As we transition from the main sowing season into harvest time, it's the perfect opportunity to start thinking about your soil and planning for next year's bountiful harvest.
One of the best ways to ensure your garden is ready for the next planting season is to grow cover crops after harvest. These unsung heroes of the gardening world can naturally improve soil structure, add essential nutrients, and suppress weeds, all while protecting your soil through the winter months.
Download our Cover Crops Chart and use it as a handy guide when deciding what cover crops to seed and when to sow them.
Why Grow Cover Crops?
Cover crops are plants grown primarily to benefit the soil rather than for harvest. They offer several advantages:
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Soil Structure Improvement: Cover crops like barley and oats have deep roots that help break up compacted soil, improving aeration and drainage.
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Nutrient Addition: Leguminous cover crops such as clover and field peas fix nitrogen from the atmosphere into the soil to provide essential nutrients for future crops.
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Weed Suppression: Fast-growing cover crops can outcompete weeds and naturally choke them out.
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Erosion Control: By covering soil, these crops prevent erosion from wind and rain, helping to maintain soil integrity.
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Build Soil: Cover crops are a low cost and low effort way of increasing organic matter in soil without having to create and haul compost or bring in mulch.
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Support Beneficial Insects: Flowering cover crops like clover provide food and habitat to beneficial insects and microorganisms.
Choosing the Right Cover Crop
There are a number of cover crops you can consider based on your climate and growing needs.
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Alsike Clover: Ideal for cooler climates (Zone 3), it requires a soil temperature of at least 10°C (50°F) to germinate. It's excellent for nitrogen fixation, attracting beneficials and improving soil structure.
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Buckwheat: This fast-growing crop is perfect for warmer areas (Zone 4) with a soil temperature of 12.7°C (55°F). It suppresses weeds and attracts beneficial insects.
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Fall Rye: Hardy to Zone 3, it gives off a chemical that inhibits the germination of weed seeds. Planted twice in a row, it can choke out several tough weed species for good. It produces masses of useful organic matter for tilling under or adding to the compost.
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Hairy Vetch: Suitable for Zones 4-7, it thrives in temperatures between 15-21°C (60-70°F). This cover crop is a powerhouse for nitrogen fixation and building organic matter.
How to Use the Cover Crops Chart
The chart provides key information for each cover crop, including:
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Optimal Soil Temperature: Ensuring the right germination conditions.
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Seeding Rate: Amount of seed needed per 1000 square feet or per acre.
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Seed Depth: Recommended planting depth.
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Hardiness Zone: Indicates the regions where each crop will thrive.
Additionally, the chart includes tips on when to sow each type of cover crop:
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Preseed (PS): Sow in early spring and incorporate into the soil before planting the main garden crops.
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Post Harvest (PH): Sow after harvesting your main crops to provide winter soil cover and plant material for spring incorporation.
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Full Season (FS): Grow year-round to restore fertility in fallow spots.
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Intercrop (IC): Sow alongside vegetable crops during the planting season.
Terminating Cover Crops
Till in or cut cover crops before the seed heads form. Once seeds start to mature, flower stems can become hard and woody, and take much longer to decompose, and unwanted seeds may sprout.
If you till in the whole plants, allow 2-4 weeks for them to decompose, as raw biomass ties up soil nutrients to the detriment of newly planted seedlings.
You may also plant low-growing cover crops like clover between your regular crops as a living mulch to attract beneficial insects to your garden.
Incorporating cover crops into your garden is a simple, effective, and organic way to boost soil health and ensure a productive growing season. Explore our Cover Crops collection and download our cover crop planting chart and use it to set the stage for a healthier, more bountiful garden next year.
