oil (using a shovel, pitch fork or rototiller) where they can more readily decompose. Allow approximately two to three weeks for the cover crop to decompose before planting into the soil.
|Seeding Rate Per 100 sq. ft.
(10’ x 10’ Garden)
|Does This Plant Fix Nitrogen?||Growth Rate||Primary Uses/
|2 lb||No||Fast||Is easily worked into the soil.
Attracts pollinators and beneficial insects.
|½ lb||Yes||Medium||Grows better in high pH soils than other clovers.|
|Oats||Late Summer, Early Fall||4 lb||No||Medium||Likes well drained soils.
Dies over the winter.
Makes a good choice in areas to be worked early the following spring.
|5 lb||Yes||Fast||Can outcompete many weeds.|
|Fall||1 lb||No||Fast||Is easily worked into the soil.|
|Fall||4 lb||No||Fast||Easy to grow.
Can be planted late in the season.
|Late Summer, Early Fall||1 lb||No||Fast||Easy to grow.|
|Late Summer, Fall||2 lb||No||Fast||Needs fertile soil.
Does not like low pH soils.
Table 1. Recommended cover crops and green manures for the home vegetable garden.*
*Information compiled from Johnny Select Seed Company and Cornell University Department of Horticulture
For more information on using cover crops and green manures in the home vegetable garden: Contact your county Extension agent.
© 2012 the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System doing business as University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension.
An EEO/Affirmative Action employer, University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension provides equal opportunities in employment and programming, including Title IX and ADA requirements. This document can be provided in an alternative format by calling Brian Hudelson at (608) 262-2863 (711 for Wisconsin Relay).
References to pesticide products in this publication are for your convenience and are not an endorsement or criticism of one product over similar products. You are responsible for using pesticides according to the manufacturer’s current label directions. Follow directions exactly to protect the environment and people from pesticide exposure. Failure to do so violates the law.
Thanks to Diana Alfuth, Donna Henderson, Mark Kopecky and Doug Soldat for reviewing this document.
A complete inventory of UW Plant Disease Facts is available at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Plant Disease Diagnostics Clinic website: https://pddc.wisc.edu.