I am in zone 5 and have question about cover crop.......I have small garden,
about 800 sq ft.....about 300 sq ft is now available for planting, and I
have just planted winter rye as a cover crop/green manure......Now I am
having second thought...I have only small rotor tiller and am concerned that
the rye grass will be difficult to till in spring....any advise appreciated.

In article ,
wrote:

I am in zone 5 and have question about cover crop.......I have small garden,
about 800 sq ft.....about 300 sq ft is now available for planting, and I
have just planted winter rye as a cover crop/green manure......Now I am
having second thought...I have only small rotor tiller and am concerned that
the rye grass will be difficult to till in spring....any advise appreciated.

After the rye, you won't need it.
--
³When you give food to the poor, they call you a saint. When you ask why the poor have no food, they call you a communist.²
-Archbishop Helder Camara

http://tinyurl.com/o63ruj
http://countercurrents.org/roberts020709.htm

Billy wrote:
In article ,
wrote:

I am in zone 5 and have question about cover crop.......I have small garden,
about 800 sq ft.....about 300 sq ft is now available for planting, and I
have just planted winter rye as a cover crop/green manure......Now I am
having second thought...I have only small rotor tiller and am concerned that
the rye grass will be difficult to till in spring....any advise appreciated.

After the rye, you won't need it.

Depends how high it gets. Too high, use your mower with a cacher, or a
mulching mower, then till. Yep, the small tillers have a hard time with the
high cover crops, takes several passes.

"Bud" wrote in message
...
Billy wrote:
In article ,
wrote:

I am in zone 5 and have question about cover crop.......I have small
garden,
about 800 sq ft.....about 300 sq ft is now available for planting, and I
have just planted winter rye as a cover crop/green manure......Now I am
having second thought...I have only small rotor tiller and am concerned
that
the rye grass will be difficult to till in spring....any advise
appreciated.

After the rye, you won't need it.

Depends how high it gets. Too high, use your mower with a cacher, or a
mulching mower, then till. Yep, the small tillers have a hard time with
the
high cover crops, takes several passes.

How high is the rye likely to get? And how late in the year can you plant
it? Much of my garden has squash and tomatoes and plants that produce until
a good frost kills them, which can be as late as mid October. Can you plant
rye that late in the season?

On Fri, 4 Sep 2009 10:14:26 -0700, "Zootal"
wrote:


"Bud" wrote in message
...
Billy wrote:
In article ,
wrote:

I am in zone 5 and have question about cover crop.......I have small
garden,
about 800 sq ft.....about 300 sq ft is now available for planting, and I
have just planted winter rye as a cover crop/green manure......Now I am
having second thought...I have only small rotor tiller and am concerned
that
the rye grass will be difficult to till in spring....any advise
appreciated.

After the rye, you won't need it.

Depends how high it gets. Too high, use your mower with a cacher, or a
mulching mower, then till. Yep, the small tillers have a hard time with
the
high cover crops, takes several passes.

How high is the rye likely to get? And how late in the year can you plant
it? Much of my garden has squash and tomatoes and plants that produce until
a good frost kills them, which can be as late as mid October. Can you plant
rye that late in the season?

I'd plant the rye now - reminds me I need to buy some seed myself. You
can plant amid the tomatoes and perhaps other plants. I'll be planting
where my zinnias are.

depending on the weather etc, my best rye crop was close to 3 feet
high. It was great looking out to a mini field of green when
everything else was dead and brown.

Kate - mid TN

wrote in message
...
On Fri, 4 Sep 2009 10:14:26 -0700, "Zootal"
wrote:


"Bud" wrote in message
...
Billy wrote:
In article ,
wrote:

I am in zone 5 and have question about cover crop.......I have small
garden,
about 800 sq ft.....about 300 sq ft is now available for planting, and
I
have just planted winter rye as a cover crop/green manure......Now I
am
having second thought...I have only small rotor tiller and am
concerned
that
the rye grass will be difficult to till in spring....any advise
appreciated.

After the rye, you won't need it.

Depends how high it gets. Too high, use your mower with a cacher, or a
mulching mower, then till. Yep, the small tillers have a hard time with
the
high cover crops, takes several passes.

How high is the rye likely to get? And how late in the year can you plant
it? Much of my garden has squash and tomatoes and plants that produce
until
a good frost kills them, which can be as late as mid October. Can you
plant
rye that late in the season?

I'd plant the rye now - reminds me I need to buy some seed myself. You
can plant amid the tomatoes and perhaps other plants. I'll be planting
where my zinnias are.

depending on the weather etc, my best rye crop was close to 3 feet
high. It was great looking out to a mini field of green when
everything else was dead and brown.

Kate - mid TN

Would you want to plant rye in places where you want to grow early spring
crops, like peas and onions? I would think not, at least not where I live,
because spring planting here means planting in the mud. It doesn't stop
raining long enough for the ground to dry out until May. In Jan/Feb, when we
plant peas and onions, it is cold and wet and muddy, and we plant stuff in
the mud. I have to prepare the bed for planting before the fall rains hit.

It's supposed to rain this weekend. Summer is over, and we may not see dry
ground for a long long time...

In article ,
"Zootal" wrote:

wrote in message
...
On Fri, 4 Sep 2009 10:14:26 -0700, "Zootal"
wrote:


"Bud" wrote in message
...
Billy wrote:
In article ,
wrote:

I am in zone 5 and have question about cover crop.......I have small
garden,
about 800 sq ft.....about 300 sq ft is now available for planting, and
I
have just planted winter rye as a cover crop/green manure......Now I
am
having second thought...I have only small rotor tiller and am
concerned
that
the rye grass will be difficult to till in spring....any advise
appreciated.

After the rye, you won't need it.

Depends how high it gets. Too high, use your mower with a cacher, or a
mulching mower, then till. Yep, the small tillers have a hard time with
the
high cover crops, takes several passes.

How high is the rye likely to get? And how late in the year can you plant
it? Much of my garden has squash and tomatoes and plants that produce
until
a good frost kills them, which can be as late as mid October. Can you
plant
rye that late in the season?

I'd plant the rye now - reminds me I need to buy some seed myself. You
can plant amid the tomatoes and perhaps other plants. I'll be planting
where my zinnias are.

depending on the weather etc, my best rye crop was close to 3 feet
high. It was great looking out to a mini field of green when
everything else was dead and brown.

Kate - mid TN

Would you want to plant rye in places where you want to grow early spring
crops, like peas and onions? I would think not, at least not where I live,
because spring planting here means planting in the mud.

Sounds like you should investigate raised garden beds.

It doesn't stop
raining long enough for the ground to dry out until May. In Jan/Feb, when we
plant peas and onions, it is cold and wet and muddy, and we plant stuff in
the mud. I have to prepare the bed for planting before the fall rains hit.

It's supposed to rain this weekend. Summer is over, and we may not see dry
ground for a long long time...
--
³When you give food to the poor, they call you a saint. When you ask why the poor have no food, they call you a communist.²
-Archbishop Helder Camara

http://tinyurl.com/o63ruj
http://countercurrents.org/roberts020709.htm