If the peas can handle the amendments, then there should be no reason not to use them as a cover crop. However, once the blueberries are in the ground, you should keep them totally free of any competition.

Sorry to further hi-jack the subject-line of this thread. But the 'pissing contest' seems to have overtaken courtesy. When I do a google search on my REAL NAME [not forum moniker] I get 20,305 'hits'. I know from experience that many of the references to my name are duplicates and even bogus hits. I used to be very active ... my name is on a lawsuit against the CA Board of Ed, which went clear to the U.S. Sup.Ct.[we lost, which is not the same thing as being wrong] I only mention this to mitigate for the silly claim about 763 'hits' for kimmsr's name in connection with money. Which is apropos of nothing. What does it matter if this participant has a 'thing' about not wasting money. How is that different from your 'thing' about holding his views up to ridicule. If we search your name in connection with smarmy, sarcastic references to kimmsr, what will we find? Nice try, but no cigar.

I've got a little over 1200 sq ft in raised beds right now. I use cardboard covered by wood chips in my pathways. The wood chips hold moisture where the plants can access it - even in hot, dry weather the area under the chips is cool and damp; and I don't have to water near as much. The chips also provide a 4 season path to walk on/work from. I add more chips each year; and if weeds are a problem - ie: if I let lambsquarter go to seed - I lay down a sheet of cardboard over the weedy area before putting down the new layer of chips. The chips break down over a period of about 3 years, at which time I rake back the top, intact chips, then dig out the composted material. I'm a little OCD, so I sift the big chunks out (and use them to mulch around fruit trees), then use the sifted material to mulch the plants in the garden. I don't incorporate it - I let the worms take care of that. Since I rarely turn the soil in my raised beds, preferring to use a bulb auger to dig the holes for my plants; it doesn't get incorporated in a large way, so no nitrogen stealing. [IMG]http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f262/Polly916/100_0053.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f262/Polly916/100_0126.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f262/Polly916/100_0122.jpg[/IMG] The cardboard seems to draw worms to the garden, so that is a mark in it's favor. The paths in the front section of my garden are 3' wide, and that's too narrow to suit me. The paths are about 4 1/2 feet wide in the back section of garden, with 6' wide paths between the sections; and a full 6' wide in the newest section, which allows me to bring a lawn tractor and trailer in to haul manure/compost/mulch/bedding plants/water/etc... The 6' width also allowed room for my Pop's golf cart to pass through. I plan to add another 4, 4x8 raised beds to the garden this year; and if finances allow, I will redo the front section of garden, and widen the paths in that area. I have plenty of ground, so the wide paths work better for me. YMMV.

This forum is primarily about sowing seeds in the winter and spring using Trudi's technique with containers, etc. I'm thinking you might want to ask this on the veggie or tomato forum?