Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Crop Rotation

Crop Rotation means planting different crops in each location every year. It's a great way to prevent soil pathogens and pests from building up year after year. If you include a cover crop in your rotation, it even builds the soil! At the very least, you should try not to plant the same plant (or even plant family) in the same place for 4 years. Longer is better. This is one of the keys to easy organic gardening!

Here's my current sequence for pest & pathogen reduction: Potatoes/Tomatoes/Peppers -> leeks/onion/carrot/garlic -> Brassicas/radish -> cover -> Corn/Beans/Squash -> beets/lettuce/greens/mustard underneath beans
(yes, beans are in there twice, but the 2 year group is separated by 4 years)

Family
MembersFollowsWhy?
Beets (Chenopodiaceae)
Amaranth
Beets
Spinach
Swiss Chard


Brassicas (Cruciferae)
broccoli
brussels sprouts
cabbage
cauliflower
collards
kale
kohlrabi
mustard
radishes
turnips
arugula
Garlic, leeks, onions
Legumes
Onion-family crops thwart parasites and pests that trouble cabbage
Legumes build up soil nutrients for heavy feeders.
Carrot (Apiaceae)
carrot
celery
chervil
cilantro
dill
parsley
parsnips
Winter squash or pumpkins
(anywhere really)
Potatoes
Vining crops smother weeds, making it easier to keep root crops clean.
(fairly unrelated to other crops and each other)
Potatoes require digging which loosens up the soil for root crops
Grasses (Gramineae)
corn
oat
rye
wheat
Cover cropsCover crops help build up the soil for corn.
Lettuce/sunflower (Compositae)
artichoke
chicory
endive
lettuce
sunflower
Carrots, parsnipsRoots loosen soil, making penetration easier for shallow rooted lettuce
Onion (Liliaceae)
chives
garlic
leeks
onions
shallots
Winter squash or pumpkins
Brassicas
fall planted garlic and shallots should follow potato
Vining crops smother weeds, making it easier to keep root crops clean.
Brassicas kill soil pests.
Potato harvest results in a clear planting bed for fall-planted crops
Peas/beans (Leguminosae)
alfalfa
beans
clover
cowpea
lentils
peanuts
peas
vetch
Cabbage-family crops or cornLegumes fix their own nitrogen. Turn cover crops under to replace nutrients used by heavy-feeding crops.
Squash (Curcurbitaceae)Cucumbers
melons
pumpkin
squash


Tomato/nightshades (Solanaceae)eggplant
peppers
potatoes
tomatoes
Mustard, rape, turnips
Potatoes can follow corn
Incorporate cabbage-family crop residues to help rid the soil of pathogens that attack nightshades
Corn as a preceding crop increases yield of potatoes


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