Cover Crops - Seeds - Fedco Seeds

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Medicago sativa Perennial legume, up to 3' high. This fragrant plant has beautiful purple flowers and is great for hay and as a cover crop. Herbalists consider it a valuable nutritive tonic.

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Barley -

Seeds

Hordeum vulgare Annual spring grain. Variety: ‘Quest.’ Suitable for cover-cropping, grain production, home brewing, or forage. Reliable, valuable feed grain for livestock.

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Hulless Barley -

Seeds

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Hordeum vulgare Annual spring grain. Truly hulless variety, which makes for quick, easy, low-tech processing. Fast-growing, and competes well with weeds. Tolerates drought and heavy soils.

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Bell Beans

Seeds

Vicia faba Annual or winter annual legume. Great for fixing nitrogen, and building large amounts of biomass. Bell beans will happily sprout in half-frozen soil, and tolerate a wide range of soil conditions.

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Common Buckwheat -

Seeds

Fagopyrum esculentum Annual broadleaf. Excellent cover crop for outcompeting summer weeds. Makes tasty flour for pancakes or baked goods. Bees like its abundant nectar.

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Winter Camelina

Seeds

Camelina sativa Annual brassica. Widely adaptable and versatile winter-hardy cover crop and oilseed plant; tolerates poor conditions. Excellent nutrient scavenger. Sow when you would for winter rye.

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Crimson Clover

Seeds

Trifolium incarnatum Tender biennial legume. Up to 18". Rapid growth in cool weather makes this vigorous clover great for cover cropping and green manure. Crimson blooms attract bees and make good cutflowers.

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Dutch White Clover

Seeds

Trifolium repens Perennial legume. The lowest-growing clover. This shade- and traffic-tolerant perennial makes nice garden paths and living mulch. Our most popular clover.

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Ladino White Clover

Seeds

Trifolium repens Perennial legume. 8–12" tall. Fantastic nitrogen fixer with great protein and digestibility. Tall enough to be harvested for hay, silage, and green chop. Good choice for poorly drained soil.

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Mammoth Red Clover -

Seeds

Trifolium pratense Biennial legume. Up to 36". Vigorous red clover for cover cropping or grazing. Deep taproot. Tolerates shade, so a good choice for overseeding into standing crops. Blossoms make a lovely tea.

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Rivendell White Clover -

Seeds

Trifolium repens Perennial legume. Up to 9". Small-leafed perennial clover establishes quickly and withstands traffic and close mowing. Our favorite clover for organic pasture.

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Yellow Sweet Clover -

Seeds

Melilotus officinalis Biennial legume. Up to 6'. Vigorous clover for cover cropping, bee forage and green manure. Long thick taproots are very effective at breaking up subsoils and improving soil aeration.

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Deep-rooted Daikon Radish -

Seeds

Raphanus sativus var. niger Broadleaf annual. Roots penetrate hardpans and loosen soil down to 30" or beyond. Takes up available soil nutrients and prevents losses to leaching or runoff. Suppresses weeds if planted thickly.

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Field Peas -

Seeds

Pisum sativum var. arvense Annual legume. Also called Forage Peas. Great as weed-smothering workhorse soil builder, or a tasty and highly digestible forage. Likes cool moist conditions. Will grow in most soil types.

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Annual Ryegrass -

Seeds

Lolium multiflorum Annual or winter annual grass. Extremely frost hardy. Widely adaptable. Will establish quickly in cool wet spring weather, providing a dense cover crop and outcompeting weeds. Good erosion control.

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Annual Ryegrass

Seeds

Lolium multiflorum Annual or winter annual grass. Extremely frost hardy. Widely adaptable. Will establish quickly in cool wet spring weather, providing a dense cover crop and outcompeting weeds. Good erosion control.

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BMR Sorghum/Sudangrass -

Seeds

Sorghum × drummondii Annual grass. Vigorous, competitive, adaptable cover crop or annual forage. Likes heat and high fertility. Grows best in warm weather when other grasses slow down.

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Japanese Millet

Seeds

Echinochloa frumentacea Annual grass. Vigorous and versatile! Good for hay, forage, weed-smothering, building soil, and controlling erosion. Tolerates waterlogged soils, low fertility and cool conditions.

