THE virtues of comfrey have been extolled in this column before, but as I gave my overgrown plant one of its regular cuttings on Saturday, it acted as a timely reminder of the plant’s many uses.

Organic gardeners and growers have used comfrey for decades as a compost activator, soil conditioner, as a mulch, liquid feed or for lining runner bean trenches.

And if, like mine, it arrived unannounced on the plot having self seeded, is completely free.

To look at, if left untended, comfrey can grow to about three feet in height and has stunning purple or creamy white flowers which bees adore – so good news for attracting pollinators to the plot. But it is the large, thick, hairy leaves that provide all the goodness.

This foliage is rich in nutrients such as nitrogen and potash and, as it rots down, releases these nutrients back into the soil, offering an organic and completely free plant fertiliser.

I try not to let my comfrey get to the flower stage, cutting it down around five times during the season, to harvest the leaves. It quickly grows back and in the autumn is rewarded with a dose of horse manure over the winter months.

All you need to make a liquid feed is a plastic tub (preferably with some kind of lid), filled up to a third with comfrey leaves. Add some rainwater to cover the leaves and leave in a corner of the plot. It takes about two weeks in the summer, with just one word of warning – it smells disgusting and goes a dark black in colour. Diluted, one part feed to ten parts water, the feed can be used around the base of hungry plants such as beans, courgettes, squashes and tomatoes.