green manure


nounAgriculture.
  1. a crop of growing plants, as clover and other nitrogen-fixing plants, plowed under to enrich the soil.

  2. manure that has not undergone decay.

Origin of green manure

1
First recorded in 1835–45

Words Nearby green manure

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use green manure in a sentence

  • Many plants have been employed as green manure, and different opinions have been expressed as to their relative values.

  • green manure crops may be grown at any time that the soil is not occupied by other crops, provided other conditions are suitable.

    The First Book of Farming | Charles L. Goodrich
  • If there is a long interval of time during spring or summer when the land is bare, that is a good time for a green manure crop.

    The First Book of Farming | Charles L. Goodrich
  • By using the legumes for our green manure crops we may supply the soil with nitrogen taken from the air.

    The First Book of Farming | Charles L. Goodrich
  • The Canadian Field Pea is sometimes grown in the north as a green manure crop.

    The First Book of Farming | Charles L. Goodrich

British Dictionary definitions for green manure

green manure

noun
  1. a growing crop that is ploughed under to enrich the soil

  2. manure that has not yet decomposed

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for green manure

green manure

  1. A growing crop, such as clover or grass, that is plowed under the soil to improve fertility. Green manure can also reduce erosion and, if the crop is leguminous, add nitrogen to the soil.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.