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.
:) You can also use this plant as a green manure.
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.
i've got 3 different varieties growing~poached egg,meringue & sunny side up
fantastic little plants & the bumbees adore them ;D
This sounds lovely. Can you sow the seed broadcast?
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.
Just the job for a living mulch around newly planted fruit trees: shallow rooted, weed-suppressing and insect attracting...
Yes!
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
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 :)
Send me a pm and I'll send some seed/plants.