Cover Crops Equals Better Soil!

By Jordan Freytag

You may think that only farmers or large-scale gardeners need cover crops, but that's far from true. Backyard gardeners reap the same benefits of cover crops that large scale growers do, and they don't need to be an experts to get them.

Cover crops are basically plants sown across a section of ground that help to feed and condition the soil for optimal growth of future vegetable crops. There are many different varieties of seeds that make great cover crops--although, each variety offers something a little different for the soil. Some offer extra nitrogen, such as alfalfa. Others offer weed management properties, or the ability to attract beneficial insects to the area. Many who've used cover crops year after year know how to harness it's benefits.

Here comes the "Netflix Effect", a condition where you have so many options that you don't know which one to choose!

Sometimes our ground just needs a good general cover crop with a little bit of everything. That's where our Garden Cover Crop Mix comes in. It's a great mix for gardeners just beginning to use cover crops. There are four legumes to set nitrogen in the soil, three hardy grains for rapid cover and bio-mass, a deep-rooted radish to help break up and aerate the soil, a mustard with natural insecticidal properties, and a great collard for forage and additional biomass.

The bottom line: cover crops are useful for all outdoor growers. And the best way to become versed in growing them, you've just got to start growing. The garden cover crop mix allows you to see the multiple benefits of different kinds of cover crops.

For a detailed cover crop guide, click here.