COVER CROP AND  LIVING MULCH SEED

Simply scroll down to view the full list of cover crop seed and kits.

Cover crops provide a living carpet of perennial plants for orchards. A ‘living mulch’ of low-growing legumes can provide many advantages, especially compared to grass, which aggressively competes with your fruit trees for water and nutrients. Cover crops can:

• Suppress weeds without the use of herbicide.
• Protect valuable topsoil from wind and water erosion.
• Reduce compaction caused by frequent mowing.
• Increase organic matter, earthworms and beneficial micro-organisms.
• Increase the soil's available nitrogen and moisture retention.
• Bring deep minerals to the surface and break up hardpans.
• Provide habitat, nectar and pollen for beneficial insects and reduce populations of pests.
• Improve water, root and air penetration in the soil.

WHAT IS A LEGUME?
Legumes are plants such as clover, lucerne, peas, beans, medics and chickpeas. An important advantage of legumes is their unusual ability to obtain nitrogen, a major element needed for plant growth, from the soil air, as most plants are unable to do this. They do this by forming a symbiotic relationship with a group of bacteria called Rhizobium, which live within a specialised structure, called a nodule, on the plant's roots. The Rhizobia can take nitrogen (N2) from the air and convert it to the form plants normally obtain from the soil. This process is called nitrogen fixation

WHY INOCULATE?
Rhizobia occur naturally, but they are very host-specific, that is, any one species of Rhizobia will only live with a few different types of legume. Consequently, when sowing legumes, the seed should be coated with a culture of the correct Rhizobium before sowing. This is referred to as inoculation. The bacteria are stored in peat, and as this is a living culture, it must be treated with care. It should be stored in the fridge and used within 3 months. To use, moisten the seed with a small amount of water and stir in the inoculant until seeds are coated. Then to allow even spreading of the seed over the seedbed, mix in enough agricultural lime, superfine lime or rock phosphate to dry the mixture out (use approx. 6 g of lime to 100 g of seed). This is called pelleting and makes fine seed easier to spread. Do not inoculate the seed until you are ready to sow it and do not leave the inoculated seed in the sun.

PLANTING TIPS

• Check the pH, legumes dislike acid soil. Correct any nutrient deficiencies (except nitrogen) before sowing
• Cover the seed to a depth of 2-3 times the width of the seed & firm the soil
• Irrigate in all but rainy weather for best results
• It is important to select both summer and winter vigorous ground covers to reduce weed invasion.

Plant species should be selected for suitability to climate, ease of establishment, perennial habit, nitrogen-fixing capacity and shade tolerance. Avoid climbing legumes such as Lablab. Aim for a flowering meadow in your orchard rather than sterile, bare earth or a grass ground cover.

GETTING STARTED
Growing a cover crop is particularly easy in new orchards as the soil can be cultivated. The seed is then spread as evenly over the area as possible followed by raking to cover the seed. In established orchards a variety of techniques may need to be used. Poultry in movable cages can be used to bare the ground, which is then sown with seed. Alternatively an organic herbicide can be used to kill any grass or an area can be mulched with newspaper and hay until the grass has died.

More information on mulch

More information on organic soil improvement

Know exactly which seeds you want? Use the

SUGGESTED COVERCROP SPECIES:

Barrel Medic
Medicago truncatula

A drought hardy, prostrate relative of lucerne, this is an annual legume that will self-seed every autumn to give winter cover in frost prone areas. The yellow flowers are borne on plants 40cm high. Each plant has prostrate stems that spread to approx 80cm long. In temperate areas sow March-May or August-October; in subtropical areas sow May-July.
SB133 10m² $3.50 Inoculant included add

SB134 400g covers 1000m² (approx. ¼ acre) $12.00 Inoculant included add

Crown Vetch

Securigera varia  syn. Coronilla varia

Crown vetch is a hardy perennial, leguminous  ground cover to 60 cm high, with attractive pink clover-like flowers, it will grow in sun or part-shade. It is tolerant of most well-drained soils, dislikes acidity and prefers a pH range of 6.0 to 7.5. It tolerates frost, drought and is pest resistant. It is useful to cover steep banks that are difficult to mow or too dry to establish other groundcovers. It is best sown in temperate or Mediterranean climate zones in spring, summer, or autumn. It can be aggressive in certain conditions so avoid planting it too close to vegetable gardens. It is toxic to horses if consumed in large amounts.

