Workshop: Benefits of Cover Crops in Raised Beds and Small Gardens

Wednesday, July 16, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
Cover crops keep garden soil covered with plants outside the regular growing season. These crops are not intended for harvest, but instead provide many benefits to improve soil health, support beneficial pollinators, and help manage weeds. Learn how you can benefit from using cover crops in your raised beds and small garden at our workshop on July 16, 2025.

​Free!

Seed Sale

Open online July 1 – 31
Pickup at HCCD Office August 18-29
Select from two cover crop seed mixes specially designed for raised beds and small gardens by Walnut Creek Seed, premier cover crop seed company in Ohio. Place your seed order online between July 1-31, 2025 and pick up your seeds at the Hamilton County Conservation District between August 18-29, just in time for fall planting.

Types of Seed Mixes:

WCS Fall Cover Mix: this mix is selected to die off over winter, leaving surface mulch that requires little to no management prior to planting in the spring. Ideal for cool season vegetables, it loosens topsoil, protects from winter erosion and nutrient loss, fixes nitrogen, and suppresses weeds. Leftover plant matter provides food for soil microbes which are crucial for healthy soil.
  • $6 /lb
  • Plant in August to mid-September.
  • Can be planted around mature warm season vegetables to begin protecting soil before your garden is put to rest (trim up plants to ensure sunlight and water to germinating seedlings).
  • Composition: cow pea, oilseed radish, mung bean, pearl millet, oats, Ethiopian cabbage.
  • Seeding rate: 200-300 Sq Ft /lb
WCS Raised Bed Mix: this mix is designed to provide diverse root structures and organic matter to fortify and amend depleted soils. It may be used in all garden types and provides pollinators and beneficial insects with fall and spring blooms. Hairy vetch provides the benefit of nitrogen fixation and weed suppression; however some management will be required in spring to prepare the bed for planting. Cut, mow, or crimp when in full bloom in late May. Use clippings for mulch or compost.
  • $6 /lb
  • Plant in August to mid-September or 6-8 weeks before first frost.
  • Can be planted around mature warm season vegetables to begin protecting the soil before your garden is put to rest (trim up plants to ensure sunlight and water to germinating seedlings).
  • Composition: buckwheat, flax, hairy vetch, oats, phalacia, yellow mustard, oilseed radish, Austrian winter peas.
  • Seeding rate: 200-300 Sq Ft /lb