Green Manure Resources
Animal Forage, Medicinal Plants, Plant Systems, Rehabilitation, Soil Conservation, Structure — by Rhamis Kent August 31, 2010
Editor’s note: Red clover is a useful leguminous green manure. Growing taller than
other clovers, it can be easily cut down with a scythe or other when it starts to
flower, so that it doesn’t scatter seed where you don’t want it.
You can never have enough information about Earth Repair/Ecosystem Restoration tools, techniques, and strategies. As most of you know, a couple among the many in use are green manuring and cover cropping.
Over the past year of my really digging into this topic I’ve come across a number of useful links to downloadable PDFs that allow for easy access and use.
One of the more intriguing finds was a book I found first published in the late 1920s that’s all about green manuring. It’s available for free as a 267-page PDF titled "Green Manuring: Principles & Practice" by Adrian J. Pieters, PhD (1927) – scanned and made available in 2006.
Another great reference is a 16-page PDF from ATTRA (Apropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas) titled "Overview of Cover Crops and Green Manures".
Here’s another published by Michigan State University, discussing cover cropping and green manuring in Michigan sustainable agriculture investigative studies – titled Cover Crop Choices for Michigan.
Lastly, check out these link to PDFs on the subject from a UK-based organization called HDRA – here and here.
Happy green manuring!
Editor’s note: Okay, now it’s your turn to share your best resources! Send them to editor (at) permaculture.org.au (if you want, we’ll even pay you to do it!) Also, if you have other green manure resources, please add them via the comment field below.
Comments (9)
thanks a lot!
Comment by Manuel — September 1, 2010 @ 1:41 am
My searches for cover crop info often lead here: http://www.sarep.ucdavis.edu/ccrop/
Comment by JBob — September 1, 2010 @ 5:15 am
Also, one of my favorite sites is about tropical forages, but much of that info is easily adapted to cover crop purposes: http://www.tropicalforages.info/
Comment by JBob — September 1, 2010 @ 5:20 am
Here is some information about a related theme, pest insects control by the use of ants:
- Weaver Ants Convert Pest Insects into Food – Prospects for the Rural Poor: http://www.tropentag.de/2009/abstracts/full/309.pdf
- Sustainable weaver ant (Oecophylla smaragdina) farming; harvest yields and effects on worker ant density: http://www.asian-myrmecology.org/publications/offenberg-wiwatwitaya-am-2010.pdf
- The use of weaver ants for biological pest control in tropical crops: http://biology.au.dk/en/internationalprogrammes/theuseofweaverantsforbiologicalpestcontrolintropicalcrops/
- Dropp sprøytemidlene, bruk maur (in Scandinavian language, but it includes a nice video from You Tube useful for everyone): http://www.forskning.no/artikler/2010/august/258661
Comment by Øyvind Holmstad — September 2, 2010 @ 4:24 pm
Thanks Rhamis – much appreciated. Was in the Channon last weekend – Rose said to say Hello:-)
Comment by Craig — September 3, 2010 @ 6:41 pm
You’ve got jokes, Craig G. – that was a traumatising experience…actually, it was hilarious.
Hopefully, I’ll be able to get down there again to see you all before my time is done…
Comment by Rhamis — September 3, 2010 @ 9:14 pm
Red clover flowers are also an important herbal medicine, so you can harvest and dry them before you cut the green manure.
Comment by pebble — September 4, 2010 @ 8:50 pm
well done im interested in breeding up a wierd vetch that has naturalised here
should be able to gather a few kg of seed this year would love to swap some for some other groovy invasive legume seed
cheers
Comment by andrew — September 4, 2010 @ 10:32 pm
- Messenger molecule in oral secretions of herbivorous insects changes flower opening time of their host plants (when we learn more we can use plant’s hormones and chemicals for communication in organic farming, with attracting pest predators etc.): http://www.mpg.de/english/illustrationsDocumentation/documentation/pressReleases/2010/pressRelease20100114/index.html
- Organic Farms Win at Potato Pest Control: http://eartheasy.com/blog/2010/08/organic-farms-win-at-potato-pest-control/
Comment by Øyvind Holmstad — October 5, 2010 @ 3:33 pm
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