[mrswashi]

Hi
Being new to this and about to get my allotment in 2 days!
I like the sound of green manure/compost, any views
Manda

[Truffle]

Hi,

I considered using green manure (mustard), but the thought of all that digging did put me off a bit.

If you were just doing one small bed rotation each year and not put off by the digging in process then I can see the benefit of it.

Havent seen anyone else on my site using it, they all use the local free horse manure.

Having given my opinion I would like to point out that I am fairly new to this but my Uncle used to swear by it at his allotment.

[mrswashi]

Thank you
I suppose I don't know yet whether there is a free supply of manure, I'll find out on Thurs. I only have a small quarter size plot, so not Huge amounts of digging. I think!
Manda

[Annen]

I've tried it on some small beds but with no provable results.  
The rye I put in did seem to leave the soil more friable, it is heavy clay. But there was a fair bit of digging to do.  Phacelia is okay, it dies back by itself over winter.  Field beans were supposed to die back over winter but didn't, so I had to cut them and dig them in.
As I said, I'm not sure how much good they do, my feeling is that it is not as good as well-rotted horse manure, but they must be better than nothing and they fill spaces and look as if you are doing something!:)

[solway cropper]

I've never bothered with it as I have a good supply of well rotted compost and seaweed which I apply as mulches. If you're going to grow something in a bed it might as well be something you can eat.

[allotmentann]

I use it and love it. I use mustard quite frequently as I don't grow brassicas for eating. It digs in very easily and definitely improved the texture of an area of heavy clay that had not been worked for years. I am just trying field beans for the first time. I also have several beds where I have dug out a huge hole and am filling them with compostable materials, I will then cover them over and grow beans, courgettes and squashes on them next year.

[Salmo]

I have light soil and regularly use phacelia and mustard after crops have come off to cover the ground and mop up and spare nitrogen.

Phacelia is the most managable. Both of these sort of survive most Winters. In the Spring they are in a battered state and easy to dig in. It is too late to plant them now as is ryegrass and clover. Now you will have to plant field beans or grazing rye as they are the only things that will germinate.

If you have a new plot I would not plant green manure this Winter unless you know it is free of perrenial weeds such as couch grass, docks, dandelions.

Take no notice of the doom and gloom spread by some of the posters. Managed properly green manure has many benefits.

[pdblake]

I've used it a lot this year and have noticed a marked improvement on my light soil from digging in phacelia. It now has much more body to it.

I've just got my grazing rye in.

[Annen]

Have you noticed poor germination of seeds straight after green manure?
Not that it matters too much as I mostly bring them on in pots before I put them out in the cold hard world 

[Eblana]

I tried green manure (a mixed bag of seed just labelled Green Manure) last year but by the time it germinated the weeds had also germinated so it was hard to tell what was green manure and what was weeds.  Didn't see much benefit so won't be doing it again - going for the farmyard manure option this year

[Annen]

I tried green manure (a mixed bag of seed just labelled Green Manure) last year but by the time it germinated the weeds had also germinated so it was hard to tell what was green manure and what was weeds.  Didn't see much benefit so won't be doing it again - going for the farmyard manure option this year

I think you have to plant in rows so you can tell which is which

[Eblana]

I think you have to plant in rows so you can tell which is which


Yeh I think you are right but being new I followed the instructions on the pack which said broadcast anyway the weeds were only annual ones so didn't do any harm anyway.

[BabbyAnn]

Have you noticed poor germination of seeds straight after green manure?

that is to be expected - both the seeds and the decomposition of the plant material by bacteria are competing for nitrogen at the same time.  Also the process of decomposition can generate heat which may be too warm for some seeds (basically cook them)

I tried green manure (a mixed bag of seed just labelled Green Manure) last year but by the time it germinated the weeds had also germinated so it was hard to tell what was green manure and what was weeds.

providing the weeds were not perennials (more so bindweed and marestail but also dandelion, dock etc) then you could have dug the weeds in as part of the green manure.

I've grown different types of green manure in the past but been put off using forage rye because I've read that it is one of the hardest ones to dig in but it is also the one which ticks all the boxes for soil improvement and nitrogen.  So this year I've decided to try it ... we'll find out in spring if that was such a good idea or not 

[moose]

I often use a green manure, but I don't dig it in. Chop it down, cover with cardboard a few weeks prior to planting out seedlings through the cardboard. I leave it a bit longer before sowing seeds direct.

[rowlandwells]

 green manure is one of the least things i have bothered to grow but from whats been said it seems a good idea to try i think i only grew mustard and its been so long ago i can't remember how it turned out 

so Ive decided to go with a general mix [500g] according to the catalogue [3grams/sq.m]
and broadcast the seed i assume you let it grow and then turn it in before it flowers