If you're an organic gardener and are curious which cover crops will work best in Tucson, you're in the right place. And if you're in Zone 9a in a different location, this may give you some good ideas for your area as well.

cover crops clover and fenugreek in tucson in june
Clover and fenugreek, along with some cowpea and millet in Tucson in June.
These were chopped and dropped every couple weeks to feed the soil

Why Use Cover Crops in Tucson?

Cover crops are all about soil health and soil remediation/regeneration.

If you're rusty on your cover crop knowledge, pause here and check out our Intro to Cover Cropping before continuing.

Because the native soil in Tucson is of such poor quality, boasting <1% organic matter content and a pH which sometimes exceeds 9.0, improving the soil is crucial if you intend to grow anything other than native plants.

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Cover crops offer the ways and means to regenerate the native soil and bring it up to a quality which will allow you to grow veggies, herbs, and fruits.

Cover crops also hold soil in place, so that nutrients aren't lost to monsoon flash flooding runoff and dust storm weathering - both common means of nutrient loss here in Tucson.

Which Cover Crops Can Grow in Tucson?

Because of the unique climate with its lack of water, extreme heat and sunlight, alkaline soils, and little raindall, Tucson is a difficult place for some crops to grow.

Thankfully many cover crops are much heartier than veggies are, and can generally be established in depleted soils where vegetables might not yet be able to grow.

After improving the soil through chopping & dropping those cover crops, you can remediate it enough to eventually support thriving vegetable and herb gardens.

The following is an incomplete list of cover crops which I've found to grow well here in Tucson. This list is always changing, and I encourage suggestions down in the comment section if you've had good experiences with cover crops that aren't on the list.

Tucson Cover Crop Seasonal Guide

Here's a rough seasonal guide for what cover crops to plant during each season in Tucson:



While figuring out the seasonal timing for main crops, I also had to try cover crops at various times to see what covers can handle the heat and droughts, as well as which covers to grow during each season.

Cover crops are absolutely crucial to soil-building, so figuring out what the best cover crops for Tucson are and the timing for each was paramount to successful regenerative gardening here.

Spring

Dry Summer

millet and sudangrass cover crops in garden
Millet and Sudangrass growing together here during Tucson's toasty summer and monsoon seasons.

Monsoon

Autumn

Winter


If you'd like specific monthly timing, check out Tucson Monthly Planting Guides for links to each month's detailed planting guide.

These guides include herbs, veggies, flowers, grains, and cover crops for each month.