We have put together this blend of plants for maximum benefit to the soil and your garden. According to the longest-running biodiversity study in the world in Jena, Germany (more info here: Jena Experiment) we need 6-8 plants across four plant families to see the greatest benefit.
Our mix contains 10 plants from 4 families to ensure your soil gets humming!
Autumn Mix contains: Black oats, Kraken barley, Ryecorn, Linseed, Ag radish, Blue Prussian Peas, Common vetch, Tick bean, mustard, White/blue lupins
All seeds are sourced from New Zealand! Untreated seeds!
This blend is best for autumn sowing. Mid and late summer sowings may need irrigation to have a great start. It can be left to winter over and chopped down in spring. In a greenhouse with enough irrigation you may be able to sow it in winter.
Benefits of the diverse mix
* Nitrogen fixation by beneficial microbes within the nodules of legumes (vetch, peas, beans, lupins)
* Support mycorrhizal fungi (oats)
* Cleansing effect, reducing soil insects, like wireworm that attacks root crops (mustard)
* Rapid growth and biomass production (mustard and many others)
* Improves soil structure and aggregation (radish, rye corn, barley)
* Living roots hold soil together and feed soil microbes
* Increases water holding capacity of soil
* Plants feed microbes by supplying them with sugars made through photosynthesis. Great mix of plants = greater mix of beneficial fungi and bacteria
* Deals with compaction
* Prevents damage from the sun, wind and rain
* Suppresses weeds
* Attracts and feeds beneficial insects who control pests
* Increases the fertility of the soil and enhances nutrient cycling
* Increases soil carbon and organic matter
How to use
1. This cover crop is great to sow in autumn on lawn or paddock areas that you intend to transform into a garden in spring. Mow the lawn (or let it graze) continuously really short over 2-4 weeks to deplete the reserves. Break up the top layer and sprinkle the seeds over the top. Rake the seeds in lightly and cover with a thin layer of mulch (wood chips, straw etc). Cover the area with bird netting. Keep well watered for 1-2 weeks to enhance seed germination.
2. Use this green manure mix between crops. After harvesting your summer crops sprinkle the seeds on the bare ground and lightly rake them into the top layer of the soil. Cover with a thin layer of mulch and protect with bird netting. Keep well watered for 1-2 weeks to enhance seed germination. We sow this crop in our greenhouse under the tomatoes in autumn well before the tomatoes are finished. Then the crop can get established while the tomatoes finish fruiting. Then we simply cut the tomatoes off at ground level (July/August) and the cover crop is already well established to improve the soil. It provides generous amounts of organic matter for the next crop in spring.
It is very beneficial to apply a mist of compost and vermicast extract over the area once the seeds have been sown to add beneficial microbes. Please see our blog and compost extract bag for more details on this.
At the flowering stage you can chop and drop the plant material and use it as mulch. Then plant your seedlings into this with the addition of compost and vermicast. The beneficial effect of the diverse cover crop has a "legacy effect of 6 months" (Dr. Christine Jones) and is greatly beneficial for the crop that follows.
PLEASE NOTE: It is our intention to supply a consistent selection of varieties for this blend. However, we reserve the right to adjust the recipe for this blend when it becomes necessary, due to seed availability, to do so. We would update the above seed list if this mix changes.
