Lesson 2.6 DESIGN - SUPPORT-PLANTS

 

 



FOOD FOREST COURSE

AGRO-ECONOMY Lesson 2.6 

DESIGN - SUPPORT-PLANTS  

 

Begin with planting the support species as these are the backbone of your garden.  They are groundcovers, shrubs and trees used for mulch and weed barriers.  Some can eventually be shaded out when the main crops grow to maturity. 


Role of support plants:  

▪  Help to improve the soil by adding organic matter. 

▪  They often have a deep-rooted system, and the foliage brings the minerals from the sub-soil onto the topsoil strata. 

▪  They are soil improvers by aerating the soil with their strong roots, they often fix nitrogen, and they create a micro-climate. 

▪  They offer protection from cold, harsh winds, excessive sun and heat and help to conserve soil moisture. 

▪  Support plants can also offer habitat for predator insects and wildlife. 

 

Some examples of support species are:  

▪  Living groundcovers such as sweet potato, pinto peanut, mukunu wenna, dogbane, nasturtiums, pepino, pumpkin. 

▪  Shrubs such as pigeon pea, crotolaria, popcorn cassia and cassia elata. 

▪  Clumping grasses such as lemon grass, vetiver grass, Job’s tears. 

▪  Trees such as leucaena, wattle, ice cream bean and caleandra. 

▪  Herbaceous plants such as comfrey, arrowroot, cardomen for quick chop and drop. 





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