"As You Like It" Cover Crop Blend: High Biomass, Nitrogen Fixing Legumes

This high biomass blend is predominantly comprised of legumes: Diana Fava, Field/Forage Pea and Hairy Vetch, with Common Oat also included for fast growing weed suppression. It was inspired by a Natural Resources Conservation Service pamphlet on fava bean, which described it as "a typical high biomass cover crop mix for Central California." We could not find this mix commercially available, so decided to make it ourselves!

Ecologically, this blend works as follows:

• Fava beans function scaffold species with tall rigid stems and provide high, late season biomass. They fix nitrogen in the soil.
• Peas and hairy vetch climb the favas and oats, extending the overall canopy established. Both crops fix nitrogen.
• Oats provide early vigor, weed suppression, and carbon for residue balance.

This blend can be sown from early fall through early spring. 1 pound is appropriate for broadcasting across 50 square feet.

Seeds are certified organic.