How to grow Crimson Clover (Green Manure)

Trifolium incarnatum

🥕 Vegetable 🌸 Flower 🌱 Grown each year

A nitrogen-fixing green manure with bright crimson flower spikes. Feeds the soil for the next crop and feeds the bees while it grows.

At a glance: Sow mid April to mid August, harvest from late June.

When to sow, plant and harvest

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Sow outdoors

Timed for a typical UK garden (last frost mid-April). The app uses your own town's frost dates.

Mid April – mid August · around the last spring frost
Sow on Bare Ground
Rake the soil, scatter the seed evenly, rake it in lightly and water if dry. Great for beds that would otherwise sit empty.
7–21 days after “Sow on Bare Ground” · Late April – early May
Check It Has Come Up
A green carpet should be showing. It smothers weeds and protects the soil from rain.
70–120 days after “Sow on Bare Ground” · Late June – mid August
Cut Down and Dig In
Before it flowers or sets seed (or when you need the bed), chop it down, let it wilt for a few days, then dig it into the top 20 cm.
14–28 days after “Cut Down and Dig In” · Early July – late July
Wait, Then Plant
Leave the bed for 2–4 weeks while it rots down before sowing or planting the next crop.