crop rotation and other ideas help gunners is confused!

[gunners71uk]

ok i been reading up on crop rotation but i am confused as you know i have an allotment its been standing for 6 years or so,i have had leeks in now i have almost ate them what can i put in there instead i was going to put spring onion beetroot etc what do you think.
if you planting things like raddish beetroot etc can you plannt the same in that year as some crops mature in say 12-16 weeks what do you put in there afterwards i am really confused.can i have some help pls ta

[ina]

Ideally, it might be easiest to divide your plot into four parts, for a four-year rotation: After leek (and other onion related plants), which can share the plot with carrots, beetroot etc, you should plant cabbages of all kinds (possibly lime the soil before that - a.s.a.p.!); after cabbages it would be good to have peas/beans etc (which enrich the soil with nitrogen), then potatoes (which need a lot of nitrogen!). I say, ideally... somehow it never quite works out like that for me; at the end of the season the stuff just goes in anywhere there is room for it. But still, don't plant the same stuff (or close relatives) in the same spot twice in a year. There are some plants (lettuces for example) that can go in as fillers, after a crop that only needs a short time to mature. (I'd have to look in my "bible" to give you more exact information - I always forget all the plants that go together!)

Ina

[gunners71uk]

so what can go in after leeks can i put salad crops beetroot etc thanks for any help you can give ina

[Tigerhair]

Root group next... Beetroot, Carrots, chicory, endive, parsnip, radishes, salsify, spinach, swedes, turnips (this doesn't include the potato group!!!)

[Wombat]

The rotation I use to work on was - potatoes and roots to break up the soil followed by legumes (peas, beans) to put in nitrogen; followed by leaf crops (lettuce; silver beet etc) to use the nitrogen followed by anything else (capsicum, tomatoes, corn etc.).

In practice make sure that if you plant brassicas one season, don't plant brassicas the following season ie plant another plant family than the on the soil last grew.

Nev

[ina]

I think that's the main principle to follow - don't grow the same stuff twice in the same plot. The longer you leave between crops on the same bit of land, the better.

[diver]

all my books say ( as do the oldies on the plots) potatoes, then brassicas, the legumes and finally roots...then start again
Make sure that you don't put lime (or mushroom compost) wher e you are putting your spuds and put plenty of manure where your legumes are going....works for me!

[Andy Hamilton]

To totally add a spanner to the works, one of the old boys on my allotment has grown beans in the same sport for 15 years with no trouble. He does not use organic meathods though so I am expecting that he may have to use more pest control every year, will find out.

[gunners71uk]

an old bou nr me has put beans same place for 30 yrs or so, i find it hard to work out what follows what the thing i do know brassicas and spuds diffrent place each year.
so where i have took out my leeks i can put parsnips in or beetroot etc i thought leeks is a root crop

[Wombat]

Onion tribe mate!

[Tigerhair]

I am doing a horticultural course, gunners, it says in there:

The organic gardener will usually use at least a 4-year rotation.

The groups are:

Root group - as described above.

Onions and Brassicas group - broccoli, brussels, cabbage, cauli, kale, garlic, leeks, onions, shallots, spring onions.

Potato group - capicums, courgettes, cucumber, lettuce, marrows, pots, chard, spinach beet, sweetcorn and tomatos.
Legumes group - beans, peas, celariac, celery, artichokes....

Divide your garden into four plots, A B C & D, then:

Year 1 A Potato, B Legumes, C Onion/Brassicas, D Roots
Year 2 D Potato, A Legumes, B Onion/Brassicas, C Roots
Year 3 C Potato, D Legumes, A Onion/Brassicas, B Roots
Year 4 B Potato, C Legumes, D Onion/Brassicas, A Roots

Any clearer?

[Tigerhair]

Gunners, also, your posts are REALLY hard to read because you don't use punctuation....

[Millymollymandy]

I looked into crop rotation last year and there seem to be as many schools of thought as bugs that eat your veg. I really don't think it matters desperately what follows what because the reality is that you will probably be squeezing odds and sods in here and there wherever you have a space (like me!). Then you find the problems with the winter veg still in the ground at the time you want to start planting things, like curly kale and especially purple sprouting brocolli.

I've just had to dig up all my parsnips and half of my carrots to start preparing the potato plot. I can't even do a thing for my onion plot because it is full of kale!!

So much for all this manuring the autumn before - 3 out of my 5 plots are still chocka block full of veggies!

[gunners71uk]

Gunners, also, your posts are REALLY hard to read because you don't use punctuation....

sorry about that,i try to do better ! but my english writing is not brilliant,
thanks for the point.
thanks for your help.

[ina]

Thanks, Tigerhair, for putting so succinctly what I was trying to say earlier , I seemed to be almost as confused as gunners there... And I agree with Mandy, I usually end up doing things rather more haphazardly than the book recommends. How am I supposed to lime a plot which is still half full of stuff? And there are ALWAYS too many plants of everything, so they go wherever there's room for them. Amongst the flowers, if necessary.