardener to tackle invasive plants like a prickly weed and robinia saplings from the neighbour’s tree, but keeping desirable plants. Next, in the newly cleared patches, I’ll be sowing green manure.
Cover crops act like heroes when it comes to improving soil health.
My gardening friend Claire has previously discussed cover crops, as they play a key role in seasonal planting for edible gardens. But, the only things I’m harvesting from my garden right now are a few scrumped apples and some hardy herbs.
My ambitions for the garden are simple and steady – and improving the soil is my main priority. For those wondering, the scaffold is for roof repairs, and the garden boundaries are still wobbly, but the neighbours agree with replacing them.
Cover crops are like superheroes for your garden’s foundation. Bare soil invites weeds, which is why weeds appear. Yet by sowing vigorous crops, you can suppress weeds, bring in bees, shelter beneficial insects, and fix nitrogen.
Cover crops may not look exciting – though some, like certain lupin varieties and bird’s foot trefoil, have pretty flowers – but their role is to grow vigorously rather than look decorative. After they’ve grown, you can turn them under, cut them for compost, or leave them on the surface for worms to incorporate. The real magic happens below the surface.
Autumn is perfect for sowing these cold-season plants. I’ve chosen forage rye, great for clay soil, a nitrogen-lifter, vetch, and beans that aerate soil.
It feels rewarding in sowing something knowing it’s temporary – at least above ground.
