Advice on 4 Year Crop Rotation

[ShelleyC]

Hi everyone, can anyone advise me on crop rotation. I have searched online for the past few days but they all say something different although GrowVeg.com had the same rotation as I have thought of. I have a plot that I have separated into 4 Areas. Area 4 currently has garlic and onions growing in it since last October 2008. I was planning on having Area 1 for potatoes, Area 2 for Roots and Area 3 for Brassicas. Does this rotation sound ok, if so, what do I need to so to the soil - I know Area 1 needs manure but what about the rest. Am slightly confused with it all. Any help and advise please.

[Hazel at the Hill]

There's some good posts about 4 year rotations, Shelley - here's one with Zazen's comprehensive answer, but there's other advice on the same subject if you do a search on the green bar at the top.

Welcome to the vine.

[ShelleyC]

Many thanks I will have a look, got confused of where to search for things on here, theres so much information

[Eyren]

The thing about rotation is that one size doesn't suit all. For example, I don't have potatoes in my allotment rotation atm, partly because ours were blighted last year and also I'm fed up of digging up volunteers! We're going to grow them in containers at home this year, and see what the productivity is like.

Your four-year plan sounds fine, if that's the main veg you are going to grow. Myself, I tend to put onions and roots into the same slot because they take up a lot less space per plant than either spuds or brassicas and also like similar soil conditions, and I use one whole slot for legumes cos I love them, but your needs might be different.

The brassicas will want manure even more than the spuds, as they are notoriously greedy feeders. Some folks say don't manure carrots, so maybe a non-manure fertilizer such as seaweed or BFB (blood, fish and bone) would be useful on that bed? I'm going to be feeding my onion modules with seaweed extract because I'm growing them from seed so they need a bit of a boost.

Apart from that, you laok all set to me

[Flummery]

They used to say the farmer's 4 year crop rotation was Barley, Barley, Barley, World Cruise - but things have changed!

Lots of people use 4 beds to make a 4 year rotation but that assumes you want the same amount of each type of veg, which isn't always the case. I have a sort of potager in the back garden, and half a small allotment plot. My rotation simply consists of making sure things don't go in the same place less than 3 years apart. Lax, slack, but it does work.

[Matt.]

Roots, shoots, leaves in that order. Keep onions in the same bed year on year.

[ShelleyC]

Hazel just realised you are from Sutton Coldfield, so am I, my plot is on The Boulevard, Wylde Green

[Hazel at the Hill]

Hazel just realised you are from Sutton Coldfield, so am I, my plot is on The Boulevard, Wylde Green

Small world, innit! I look at those plots from the train into town!

By the way, there's free compost (Boldmere gate) and bark chippings (Town gate) from Sutton Park at the mo?

[ShelleyC]

Thanks Hazel, as its my first year need plenty of compost will definitely check it out

[Snadger]

................................................ My rotation simply consists of making sure things don't go in the same place less than 3 years apart. Lax, slack, but it does work.

You and me both flum!

While everyone else seems to be getting there knickers in a twist about rotational systems, I personally am rebelling and adopting the sensible approach (ah la flum)

Using Geoff Hamiltons ornamental kitchen ideas is a doddle. Tek summat out.....add muck and plant something else!

Here's a goodun.............where do flowers and herbs come iinto recognised rotational sytems?..........they don't do they............well in my lottie they will............informally!

[Eyren]

Using Geoff Hamiltons ornamental kitchen ideas is a doddle. Tek summat out.....add muck and plant something else!

Maybe in an ornamental garden - I'm more laid back when it comes to the salads in my raised beds at home - but my allotment is different. The crops I grow there are often in the ground for a long time, so unless I plan well ahead I could end up with ground sitting idle for want of a crop that a) I want to eat and b) is a different family from the last crop. I find brassicas to be the most difficult to plan out - we really like them so I want to plant lots of different kinds, but they grow slowly, take up a lot of space and are prone to soil diseases

Here's a goodun.............where do flowers and herbs come iinto recognised rotational sytems?..........they don't do they............well in my lottie they will............informally!

Presumably parsley, coriander, dill, lovage and fennel should go in with your carrots (same family - feathery foliage and "umbrella"-like flower heads), and chives of course with your onions; I don't think there are any herbs amongst the brassicas or legumes. Anyway, a lot of them are perennials (thyme, rosemary, sage, mint) and don't belong in the rotation.

[Eyren]

here is a good link to a 4 year crop rotation chart.
Vegetable Crop Rotation Chart

I see the person who wrote it appreciates that potatoes are in the same family as tomatoes - but maybe someone should tell him/her than turnips and radishes are in the same family as broccoli and cauli. Or don't radishes and turnips suffer from clubroot?

Plus, having a bed empty for a whole year is a criminal waste of space in my book

[Snadger]

Maybe in an ornamental garden - I'm more laid back when it comes to the salads in my raised beds at home - but my allotment is different. The crops I grow there are often in the ground for a long time, so unless I plan well ahead I could end up with ground sitting idle for want of a crop that a) I want to eat and b) is a different family from the last crop. I find brassicas to be the most difficult to plan out - we really like them so I want to plant lots of different kinds, but they grow slowly, take up a lot of space and are prone to soil diseases

I think it all hinges around having loads of pots of all sorts of plants ready to pot out at any time you harvest other stuff! Thats the clever bit!

[Eyren]

I think it all hinges around having loads of pots of all sorts of plants ready to pot out at any time you harvest other stuff! Thats the clever bit!

Ah, well that's my problem - between the cats and the chickens, I have a limited amount of "safe" space for rearing replacements! Last year I lost a whole module tray of sweetcorn in less than two minutes, thanks to a cat who thought it looked like tasty grass!

[zazen999]

Have you thought of a seed bed...I sow into pots/modules and shove stuff in a seed bed until I have the space. They're both about half a meter square...but it is a holding area whilst I'm waiting for space to clear.