[rowlandwells]

There's been quite a few comments on green manure. The only query I have is when it grows and its time to turn it in, is it best to cut the green manure prior to turning into the ground?
If one cuts the green manure I presume it  needs turning in the ground straight away when green and not let it dry out. Is that correct?

[Yorkie]

You need to cut it or turn it in before it starts flowering.

You need to turn it in at least 2-3 weeks before sowing any seeds etc, so as to let it start rotting down. 

It is easier to turn in if you've cut it first.  I'd have thought the tops could be left on the surface but it makes most sense to turn them in too.

[Muddylou]

Yorkie's advice is spot on from my experience with green manure. Just a tip that bulk buying bird seed is a cheap way to grow green manure, it contains wheat, sunflower seeds, rye etc. They germinate well and are good enough for birds to eat.

[Salmo]

Cut it down with a strimmer or scythe, run a mower over it, or just trample it flat and chop it with a spade. The smaller it is chopped the easier it is to dig in. Leave it to wilt for a day or two and then turn in carefully with a spade. If there a few bits sticking out it will not matter.

If the bulk of material to dig in seems excessive you can always put some of it on the compost heap.

[BabbyAnn]

Leave it to wilt for a day or two and then turn in carefully with a spade. If there a few bits sticking out it will not matter.

but if you grow mustard, to benefit from the biofumigation properties, you need to dig it into the soil as soon as you cut it back.  When the plant matter is damaged, it releases chemicals which is supposedly good for fumigating soil such as against wireworm prior to potato planting, but if the plant material is lying on the soil surface, those chemical vapours will just go to atmosphere within a few hours and be lost.  When digging in mustard, try to bruise or chop as much of the fresh plant as possible and cover with soil.  Use a plastic sheet to cover the bed when you are done digging in, and this should help to slow the rate of vapours released to atmosphere.

[JohnB47]

I grew some last year but kept putting off digging it in - there always seemed to be something else to do.  It became a bit of a pressure, although I did get it done eventually (by which time it had been dry for weeks and the  ground had become a bit hard to work).

So I've decided that this time (ie next spring) , I'm planning to cut it down just before flowering and immediately cover it. That way I can dig it in, bit by bit,  when I want and know that it won't be constantly on my mind.

[rowlandwells]

 thanks all i assumed that's what should be done you just confirmed what i thought should be done

i will be ploughing it in when the time comes

many thanks again RW