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organic Organic Gardening...No Till...Forum?

Proud Marine Dad said:
I bought some organic alfalfa seeds on ebay and was going to use those as a cover crop in my small 8' x 16' garden area but now I am wondering if Hairy Vetch or something else might be a better idea? I know very little about cover crops but need to add some life to this soil. I will put in as much compost as I can but nitrogen is needed most as tomatoes are pathetic grown in that soil and so I let the ground rest this season.
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I was sold on hairy vetch earlier, but now it seems that it won't be as easy to kill as I though originally.  It seems I may need to use a herbicide to ensure that it truly dies and doesn't volunteer later on.  I'm thinking I'm going to use forage radish in all three of my raised beds now.  In the bed for the pepper plants, I'll just get a good heavy mulch in place in April to make sure no weeds can rear their ugly heads as the forage radish residue disappears
 
If you don't let it go to seed it doesn't seem hard to kill from what I've read.  It has a shallow root system, so it seems that as long as it's mowed down/pulled up before it get's to 50% flower it won't seed as is easy to control.  A quick search found this reference, had a more thorough explanation of it's life cycle but can't find it off hand.
 
http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/crops/facts/cover_crops01/hairyvetch.htm
 
It's an odd plant, very invasive once established but I've read a couple times that it can be out competed fairly easily and needs help to be established.  It's rampant along our highways, both hairy vetch and common vetch, which at least means I have a free source of seed for next year.  So obviously I'm not worried about growing it, I'd do some more research before dismissing it.
 
I shred my leaves either when mowing or in the fall and mix with grass clippings. Just place on top of the soil and they are prerty well composted before spring.
 
The green waste matter that I put over the top of my raised bed in October 2012 should be okay to till under in October 2013, right?  No "N" tie up?
millworkman, are you using no till?
 
If you,want to break up,your clay soil, look into forage radish. It has a long and wide tap root. Also returns a good amount of nutrients and organic matter into the soil when it decomposes.
 
If you have a lot of space, you can pile all your leaves in one big mound each year, cover with something to keep them from blowing away, wet occasionally and wait for 2-3 years (maybe less, depending on the lignin content of your leaves). You will end up with a quantity of quality leaf mold. If you are less patient, do like millwork (and me) and shred them and mix with grass clippings or other greens and do a standard compost regimen. Finished in a few months,
 
I am actually using a lot of leaves in my container mixes with letting it rot down first. Plants seems to love this. Well shredded of course.
 
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