Originally Posted by Protea

Hi,

I'm using Caliente Mustard for green manure on my plot, partly because i work for the company that sells it, and also because i believe it to be one of the best green manures. The green manure effect is not its only benefit however - the gas produced when chopping the plant can be incorporated into the soil and helps to reduce soil disease and weed seeds, amongst other things.

Just to clarify the gas given off is ITC (isothiocyanate) and is produced by all members of the brassica family - this mustard has just been bred to produce high levels of it.

I used it in an area of my garden last year that had just been cleared and was covered in weeds - it kept the weeds down fantastically for nearly the whole summer (didn't grow anything on it so don't know about soil improvement) You need to incorporate it GREEN to get the benefit - it isn't frost hardy so Autumn sowings are best, incorporating before the first frosts (and before it sets seed). Other mustards will do a similar job but have longer growing seasons and have not been bred specifically for the job, but unless your a commercial grower its really not an issue.

more information here: http://www.victoriana.ws/Product.asp?PID=700