What Are Green Manures?
The name green manure is given to any crop which is grown only to be tilled back into the soil. As it rots, the nutrients in the crop leaves and roots will be taken up by the next crop planted in the same place. Instead of tilling the crop into the soil, cut the green manures, compost them, and then return them to the garden in the form of finished compost. Green manures also act as “cover crops”, plants grown at times when other crops do not occupy garden space. They protect the soil from compaction and erosion caused by wind and rain, and they reduce the extent that weeds take over on bare soil. How Do Green Manures Work? Green manures can be grown any time of year. Winter is an excellent time to grow them in western Washington when other crops take up less garden space and rain can do the most damage to uncovered soil. During the rainy winter, many nutrients may be leached out of the root zone to the water table and soil may be washed away by surface erosion. Green manures prevent t
