How to start crop rotation

[Weed grower]

Hi, im new here and to allotments. I have taken over a plot full of weeds and a broken shed. There a few carrots still in
the ground and some old sweetcorn stems, also a wigwam of canes so guessing some kind of bean was grown there, The rest is just weeds. How do I start a crop rotation without knowing what was there last year?

[Snoop Puss]

Hello and welcome.

To be honest, a lot of us don't rotate crops that strictly. Just try not to grow the same things in the same place twice. If you can't get any info off your plot neighbours, your best bet is just to start and rotate from here on in. No need to worry about growing beans in the same place two years running. Ditto sweetcorn, I'd say. So long as you feed the soil, you'll be OK. No need to feed the bean bed with nitrogen - too much and you'll get all leaf and no beans!

Weeds are a bit disheartening to deal with, but at least you know things will grow!

Best of luck. Hope you have a great growing year. Looking forward to hearing about your progress.

[MyWifesBrassicas]

In the ten years I've had my plot, I've never rotated.
I often grow things in the same place each year, I know or told I shouldn't, but I don't have many issues.
I did once loose a crop of potatoes a few years ago to blight, but i think that was a bad year for many others too.
I don't think I've helped, sorry

[Jungle Jane]

It’s good you know where carrots,beans & sweetcorn are,they’d be good areas to put potatoes or onions because you know they weren’t there last year. You might see some potato shoots somewhere on the plot,usually a few are missed & resprout,if you find any,use that bed for something that’s not in the nightshade family. Continual non crop rotation would lead to nutrient deficiencies in the soil,pest build up & diseases. You’ll be alright though welcome to the vine

[bikermike]

Hello! I'd find out what you can and just go from there.

after all, if you rotate, even if you've got it horribly wrong and put brassicas in an area with club root, next year you'll move it somewhere else anyway.

the one thing I'd say is to put the brassicas right to one side so you can do next year as far away as possible.

[Thelma Sanders]

Just put things where you want to this year, without worrying about it, then you can rotate from next year. One year of perhaps getting things wrong really shouldn't make any difference.

I'm one of those people that don't follow any strict rotation order - I just make sure that I don't follow one crop with the same crop in exactly the same place the next year. It makes things so much easier to plan

[Logunner]

Welcome.

No way of knowing what went were, so I’d make my own plan and enjoy discovering what works.

In my second year and can safely say it’s the best decision I’ve made in ages.

[Weed grower]

Found potatoes

Thanks for all your help. It seems you all agree to just get growing and see whats what. I have found some potatoes growing as well so will plant something else there. I will plant some potatoes in quite a bit of the plot as ive been told they are a good first crop . Only problem is i dont have any yet so they will have to planted without being chitted, benn told its bad and its ok so will see. The rest will be simple for my first year. Bonus of some strawberries, look a bit sad though. Thanks again for your advise

[Atta]

Thanks for all your help. It seems you all agree to just get growing and see whats what. I have found some potatoes growing as well so will plant something else there. I will plant some potatoes in quite a bit of the plot as ive been told they are a good first crop . Only problem is i dont have any yet so they will have to planted without being chitted, benn told its bad and its ok so will see. The rest will be simple for my first year. Bonus of some strawberries, look a bit sad though. Thanks again for your advise

I never chit potatoes

[rary]

Like Atta I don't bother to chit potatoes either

[MyWifesBrassicas]

me neither.

[Snoop Puss]

Chitting will speed up the harvest. But nothing wrong with having to wait a little bit longer - you still get a harvest.
I've read recommendations for chitting first earlies but not bothering to chit second earlies or maincrops.

[Kirk]

Crop rotation was from ancient school days something for subsistance growing where you had 4 strips of land. And one of the rotation stages was let it sit there doing nothing.

Grow beans to add nitrogen as I recall, now we add growmore.

Chitting potatoes I saw on a program about Jersey Royals and what we do is not the chtting they did. Just plant them.

[Greenleaves]

I grew a couple of rows of of first earlies last year...chitting made absolutely no difference at all


Welcome to the vine

[Thelma Sanders]

Chitting potatoes is something to do with them while you're waiting for planting time, stops them getting long white sprouts if left in a box or bag and gives the early potatoes a head start It's not worth chitting later potatoes but as all of mine arrive at once they all get chitted..
Jersey Royal potatoes are chitted under very controlled conditions in order to get the earliest possible harvest.
https://www.jerseyroyal.co.uk/how-we-do-it/

To me it makes sense not to keep growing the same crop in one place. That would deplete certain crop dependant nutrients in the soil and give that crop's pests a chance to build up. Best to move things around, for that reason, although I don't think a set rotation plan is necessary nowadays.