I firmly believe that comfrey, specifically the Bocking 14 strain developed by L D Hills founder of the HDRA is very under rated by both gardeners and farmers. It will grow in most ground; from sand to heavy clay, wet…
The only variety of comfrey recommended and available for garden fertiliser & livestock feeding use is Bocking 14. In an ideal world you would also be able to obtain Bocking 4 which is more suitable as a livestock feed but…
Location of the Comfrey Bed A comfrey bed is basically a permanent feature with a lifespan in excess of 20 years on your plot or in your garden so getting the site right is fairly critical. Once established, killing off…
Feeding Comfrey to Chickens One of the problems of feeding hens is that whilst we’ve managed to well nigh double their egg-laying capacity by selective breeding over the last hundred years we’ve not increased their crop capacity. The hen’s crop…
Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids in Comfrey & Liver Damage Comfrey has been found to contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids that damage the liver and has been implicated in causing cancer of the liver. Exactly how high the risk is in ingesting comfrey is not…
Comfrey as a Compost Activator Cuts of comfrey fresh or wilted can be laid onto the compost heap, layered with the weeds or grass cuttings. Comfrey is so rich that it can be used as if it was manure to…
When to Plant Comfrey Ideally plant out offsets in March, April and May or in September. September plantings may not show until the following spring. Late planted offsets in pots can be moved into the greenhouse or a cold frame…
How to Grow Comfrey, Uses & History I am convinced that anyone growing their own should devote some space to growing comfrey. I call my comfrey patch my compost mine because with a little effort I can produce a great…
Different fertilisers will provide different percentages of various nutrients so the quantity added will depend on the npk content of the type of manure or compost you use. For example, if you want to add 10g of nitrogen per square…