green manure

noun

: an herbaceous crop (such as clover) plowed under while green to enrich the soil

green-manure transitive verb

Examples of green manure in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In between grazing cycles, the ranch may plant cover crops, plants that are grown expressly to be turned into green manure. — Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 28 Oct. 2026

Annual ryegrass only lives for a season and is often used as a green manure or cover crop in veggie beds. — Lauren Landers, The Spruce, 18 Aug. 2026

Red clover can make a drought- and shade-tolerant lawn alternative, but it is more often grown as an annual winter cover crop and then tilled into the soil as green manure. — Hallie Milstein, Southern Living, 13 May 2026

Plants like forage radish, buckwheat, and alfalfa can also serve as cover crops or green manures to improve soil structure and replenish nutrients in gardens after the growing season has ended. — Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1785, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for green manure

• annexure
• embouchure
• epicure
• immature
• paramour
• premature
• reassure
• reinsure
• sinecure
• abjure
• adjure
• allure

Kids Definition

green manure

noun

: a crop of plants (as clover) that is plowed under while green to enrich the soil