SC235 150 seeds $3.50  add

Lucerne 'Sequel'

Medicago sativa

'Sequel' is a bushy upright, winter  vigorous, legume with a deep taproot, it requires fertile, well-drained soil. It is attractive to beneficial insects and bees, can be cut for mulch and is a great animal forage.  In temperate areas sow March-May or August-October; in subtropical areas sow May-July.
Not to WA SL118 10m² $3.50 Inoculant included add
Not to TAS/WA SL119 1.5kg covers 1000m² (approx. ¼ acre) $28.95 Inoculant included add

LucerneOrganically certified

Not to WA
Medicago sativa

Lucerne is a bushy, upright legume with a deep taproot, it requires fertile, well-drained soil. It is attractive to beneficial insects and bees, can be cut for mulch and is a great animal forage.  In temperate areas sow March-May or August-October; in subtropical areas sow May-July.
SL145 10m² $3.50 Inoculant included add

Lucerne 'Hunter River'

Not to WA
Medicago sativa

'Hunter River' is a bushy upright, spring and summer  vigorous legume with a deep taproot, it requires a fertile, well-drained soil. It is attractive to beneficial insects and bees, can be cut for mulch and is a great animal forage.  In temperate areas sow March-May or August-October; in subtropical areas sow May-July.
Not to WA SL120 10m² $3.50 Inoculant included add

Not to TAS/WA SL121 1.5kg covers 1000m² $28.95 Inoculant included add

Pinto Peanut 'Bolton'

Not to WA

Arachis pintoi

Excellent legume groundcover for orchards, Pinto forms a thick, luxuriant mat 20-30 cm deep, with attractive yellow pea flowers; it suits frost-free areas and is moderately tolerant of shade.  ‘Bolton’ is a cultivar with improved drought tolerance. Subtropical  areas sow October-January; tropical areas sow during the wet season. Pinto peanut further information

Seed provided is in a pelleted form, this means it is pre-inoculated. The seed is not treated with insecticide.

SP126 10m² $5.95   add  Max. 5 packets per customer. Sorry but this is in very short supply.

Red Clover
Trifolium pratense

A summer vigorous, biennial legume for orchards; also useful as a green manure and bee forage. It has a bushy habit to 40 cm high and is drought tolerant. In temperate areas sow March-June or August-October; in subtropical areas sow May-July.

SR109 10m² $3.50 Inoculant included add

SR110 400g covers 1000m² (approx. ¼ acre) $12.00 Inoculant included add

White Clover
Trifolium repens

A year round cover in temperate areas, also useful as a winter cover in the subtropics. It attracts parasitic wasps of aphids and scales and prefers moist, well-drained soil. It is intolerant of shade. In temperate areas sow March-June or August-October; in subtropical areas sow March-June or spring.
SW108 10m² $3.50 Inoculant included add

SW109 400g covers 1000m² (approx. ¼ acre) $12.00 Inoculant included add
 

Wynn's Cassia
Cassia rotundifolia syn. Chamaecrista rotundifolia

A spring and summer vigorous, perennial legume to 40 cm high, it dies back in winter but self-sows prolifically. It is only suitable for subtropical and tropical areas, as it requires a summer rainfall to do well. It will recover from a light frost. In subtropical areas sow October-January; in tropical areas sow during the wet season. Wynn's cassia is not eaten by horses and is only moderately palatable to cattle.
SW110 10m² $3.50 Inoculant included add

SW111 200g covers 1000m² (approx. ¼ acre) $15.00 Inoculant  included add

SUBTROPICAL COVERCROP KIT

Not to WA
All kits include inoculants plus a FREE fact sheet on Cover Crops.

Covercrop Kit 1,000m² includes Pinto’s Peanut (100g), Villomix (150g) and Wynn's Cassia (100g).
 

SK117 $39.95  Temporarily unavailable
 

More information on mulch

More information on organic soil improvement

More information on green manure

Warm season green manure seeds and kits

Cool season green manure seeds and kits

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