Gardeners often improve their soil by adding something to it. Cover crops take a different approach: they keep living roots in the ground between growing seasons. Those roots help protect bare soil, suppress weeds, improve soil structure, feed beneficial microbes, and build a stronger foundation for the next crop.
Cover crops are grouped by how they grow and the jobs they perform. Each type brings a different strength to the garden.
Deep root + nutrient scavenging
Radish and mustard grow quickly, help loosen compacted soil, capture leftover nutrients, and add organic matter.
Nitrogen builders
Vetches and clovers work with soil bacteria to capture nitrogen from the air and help support future crops.
Quick cover + biodiversity
Buckwheat and phacelia provide fast-growing cover, support pollinators and beneficial insects, and add plant diversity.
Soil protectors
Oats, cereal rye, and other grasses form dense roots, hold soil in place, capture nutrients, and produce organic matter.
Coming soon
Start with the job you want your cover crop to do. Some plants specialize, while mixes combine several benefits in one planting.
Choose legumes
Vetches and clovers work with soil bacteria to capture nitrogen from the air and support future crops.
Choose brassicas
Radish and mustard produce strong roots that help open compacted soil and recycle nutrients.
Choose grasses, cereals, or dense mixes
Fast-growing roots help hold soil in place, reduce erosion, and compete with weeds.
Choose flowering cover crops
Phacelia, buckwheat, and flowering clovers provide forage for pollinators and beneficial insects.
Need more than one benefit? A mixed cover crop combines plant types that work together.
Your planting season helps narrow the choices. Some cover crops thrive in warm weather, while other are better suited to cool conditions or overwintering.
Warm-season cover
Buckwheat and teff establish quickly in warm soil providing fast cover during the growing season.
Cool-season planting
Brassicas, vetches, clovers, oats, and cereal rye are commonly planted as temperatures begin to cool.
Climate matters
Some fall-planted cover crops survive winter and resume growth in spring. Others are killed by frost, leaving residue that continues protecting the soil.
Always consider your local frost dates and the amount of growing time available before cold weather.
Remove established weeds and loosen the soil surface if needed.
Scatter the seed as evenly as possible across the area.
Create good seed-to-soil contact without buring the seed too deeply.
Water gently until the seedlings are established.
Termination timing and methods depend of the cover crop, its growth stage, and what you plan to grow next. We're creating a practical guide to cutting, mowing, incorporating, tarping, and leaving cover crops as much.
Re-Fresh Basic combines brassicas and legumes in one fall-planted mix. It keeps living roots in the soil, protects bare ground, supports soil structure, and helps prepare your garden for the next growing season.
When soil is warm and your first frost is still several weeks away, Blanket can help cover open ground, reduce weed pressure, and keep living roots working through the rest of the season.
Healthy soil is built over time. Every season you keep living roots in the ground, you are protecting the soil, feeding life below the surface, and preparing your garden for what comes next.