Ideal seed mix for a grow-and-mow green manure patch

Hello all,

I am sure that I have posted something like this before, but I have a neighbor (not the retired mechanic) who is interested in growing a patch—maybe a long row or two—of an idealized mixture of green manure plants.  The idea would be to sow the mixture, let it grow, then mow down with some type of grass collector or similar.  The mulch gets deposited wherever desired and the row then regrows.

Aside from the row being entirely self-growing, self-propagating, self-reproducing, etc. there are no real ground rules.  Kudzu is ruled out, but that’s about all.

Some thoughts include hairy vetch, crimson clover, Dutch White Clover, alyssum, Comfrey, oats, rye, sourgum, corn.  The list goes on and on.  Add or delete anything you think appropriate.

The bed should produce either year-round or at least 3 seasons.  I live in Southern Illinois, 6B/7A.  Early spring is wet, late spring is beautiful, summer is terribly hot, dry and humid.  Fall is cool and dry.  Winter is cool and wet.  40” rain/yr.

Note:  I don’t rule out 2-3 beds for different seasons.


So what do y’all think?


Eric

And for reference, he plans to mix all of these greens with fallen tree leaves—mostly oaks—which fall copiously in Autumn.  Together they would be spread as a sort of fertilizer mulch on garden beds, around trees, etc.

I like to recommend native grasses like this kit.

This is a list from a Prairie starter Kit:

SAND DROPSEED
   SAND LOVEGRASS
   BLUE GRAMA
   GREEN SPRANGLETOP
   LITTLE BLUESTEM
   TALL DROPSEED
   BIG BLUESTEM
   PRAIRIE WILDRYE
   VIRGINIA WILDRYE
   SIDEOATS GRAMA
   INDIANGRASS
   SWITCHGRASS
   BUFFALOGRASS
   EASTERN GAMAGRASS

And I like this mix:

1. California poppy
2. White sweet alyssum
3. Red clover (Trifolium pratense)
4. Daikon radish

https://permies.com/t/132551/permaculture/Making-seed-mix-cleared-disturbed

Hi Anne,

All of those look like amazing options for pioneers on a new plot and sending down roots to break up hard soil—especially the daikon radish.  But I guess all that grass will produce a lot of green matter to be mowed down and collected.

BTW, how will the Big Bluestem stand up to regular mowing?

I am thinking about something that had a combination of nitrogen fixers, but maybe something like that hairy vetch or crimson clover will do the trick.

And as I mentioned, I completely get the idea of a spring bed, a summer bed and a fall bed.




Eric

For your zone, I would pick cereal rye and clover.  If you had longer growing seasons sunn hemp and sorgham sudan grass.  If you are looking at perenials don't forget alfalfa.  

Green cover seeds has an over winter and a cool season soil builder mix he may want to check out.  Good diversity, low cost.  keeps roots in the ground from fall to spring.  overwinter mix

Jack,

I give preference perennials, but a self-seeder works too.

No hairy vetch?  Is it because it is too invasive?

And will a clover/rye strip produce in baking summer heat?



Eric

no shade against vetch.  I just don't have experience with it (yet.)  However vetch is in the mix I posted from Green Cover seed.  

ceral rye will be done by may (in kansas) and something else will have to take its place.  I suggested it combined with winter clover as it is reported to give the highest tonnage forage for a cool season green manure.  It is not perennial so perhaps a bad suggestion.  Sainfoin and alfalfa may be your best perennials mixed with cool and warm season clovers as reseeders.  

I don't know how red river crabgrass does in your area.  It will go in zone 6.  I don't know how productive it would be in the winter, but gives a lot of good tonnage in summer.  

Red River Crabgrass is commonly found throughout Nebraska, south and east to the Gulf and Atlantic coasts. Red River is adapted to many soil types, but will grow best on sandy and clay loam soils that have good drainage. Great for revitalizing pastures, Crabgrass can be utilized as both hay and grazing. This variety of crabgrass will produce highly digestible forage and high crude protein content. Non-GMO.

Planting Rate: 5-8 lbs per acre

Planting Date: Spring, Summer & Early Fall

Planting Methods:  Ideal pH 6.0-7.0. Seed must be placed in a depth range on the soil surface up to no more than ½ inch deep. Best planted on a very good fine, firm, freshly finished seedbed by broadcast and drag or shallow no-till drill after soil temperatures are 65 and rising. Easy double cropping with cool season annual grasses and legumes.

Care: Graze when grass reaches 6-8 inches. Best known for its ability to spread and regrow after grazing, if allowed to go to seed will germinate as a volunteer forage the following year.

A repeating muti season green manure may be the holy grail for permaculture.   I will be interested to see what solutions you find.

Jack,

I missed that detail in your list, but I need to study it some more.

Yes, the grains each have their own seasons and most are annuals.  But in a mix like this, hopefully there would be some self-seeding.

I was thinking about something like


Comfrey

DWC

Crimson Clover

Hairy Vetch

Buckwheat?

Oats

Rye

Wheat/Winter Wheat

Fescue




I would mow over, Hoover up the clippings and collect them in a trailer, and then dump them in the  appropriate location.  

I could do this every week, two, month or whatever time interval.

And the whole idea would be to have a steady supply of green mulch to lay down or add to a compost pile.




Eric

I would add that we have crabgrass--all too much!  That might one of the few plants that I don't include.  Not because it doesn't make good mulch/green manure/etc., but because its seeds are practically impossible to keep out.  I am pretty certain that wherever crabgrass goes, so goes the seeds and so goes more crabgrass!


Eric

What are growing in the spot now? If there are lots of crabgrass around, how does your neighbor plan on getting the seed mix established?

Hi May, really good question…

At the moment the land is growing a variety of tall pasture grasses—that are growing on my own land.  I told my neighbor that he could use a section of my land.  I am not using that section and my main concern about the land use is that it not be “developed.”  Also, I like being a good neighbor and every single time I do so I get repaid in greater abundance than I give.  As it should be. Good neighbors are golden.

Anyhow

The tall pasture grasses would probably need to be suppressed.  We could smother this easily enough.  I just want to make sure that whatever grows out of the patch isn’t chock full loaded with seeds that will eradicate plants in a new garden.



Eric

Also, for what it is worth...

I am trying to slowly, sneaky-style, infect my neighbor with Permaculture!

I am introducing him to some of my gardening techniques--including using wood chips.

And he is excited by the thought of using green manure.  Naturally I thought about comfrey which will doubtless make a part of this mix.  Given his land constraints and the odd shaping and the way my land wraps around his, I decided that he can use a strip of my land to grow green manure to help his garden.  I/He/We thought that a self-fertilizing mix of legumes and other greens would be ideal to make a grow-and-mow mix.  Maybe think of this as a variant of chop-and-drop.


Eric

I want to admit a little bias in this post.

My compost bias is towards things that will supply a high degree of nitrogen--the greens.  But that said, if anyone can think of a good reason (and I think there are, just help me make them more concrete please) to add in a supply of browns, by all means do so--especially if the browns can work within this context.

I did think about sunflower stalks.  They would be easy to grind up with a mower.  The same might be true for Corn as long as it does not suck up all the nitrogen fixed by the legumes.    Some brambles might possibly work as well.  Got an idea?  I am totally open to suggestions.  

So if anyone has an idea or a suggestion, please fire away!


Eric