🔗 Share this article Does your garden soil need a boost? Plant cover crops in your garden and you’ll improve your yields. Just the other day, I discovered 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; after returning from holiday, I spotted a sunflower sprouting in the back corner. This week, though, some urgent tidying is underway. Being six months pregnant, I’ve enlisted a professional gardener to tackle troublesome weeds like green alkanet and young tree shoots from the neighbour’s tree, while leaving the good stuff. Next, in the open patches, I’ll be sowing cover crops. Green manure are superheroes when it comes to boosting soil quality. My gardening friend Claire has written about green manure, as they are essential in crop rotation for vegetable plots. But, the only things I’m picking from my garden right now are a few scrumped apples and some hardy herbs. My garden goals are simple and steady – 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 agree with the plan. Cover crops work wonders for soil health. Soil likes to be covered, which is why weeds appear. But by sowing fast-growing plants, you can control weeds, attract pollinators, shelter beneficial insects, and enrich the soil with nutrients. Green manure plants aren’t always showy – though some, like lupins ‘Blue Sonet’ and bird’s foot trefoil, have lovely blooms – but their purpose is to thrive rather than look decorative. After they’ve grown, 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. I’ve chosen rye grass, great for clay soil, Italian ryegrass, a weed-suppressor, and beans that aerate soil. It feels rewarding in sowing something knowing it’s temporary – on the surface, anyway.