Poached egg plant mulch

[jennym]

I recommend growing poached egg plant to keep weeds at bay. The one I grow is Limnanthes douglasii. It self seeds, so you don't need to keep buying it. I find that where I let a really big patch grow, the soil keeps pretty clear underneath. At this time of year, the patches I have not used for vegetables are still covered with it, but it has all died down, leaving a dried brown mat which still keeps out a lot of weeds. It also keeps moisture in the soil.

[jennym]

[supernan]

 :) You can also use this plant as a green manure.

[Val]

I wish I'd known this before I could've used it to keep the moisture in, I 've pulled it all up now but next year it is staying put.

[GREENWIZARD]

i've got 3 different varieties growing~poached egg,meringue & sunny side up
fantastic little plants & the bumbees adore them ;D

[supersprout]

This sounds lovely. Can you sow the seed broadcast?

[jennym]

Yes, just broadcast it. Do it now for best results, but don't forget to water until germinated. It will grow over winter, and flower next spring, when it will self seed.

[terrace max]

Just the job for a living mulch around newly planted fruit trees: shallow rooted, weed-suppressing and insect attracting...

[jennym]

Yes!

[Diana]

The only slight problems are:

1 - because it loves to self seed, you'll never get rid of it if you want to.

2 - because it keeps the moisture in the slugs + snails love to hide under it during the day. This can also be a bonus as it's easy to lift up + catch the little critters ;D

[Gail-M]

Sounds ideal for me - anyone got any spare seeds they could send me ?

I bought some yesterday but they are not going to go very far in my plot.

I could swap for runner bean seeds,evening primrose....

cheers Gail :)

[jennym]

Send me a pm and I'll send some seed/plants.