Guide
Four pounds of seed stops a winter of nutrient loss
Bare soil over winter loses nitrogen to rain and structure to weather. A sown cover crop costs about four pounds a bed and prevents both.
What to sow
Field beans or grazing rye for winter, sown by mid-October. Both germinate in cold soil and neither needs any attention afterwards.
What it does
Holds nutrients that would otherwise leach out, protects the surface from rain compaction, and adds organic matter when turned in.
When to cut it
Two to three weeks before you want to plant, chopped down and left on the surface. Digging it in is unnecessary and slower.
Read the full guideSee the sowing dates
