Just the other day, I discovered a partially finished 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.
All this is to say, 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 necessary firefighting is underway. Being six months pregnant, I’ve hired a local gardener to remove troublesome weeds like a prickly weed and young tree shoots from the neighbour’s tree, while leaving the good stuff. Then, 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 written about cover crops, as they are essential in seasonal planting for edible gardens. But, the only things I’m harvesting from my garden right now are a few foraged apples and some hardy herbs.
My ambitions for the garden are modest and consistent – and enhancing soil health is my main priority. To update concerned readers, the scaffold is for roof repairs, and the fences are still wobbly, but the neighbours are on board with replacing them.
Green manure work wonders for soil health. Soil likes to be covered, which is why weeds appear. Yet 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 certain lupin varieties and a flowering legume, have pretty flowers – but their role is to thrive rather than look decorative. After they’ve grown, you can turn them under, cut them for compost, or leave them on the surface for earthworms to incorporate. The real magic happens below the surface.
Autumn is perfect for sowing these overwintering crops. My selection includes rye grass, great for clay soil, a nitrogen-lifter, vetch, and beans that aerate soil.
There’s satisfaction in planting seeds that won’t stay forever – on the surface, anyway.
