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I recently found a partially finished bottle of an energy drink placed in the euphorbia trough by one of the scaffolders. An architect friend joked, “Are you sure that’s Lucozade?” which made me see it differently.

In short, the garden is in disarray. But there’s a lot to be said for negligence; after returning from holiday, I spotted a sunflower sprouting in the back corner.

This week, though, some urgent tidying is underway. As I’m expecting a baby, I’ve enlisted a professional gardener to tackle invasive plants like green alkanet and young tree shoots from the neighbour’s tree, while leaving the good stuff. Next, in the open patches, I’ll be sowing green manure.

Green manure are superheroes when it comes to boosting soil quality.

A fellow garden writer has written about cover crops, as they play a key role in crop rotation for vegetable plots. But, the only things I’m picking from my garden right now are a few foraged apples and some hardy herbs.

My garden goals are simple and steady – and enhancing soil health is my main priority. For those wondering, the scaffolding is for roof repairs, and the fences are still wobbly, but the neighbours are on board with the plan.

Cover crops work wonders for soil health. Bare soil invites weeds, which is why weeds appear. But by sowing vigorous crops, you can suppress weeds, bring in bees, host pest-eating creatures, and enrich the soil with nutrients.

Green manure plants aren’t always showy – though some, like certain lupin varieties and bird’s foot trefoil, have lovely blooms – but their role is to thrive rather than be admired. After they’ve grown, you can turn them under, chop them for mulch, or leave them on the surface for earthworms to incorporate. The real magic happens below the surface.

Autumn is perfect for sowing these overwintering crops. I’ve chosen forage rye, great for clay soil, a nitrogen-lifter, vetch, and field beans.

It feels rewarding in sowing something knowing it’s temporary – on the surface, anyway.