Hi all,

I wish I had joined earlier, this is a very interesting discussion. I tried comfrey in our small Taylors Gold pear trial orchard when i was working at Lincoln University in NZ. Very easy to establish, outcompeted everything, easy to mow, great mulch and worked extremly well in a mow and blow system. Seeing as the above ground part dies back in autumn it leaves the ground bare, which should help with rodents.

An extra plus is the very long flowering period, if i remember correctly it was from November till May. With mowing every second or third row, there is potential to have food for benefitial insects all growing season long.

I would definitly plant it right under the drip line, as it needs a lot of moisture to sustain the extreme growth.

Earlier this year my partner and I moved to Sweden, I hope to get similar results here. I assume it will be a bit more tricky with a cooler soil temperatures in spring compared to NZ. I will trial it here next season, in a more intense apple system with 1m tree distance.

Maybe a combination of a hybrid Comfrey with Allium ursinum in the gaps could be an idea.

Cheers Dominik