Mustard is ideal as a green manure in autumn. In this way, the bed is prepared in the best possible way for the next season. Here you will find everything you need to know about sowing and using mustard as a crop or as green manure.
The use of various plants as green manure is becoming increasingly popular in domestic gardens. Mustard is also useful in many ways. In this article you will learn how to plant or sow mustard, why it is particularly suitable as a green manure and why it effectively suppresses weeds.
Planting mustard: location and time
There are three types of mustard: White, Brown and Black Mustard (Sinapis alba, Brassica juncea and Brassica nigra). In principle, mustard can be sown all year round as long as it is frost-free. So the best time is after the ice saints in May and into autumn. This applies equally to all three types of mustard. If you want to harvest and use the mustard seeds, you should sow them in good time. You can let the mustard plants germinate on the windowsill in early spring and plant them in the garden as young plants. If you want to use mustard as a green manure or cover crop, you can do this at any time after the previous crop has been harvested.
In general, mustard can be grown in any full sun to partially shaded location, as it is very undemanding. Ideally, the soil is humic and slightly calcareous, but mustard can also be used as a soil conditioner on poor soil. With its strong, deep roots, it breaks up soil compaction and brings organic material into deeper soil layers. Almost any other vegetable can be used as a neighbor for mustard, only a mixed culture with other types of cruciferous vegetables is not advisable because of a possible disease transmission.
Tip: One of the decisive factors in deciding which variety is ultimately selected is the space available. If you have a lot of space, you can easily use the black mustard, which grows up to 200 cm high. On the other hand, if you need a green manure or cover crop for your raised bed or balcony garden, you should rather use the white mustard, which is only a maximum of 70 cm highselect.
Growing Mustard: Sowing and Planting Mustard
If you want to harvest mustard seeds as a spice, proceed as follows: The mustard can be planted or sowed.
If mustard seeds are to be sown, the planting distance is a little closer than for young plants, since not all the seeds germinate - on 10 to 20 cm is best. This also protects against losses by birds, as they like to eat the seeds.
If you want to plant mustard seeds, you can start from mid-May. The seeds can be placed in loosened soil and then covered with soil about a finger's width. Then the seeds have to be watered well so that they start to germinate. If it is a bit drier, it is advisable to water regularly. The first seedlings should be visible after a few days. When the plants have finally germinated and are too dense, some can be removed to make room for the remaining plants.
Young mustard plants are not commercially available. But if you have already grown small plants around March, you can transplant them from May with a planting distance of about 15 to 20 cm from each other. To do this, dig a small hole with a trowel and put the seedling in. Then you cover the hole with soil and water the little plant well.
During growth, the mustard is a fairly undemanding plant, but it should be watered regularly when it is dry. The first leaves can be harvested just three weeks after the plants have germinated, for example to make a delicious salad.
The seeds grow in pods and are usually ready for harvest in September or October. If you shake the pods and there is a rattle inside, they are ripe and the harvest can begin. To do this, you can simply remove the pods from the plant by hand, open them and shake out the grains. For a larger crop, collect everything together in a bag and tap it with a rolling pin or your hand to loosen the mustard seeds from the pods.
Late sown or planted mustard plants that are no longer ripening can can also be enjoyed as a leafy vegetable. They are thus a perfect crop for the fall. In Indian cuisine, the mustard herb is used for vegetable dishes similar to spinach.
Summary: Growing Mustard as a Vegetable
- Direct sowing from mid-May or prefer indoors/cold frames/greenhouses from March, then plant out from May
- Water regularly when dry
- Harvest the mustard seedSeptember/October
- Late sown mustard will no longer flower and seed, but can be eaten as a leafy vegetable
Tip: If you want to grow mustard in a container to harvest the seeds, you should make sure that the plant gets a lot of sun and is well supplied with nutrients and water. A nutrient-rich potting soil is ideal for the ideal care of the plant. Our Plantura organic universal soil combines these positive properties and is also environmentally friendly and made from peat-free materials.
Plant mustard as green manure
The purpose of green manure is to supply the exhausted soil with fresh nutrients and organic material after a heavily nutrient-consuming plant. Green manures can be used both on vegetable beds and in the preparation of lawns or flower beds.
Thanks to its deep-reaching roots, mustard also loosens up the soil structure and thus improves soil life. Green manure with mustard therefore has a multiple positive effect.
You can sow mustard as green manure any time between May and October.
All types of mustard can be used as green manure, the well-known yellow mustard is also suitable as green manure. It should be sown late in the year, but ideally right after the previous vegetable is harvested. If the mustard has grown far enough, you can simply cut it off to the ground and leave it on the bed. The best time for this is before flowering, as no seeds have formed then. Otherwise, they could germinate again next year and disturb the bed. If the mustard is sown very late and has not formed any flowers before the first frost, the plant can also be left as a whole and does not have to be cut off. It then freezes and remains on the surface by itself. The plants remain on the bed throughout the winter, protecting the soil and soil life from severe frost, sun and erosion. Finally, in spring, the rotted mustard plants can be dug into the soil and provide organic material for humus formation.
Warning: Mustard is a cruciferous vegetable. It is suitable as a green manure and cover crop on all areas if no other cruciferous crops have been grown in the previous three years and no cruciferous crops are to be grown in the next three years either. Otherwisethere is a risk of disease transmission. It is therefore essential to pay attention to the crop rotation in your own garden.
Sowing mustard against weeds
Mustard could almost be described as a miracle plant due to its diversity. In addition to the many advantages for soil structure and nutrient balance, it is also very fast-growing. This means that once mustard has sprouted, weeds have little chance. The mustard grows very quickly and forms a dense ground cover, so that the slower growing weeds are suppressed. Mustard can always be sown in an open field to suppress weeds. It can no longer overgrow weeds that are already high. These have to be weeded out by hand in the tried and tested way before sowing.
You recently grew cabbage and can't use mustard as green manure because of the crop rotation? Here you will find a selection of different plants that are alternatively suitable as green manure.