Green mulch is one of the easiest ways to build soil, retain moisture, and protect your plants—especially in tough conditions like sandy or hydrophobic soils.
On our farm, we love using living and chop-and-drop mulch systems that keep feeding the soil naturally.
🌿 Brazilian Spinach (Alternanthera sissoo)
A fantastic edible ground cover that thrives in warm climates. Soft, low-growing, and easy to manage—perfect under fruit trees and around dragon fruit posts.
🌿 Cuban Mint (Plectranthus amboinicus)
A hardy, aromatic plant that spreads well and suppresses weeds. Great for chop-and-drop mulch and adds diversity to your system.
🌾 Turmeric (Curcuma longa)
One of our favourite companions for young, establishing fruit trees. Turmeric is a deciduous plant that grows large, lush leaves through summer, helping to protect trees from heat and reduce moisture loss.
In winter, the plant naturally dies back, allowing gentle sunlight through—perfect for supporting growth during the cooler months.
- Seasonal living mulch for warmer climates
- Large leaves shade soil and reduce evaporation
- Builds organic matter when chopped and dropped
- Supports young trees without competing year-round
A simple, effective way to work with the seasons while improving soil health and tree establishment 🌿
🌾 Ginger
Dense growth helps cool soil and protect roots. Great companion in tropical systems.
🍠 Sweet Potato (Living Mulch + Soil Builder)
Sweet potato is one of our go-to living mulches—fast growing, tough, and incredibly useful in a productive system.
It spreads quickly across the ground, helping to shade soil, retain moisture, and suppress weeds. As it grows, it builds organic matter and protects your soil from harsh sun and heavy rain.
And the best part?
👉 Some for us, some for the worms
When harvesting, any smaller or missed tubers are left behind to break down, feeding soil life—similar to how tillage radish works by improving soil structure naturally.
- Fast-growing ground cover
- Edible leaves and tubers
- Helps loosen and improve soil
- Feeds worms and soil biology
- Great for chop-and-drop systems
Perfect for around fruit trees and dragon fruit where you want coverage, food, and soil improvement all in one 🌿
🌱 Dogbane Plant (Coleus canina / Plectranthus caninus)
Often known as the "scaredy cat plant," this hardy perennial is a useful addition to a permaculture system. It's valued for its strong scent, which is believed to help deter animals and some pests when planted around garden edges.
As a companion plant, it's low maintenance and produces plenty of biomass for chop-and-drop mulching, helping build soil over time.
- Hardy and drought-tolerant once established
- May help deter cats, dogs, and some browsing animals
- Produces organic matter for soil improvement
- Easy to grow and propagate
- Works well around garden borders and tree bases
🌿 A practical, multi-purpose plant that supports a more balanced and low-input growing system.
