Crop Rotation

Hi Greenman - I'm trying to follow Seymour with regard to crop rotation, and here's what he says:

"Manure that land heavily and sow potatoes. After the potatoes are lifted, lime the land heavily and the next year sow peas and beans. Once the peas and beans are lifted, set out the brassicas immediately from their seed bed. The brassicas will have been eaten by the next spring and it will be time for the mixed crops, and follow these with the roots, then back to spuds where we started."

In practice, he says to sneak some leeks in after the new potatoes have come up, and of course overwintering bored beans and peas can go in after the maincrop spuds have been lifted. And if you have any spare space left, he recommends sowing green manure, like rye.

Very succinct Hazel!

Thats what I am doing at present, sneaking some leeks in as the earlies finish!

Personally, I sometimes think we get a bit hung up on crop rotation and in reality can mix and match a bit, as long as we don't grow the same crop on the same land each year. As with everything there are exceptions ie onions and leeks grown in the same area each year seems to be a common one!

As well as the leeks after my early tatties I will be planting winter brassicas and autumn sown broad beans, with maybe even some Japanese onions thrown in for good measure when my maincrop finish!

Sorry Mr Seymour!

You could also stick in a few quick grow salad crops, lettuce and radish for example. I think the main point of crop rotation is that you don't grow potatoes on the same bed every year, or onions, or beans, mainly because of disease problems lurking in the soil, and also because they all deplete the soil of certain nutrients. As long as you keep some sort of rotation going you should be OK.

Hi Greenman

It took me a while to figure it out.

First decide what you are going to grow - i'll use mine as an example as that's what i have to go on!

Potatoes [bed 1]
peas and beans [bed 2]
Broccolli, caulis, cabbages with turnips and swede [bed 3]
Tomatoes [bed 4]
roots, including onions and carrots mainly [bed 5]

Now, that's year 1, in year 2 the peas and beans shift into Bed 1 and everything else follows. HOWEVER
you can sow your beetroot, courgettes, cukes, and herbs wherever you have space, as these don't take up too many nutrients and have too many bugs/diseases.
You need a planting plan for winter as well as summer, and you can utilise spare space as long as the same crop isn't coming into that bed for 2 or best, 3 years. So, when the pots are out [as mine will be in a few weeks], leeks, and onions will go down as they won't be coming into that plot for 4 years. It is my first year in a new plot, so in a few years time, the onions and leeks will go in between the brassicas for winter harvests as they will not have had onions in 2 years, but won't have had onions for another 2 years [as i have 5 beds].

When my toms are over, i can sow onions and carrots for an early spring harvest, as i'll keep them under cloches for the winter, and come spring, sow more so that they only have one actual year in that bed. I grow all my onions from seed. [n.b., i will dig the main onions/carrot bed deep before i plant, and sieve or remove as many stones as i can - this means every 5 years every bed gets a deep dig and a sieve]

When my brassicas are done, green manure [rye and stuff] will go in over winter as the toms love a bit of it, as toms will follow.

The bean and pea bed will have brassicas in it next year so i will sow some purple sprouting broccoli and some other earlys as soon as it is clear.

Lettuce, i grow under cloches through the winter, so that can go anywhere, i move it around through the year onto any clear patches.

turnip and swede, for those that i think will get harvested this year, stay in the brassica bed; for those that will be harvested early next year i will put in the pea and bean bed as soon as it is clear.

Once all onions and carrots are out of the root bed, i will chuck loads of green manure in ready for the pots next spring.

Does that help at all???

It does, both from you and all the other contributors to my question

Thank you very much indeed

i've got the basics of a 3 plot crop rotation plan - but there is so much "conflicting advice" out there!

i know i could make much more efficient use of my land if i just knew more - would be a lot less digging etc a lot less empty space

i'm sticking with my basic 3 plot rotation system (with separate beds for onions) until i have more experience - hopefully meet up with some of you guys and see how you do it etc

i also want to have something overwintering and prepare ground etc for next year - just a case of finding out what goes where and when ....

Hi Greenman. We are working on a 4 bed rotation, but not doing potatoes as they take up too much space in our very small back garden. I've posted a planting plan on the blog and in 'allotment advice' on the vine. I'd be happy to explain anything to you if you want. The best bit about what we have done is that we have a winter plan too, so that the beds are only really empty in the depths of winter.