I recently found a partially finished bottle of an energy drink placed in the euphorbia trough by one of the scaffolders. A visiting architect joked, “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; after returning from holiday, I spotted a sunflower growing in the back corner.
Now, however, some urgent tidying is underway. Being six months pregnant, I’ve enlisted a local gardener to remove troublesome weeds like green alkanet and robinia saplings 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 boosting soil quality.
A fellow garden writer has written about cover crops, as they play a key role in crop rotation for vegetable plots. However, the only things I’m picking from my garden right now are a few foraged apples and some woody herbs.
My garden goals are simple and steady – and improving the soil is my main priority. For those wondering, the scaffolding is for roof repairs, and the fences are yet to be fixed, but the neighbours agree with replacing them.
Cover crops work wonders for your garden’s foundation. Soil likes to be covered, which is why unwanted plants pop up. Yet by sowing fast-growing plants, you can suppress weeds, bring in bees, host pest-eating creatures, and fix nitrogen.
Cover crops may not look exciting – though some, like lupins ‘Blue Sonet’ and bird’s foot trefoil, have lovely blooms – but their purpose is to grow vigorously rather than look decorative. Once established, you can dig them into the soil, cut them for compost, or let them decompose for earthworms to incorporate. Their work happens below the surface.
Now is the ideal time for sowing these cold-season plants. My selection includes forage rye, which breaks up heavy earth, Italian ryegrass, a weed-suppressor, and beans that aerate soil.
It feels rewarding in sowing something that won’t stay forever – at least above ground.