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Perennial Ryegrass -

Seeds

Lolium perenne Short-lived perennial grass. Extremely palatable forage grass, popular in grazing mixes. Germinates quickly and grows rapidly, suppressing weeds. Holds up under heavy traffic. Good pest resistance.

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Tall Fescue -

Seeds

Lolium arundinaceum Perennial grass. Long-lived, versatile and low-maintenance grass good for pasture, lawn, or hay. Deep and extensive root system protects against erosion. Tolerates most adverse conditions.

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Winter Triticale -

Seeds

x Triticosecale Wittm. ex A. Camus [Secale × Triticum] Triticale is a hybrid of wheat and rye, and boasts many advantages over plain winter rye. This variety was selected for winter hardiness and consistently high yields of both forage and seed yields.

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Hairy Vetch -

Seeds

Vicia villosa subsp. villosa Annual or winter annual legume. Vigorous cover crop generates copious amounts of organic matter. Excellent nitrogen fixation. Moderately frost resistant.

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B&B Summer Mix

Seeds

A cover crop blend of 40% buckwheat, 40% BMR sorghum/sudangrass, and 20% Sunn Hemp for nitrogen fixation. Loves heat. First-rate smother crop and biomass builder formulated to reliably winter-kill.

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Cover Crop Cocktail -

Seeds

With annuals and biennials, grasses and legumes and broadleafs, and roots of all shapes and sizes, this blend mimics natural diversity and encourages a flourishing and balanced microbial population.

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Grass Seed: CR Lawn Mix

Seeds

All-purpose lawn blend for the Northeast. Good for a range of conditions, full sun to partial shade. Makes a great understory for orchards and other perennial woody crops.

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Hairy Vetch/Winter Rye Mix -

Seeds

Superb cover crop mix for fall planting where mechanical tillage is available the following spring. 78% winter rye and 22% hairy vetch. Adds nitrogen to the soil and suppresses weed growth.

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Magic Carpet Mix

Seeds

Diverse multispecies clover-heavy mix is great as a soil-building living mulch under tall-growing competitive crops, like cannabis. Suitable in raised beds, containers and high tunnels.

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Northern Growers’ Winterkill Mix

Seeds

currently on backorder

This mix offers organic matter production, nitrogen fixation, nutrient scavenging, erosion control, and weed suppression. Perfect for no-till growers and gardeners who work with hand tools only.

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Pea/Oat Mix -

Seeds

This dynamic cover crop duo has become a favorite of growers who value its vigorous growth and soil-building prowess, along with the assurance that it will winterkill up North.

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PVO Soil-Building Mix -

Seeds

A superior soil-building cover crop mix. The oats come up first and are pulled down by the peas, which are then pulled down by the smothering vetch. Weeds don’t stand a chance in that jungle!

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Mustard

Seeds

Brassica juncea or Sinapis alba Annual broadleaf. Great cover crop to retain nutrients, suppress weeds and improve water penetration. Breaks down into compounds toxic to nematodes and soil-borne pathogens.

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Common Oats -

Seeds

Avena sativa Annual grass. A solid all-purpose oat. Generates biomass and smothers weeds. Tolerates bad weather and soil conditions. Excellent feed for cows and horses.

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Sunn Hemp

Seeds

Crotolaria juncea Annual legume. Rock star cover crop builds organic matter, fixes atmospheric nitrogen, controls harmful nematodes, and still finds time to be beautiful! Grows vigorously in warm conditions.

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Glenn Spring Wheat -

Seeds

Triticum aestivum Annual grain. Hard red spring variety that bakers favor for its superior milling and baking qualities. High in protein, very high test weight. Solid disease resistance.

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Sirvinta Winter Wheat -

Seeds

Triticum aestivum Winter annual grain. Extremely cold hardy hard red wheat. Flour has great flavor and texture, and sturdy plants make great straw. Good for small spaces. Well adapted to New England. Will Bonsall fave!

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Soft White Winter Wheat -

Seeds

Triticum aestivum Winter annual grain. Makes tender pastries, quick breads and pancakes. Also good for brewing wheat beers, or as a livestock feed.

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Winter Rye -

Seeds

Secale cereale Winter annual grass. Extremely frost hardy, adaptable and competitive. For cover crop or grain. Deep extensive roots help prevent compaction and improve soil tilth. Vigorous spring regrowth.

Organic Growers Supply: Cover Crops