I recently found a partially finished bottle of Lucozade placed in the euphorbia trough by one of the scaffolders. An architect friend commented, “Are you sure that’s Lucozade?” which made me see it differently.
All this is to say, the garden is in disarray. But there’s a lot to be said for negligence; coming back from a trip, I spotted a sunflower sprouting in the back corner.
Now, however, some urgent tidying is underway. As I’m expecting a baby, I’ve enlisted a professional gardener to remove troublesome weeds like a prickly weed and robinia saplings from the neighbour’s tree, while leaving the good stuff. Next, in the open patches, I’ll be sowing cover crops.
Cover crops act like heroes when it comes to boosting soil quality.
A fellow garden writer has previously discussed green manure, as they are essential in crop rotation 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 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 yet to be fixed, but the neighbours are on board 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 vigorous crops, you can suppress weeds, bring in bees, shelter beneficial insects, and enrich the soil with nutrients.
Cover crops may not look exciting – though some, like certain lupin varieties and a flowering legume, 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 let them decompose for worms to incorporate. The real magic happens underground.
Autumn is perfect for sowing these overwintering crops. I’ve chosen rye grass, which breaks up heavy earth, a nitrogen-lifter, vetch, and field beans.
It feels rewarding in sowing something that won’t stay forever – on the surface, anyway.
