Does your garden soil need a boost? Plant cover crops in your garden and you’ll enrich your soil.

I recently found a partially finished bottle of Lucozade left behind in the euphorbia trough by one of the scaffolders. A visiting architect commented, “Are you sure that’s Lucozade?” giving me a new perspective.

All this is to say, the garden is in disarray. Sometimes neglect has its perks; coming back from a trip, I spotted a sunflower growing in the back corner.

Now, however, some necessary firefighting is underway. Being six months pregnant, I’ve enlisted a local gardener to tackle invasive plants like green alkanet and robinia saplings from the neighbour’s tree, but keeping desirable plants. Next, in the newly cleared patches, I’ll be sowing cover crops.

Green manure are superheroes when it comes to improving soil health.

My gardening friend Claire has previously discussed cover crops, as they are essential in seasonal planting for vegetable plots. But, the only things I’m picking from my garden right now are a few scrumped apples and some woody herbs.

My ambitions for the garden are simple and steady – and improving the soil is my main priority. To update concerned readers, the scaffolding is for roof repairs, and the garden boundaries are still wobbly, but the neighbours agree with replacing them.

Green manure work wonders for your garden’s foundation. Soil likes to be covered, which is why unwanted plants pop up. But by sowing vigorous crops, you can suppress weeds, bring in bees, shelter beneficial insects, and enrich the soil with nutrients.

Green manure plants aren’t always showy – though some, like certain lupin varieties and bird’s foot trefoil, have pretty flowers – but their purpose is to thrive rather than look decorative. Once established, you can turn them under, cut them for compost, or leave them on the surface for earthworms to incorporate. The real magic happens below the surface.

Now is the ideal time for sowing these overwintering crops. I’ve chosen rye grass, great for clay soil, Italian ryegrass, vetch, and field beans.

It feels rewarding in sowing something that won’t stay forever – on the surface, anyway.