Green Manure - options?

[grahamR]

Hi, I'm having a problem actually finding any green manure to sow, where is the best place, and what would you advise for a very rough and stony area?

I got mine from DT Brown (dtbrownseed co uk) seed is post free. They have a reasonable range.

[Dorothy rouse]

Thank you or advice re Green Manure, I did eventually find some in local Garden centre, they had just run out of stock when I first looked.

Not sure how successful it was, but certainly can't have done any harm.

[Two_Sheds]

I did eventually find some in local Garden centre

Tesco sells green manure seed: buckwheat, in the health food section. 1000s of seeds for about £1

[kt6382]

Ooh, I'd like to plant green manure this year as my bed was horrid to weed and the ground was nearly solid after winter. Ideally I'd like a green manure I can feed to my rabbits over winter when not much else is growing. But I really like the look of the phalicia (or whatever its called), I just watched that video posted above and it looks so easy to pull up in the spring! Do I plant it now around all the veg? I have butternuts, sweetcorn, courgettes, beans and potatoes still going. I want to plant some over winter stuff too like leeks and onions and garlic.. would green manure intefer?!? I'm new to this!

[polc1410]

I'm using phalicia on my spud beds this year. But planting after lifting spuds. Cant see how else you'd do it or when you lift the spuds you'll lift the phalicia. Also most green manures aren't going to do your crop much good if they get hold they'll starve them of light and pull nutirents from them.

So I'd say your over winter beds should be growing the over winter stuff. The green manure should be in your empty beds to keep weeds down pull nutirents from down deep, and break up soil structure and then when chopped back to mulch / rot down into the soil.

[Two_Sheds]

I really like the look of the phalicia (or whatever its called), ...it looks so easy to pull up in the spring!

Fass-ee-lee-a

Yes, very easy to pull up (shallow roots)

Do I plant it now around all the veg?

Yes. Then just pull it up when you want to plant a crop

green manures aren't going to do your crop much good if they get hold they'll starve them of light and pull nutirents from them.

You'd think so wouldn't you, but it doesn't happen. I've been using them for several years and they co-exist happily with my veggies (pictures in the FB link below)

[Two_Sheds]

Ideally I'd like a green manure I can feed to my rabbits over winter

I have GPigs, and I keep a couple of tubs of carrots in the cold gh over winter to provide cut-and-come-again leaves for them (they love carrot leaves).
I also sow trays of birdseed in the gh or on a sunny windowsill: the "grass" it provides is apparently delicious

They also get fresh chard & parsley off the lotty, which stays green for most of the winter (mild here on the coast)