I plan on planting hairy vetch and winter rye as a ground cover in parts of my veggie beds soon. I also plan on planting garlic soon as well. Has anyone here successfully inter-planted all three? Is there a better winter companion to garlic?

Honestly nothing much bothers my garlic.  I had some grown up and through tomato plants, weaving their way in and out of my chain link fence.  All my garlic grows up through and behind other plants.  But I haven't planted any vetch yet.

Garlic is great ♥

My plan is to cover my garden for the winter with the rye and vetch. I forgot that I also planned on planting garlic. I'm just wondering if I should plan on planting the garlic separate from the rye/vetch, or plant them together. I guess I could just plant some in the rye/vetch, and some by its lonesome, and maybe some with just vetch. My biggest concern is the rye overshadowing the garlic.

Hum... the vetch will spread, garlic will be planted lower than either, but I see what you mean about next spring when the garlic makes it's appearance the rye will be tall, and all of this could be thick.

You know for what your using the rye for, ground cover - green compost, you could trim it right before spring warming.  I know garlic will come up through a few inches of growth with no problems.  Whatcha think?

Also mark where you plant the garlic and if it is not sprouting in-sink with your other spring root plants then thin the vetch/rye in that area.  Leave a little, take a little and that should allow enough heat in to signal your bulbs.

jeremiah bailey wrote:
some by its lonesome

You might plant a ground cover that you don't fear shading out your garlic.  Would the right kind of clover do OK in those conditions?

Steve Solomon says to avoid rye as a cover crop unless you plan to plow with heavy equipment, due to it being difficult to remove by hand in the spring...

This is very good to know about rye....

I use clover myself or shredded leaves.

~Jami

Trifolium repens and T. pratense, (white and red clover) do well here, but my budget is limited. I've been saving seed of the two varieties, and hope to grow my supply from there. I have 5lbs of vetch and the same of rye. The vetch supposedly lays in mats, unless it has something to support it.

I plan on doing 3 beds. One rye, one vetch, and one with both. I might try a few bulbs in the ones with rye, to test CurrentWave's theory. My main worry there is mowing the garlic along with the rye.  I'll mostly plant them in the one with just vetch.

Don't forget, the rye is not just for ground cover. It makes a very tasty bread! I'm not too worried about the rye in the spring. Rye was cultivated long before the advent of the iron horse. I plan on mowing it after it goes to seed. That should kill it, or at least most. What ever is left I plan to keep mowed around my other plants. I'm not too worried about volunteers, because I'll just be planting it again in the fall anyway. I'm hoping that since the rye goes to seed before the vetch, I can mow both and be left with the vetch after harvesting the rye. Then I can harvest the vetch in summer. Then start the cycle over in the fall.