Organic Sainfoin - Green Manure - Ferme de Sainte Marthe seeds

Sainfoin is a perennial legume that grows to about 80 cm (32in) in height, grown as a forage plant and green manure. Like all legumes, it has the ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen in the soil while protecting it from heavy rainfall. Sainfoin is known for its high hardiness (-10°C (14°F)) and is particularly well-suited for shallow, limestone, and dry soils. It should be sown from March to late April at a rate of 400 to 500 grams per 100 m2.

This variety is of a double or perpetual type: it is less long-lasting (5 or 6 years) than the single type, but more productive, allowing for 2 to 3 cuts per year for forage use.

Widely used in permaculture, green manures have numerous benefits: they enrich and loosen the soil while preventing the establishment of adventive plants. They also provide a vegetative cover that protects clayey soils from heavy rainfall and sandy soils from leaching. They can be sown throughout the year, and can be either incorporated by shallow digging after flowering or left in place as mulch.

A gardening tip: just like with vegetable crops, it is important to consider crop rotation for green manures, so don't always sow the same ones in the same place!