Global Ecovillage Network/Solution Library/Comfrey

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To use truly sustainable methods to fertilise plants.

Easy to grow, Comfrey draws nutrients from deep in the soil and in harvesting the leaves these nutrients can feed other plants.

Comfrey has long been recognized by both organic gardeners and herbalists for its great usefulness and versatility; of particular interest is the 'Bocking 14' cultivar of Russian Comfrey, a strain developed in the 1950s by Lawrence D Hills, the founder of the Henry Doubleday Research Association (the organic gardening organisation).

Comfrey is a particularly valuable source of fertility to the organic gardener. It is very deep rooted and acts as a dynamic accumulator, mining a host of nutrients from the soil. These are then made available through its fast-growing leaves (up to 4-5 pounds per plant per cut) which, lacking fibres, quickly break down to a thick black liquid. There is also no risk of nitrogen robbery when comfrey is dug into the soil as the C:N ratio of the leaves is lower than that of well-rotted compost. Comfrey is an excellent source of potassium, an essential plant nutrient needed for flower, seed and fruit production. Its leaves contain 2-3 times more potassium than farmyard manure, mined from deep in the subsoil, tapping into reserves that would not normally be available to plants.

Use Comfrey as a compost activator and a mulch, make it into liquid fertiliser and use as a companion plant for trees and other perennials.

• Seeds, Food & Soil.

• ww.permaculture.co.uk/videos/least-12-reasons-plant-comfrey-symphytum-officinale-your-permaculture-garden
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comfrey