A quarter of a century ago, I received a plot of land and began cultivating crops. Then, even with little experience in gardening, I had no idea what crop rotation in the garden was. Ignorance quickly reflected in reduced vegetable yields.
If you harvested giant carrots in the first year, then in subsequent years root vegetables small size. The vegetable did not want to grow in this place. A pest appeared on the plant - a carrot fly interfered with its development.
My father brought various literature on gardening. These were mostly colorful magazines. From them I learned about the benefits of changing crop plantings. Now I don’t step on any mistakes. I will help you find out what crop rotation should be vegetable crops on summer cottage– the table and recommendations will help you understand how to plant crops.
Every year dad draws up a new plan for growing vegetables in the garden. The exception is the greenhouse, where tomatoes, cucumbers and Bell pepper grow in one place. For full development, the land there has to be changed.
I myself was convinced that the requirement of crop rotation also applies to flowers. Gladioli will not bloom well if planted in one place. This requirement also applies to dahlias.
A certain type of plant, figuratively speaking, leaves a trace in the soil. The culture takes up nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. If you grow vegetables, for example, cabbage, every garden season, then the lack of nitrogen will affect development.
Another problem is plant diseases. The number of pathogenic viruses in the soil increases, and harmful insects develop in greater numbers.
Vegetable crop rotation reverses the situation. The development of microorganisms is suppressed, and pests cannot handle another plant; they retreat and more often die.
Some crops, often legumes, even saturate the soil with nitrogen. For this they have earned the name green manure. After them, vegetables develop faster and bear fruit in the beds of my garden.
- Large consumers of nitrogen are leafy crops: various types of cabbage, salads.
- Without phosphorus, root crops will not yield: carrots, potatoes, beets.
- Potassium is required for the full development of peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, beans, zucchini, and melons.
Classification by substance consumption helps to draw up a crop rotation scheme and a plan for placing crops in the garden of a personal plot.
To develop a garden plan, you need to have a recommendation for each plant on hand. A crop planting scheme comes to the rescue.
- Peas grow better after representatives of the nightshade family: tomatoes and potatoes.
- I place the crops of potatoes and tomatoes after squash, peas, onions, cucumbers, cabbage.
- Cabbage various types develops well after legumes, tomatoes and potatoes.
- Cucumber vines are pleased with the harvest after sowing onions and carrots.
- Large beet roots will form after potatoes and cucumbers.
- Garlic tastes great after greens, beans, zucchini and squash.
Poor crop sequence
It is not difficult to remember that plants of the same family or species do not grow well after each other.
- Nightshades include eggplants, tomatoes and peppers.
- Legumes: peas, beans, beans.
- Brassicas or cruciferous vegetables: turnips, radishes, cabbage, radishes.
- After cabbage, I don’t plant pumpkin, radishes, turnips, or cucumbers.
- Parsley gets sick and grows poorly after carrots.
- Cabbage will not set heads well after pumpkin.
A good help for summer residents will be a video about using crop rotation in the garden:
Pleasant neighbors - great harvest
On my personal plot not only correct crop rotation, but also the plants have a pleasant neighborhood. I take into account the ability of different cultures to negatively or positively influence each other’s development. I noticed that most often plants of the same family are at enmity with each other, but how experienced gardener I also take other factors into account.
Insect repellent
If the plants are chosen correctly, their proximity will help repel pests. The point is in biologically active substances - phytoncides, which are released by the green mass of the plant. The smell of onions is not tolerated by the carrot fly, and onion pests are not tolerated by carrot tops. Their beds can be placed nearby.
Another option is to plant in rows in one bed. In addition to the main garden bed, garlic grows in strawberry and strawberry plantings, driving away harmful insects of berry crops.
Low-growing marigolds and calendula will help ward off pests. 2-3 plants at the edge of the bed will play an important role in allelopathy. Marigolds secrete thiophene, which is disliked not only by harmful insects, but also by weeds. Bindweed cannot tolerate such a fragrant neighbor.
Different plant heights
Some plants need light shade, and direct sunlight is contraindicated. Corn can block from winds and sun rays; sometimes pea or green bean vines cope with this task.
Attracting Beneficial Insects
Pollination of plants, including fruit trees and bushes are helped by insects. To attract them to the garden I plant flowers. Perennials and annuals grow not only in the recreation area near the house, but also along the edge of the beds. For example, I occupy 70 centimeters from the edge with gladioli, and add 1-2 petunias or marigold plants to them.
Using green manure in crop rotation
Some plants are able to leave behind rich and fertile soil that is suitable for all crops. The point is in the root system, which is equipped with special tubules. Planting oats will rid the soil of the source of fungal diseases. For this reason, the crop is called a soil health worker.
Green manure includes mustard and phacelia. Moreover, we plant phacelia next to potato plantings so that they do not allow wireworms and mole crickets to profit from the tubers.
After digging up the onions and garlic, I dig up and plant green manure. I give preference to legumes, the roots of which release nitrogen and transform it into a digestible state. I think that planting legumes three times is equivalent to adding a bucket of manure. In the second half of summer, peas have time to develop and produce a small harvest.
Most often I plant wheat and some plants in the fall before winter. In the spring they start to grow, and then I dig up with them.
Improves soil structure and content minerals, earthworms get food. Any crops grow well in such beds, but according to the rules of crop rotation, preference should be given to leafy crops - different types cabbage
Every summer resident knows well that if you plant the same crops in one place for several years in a row, then even under seemingly identical conditions of care, every year they become more and more frail and bear fruit less and less. This phenomenon is caused by soil depletion, which in turn is explained by a number of factors.
The importance of proper crop planning
The first is that pathogens and all kinds of pests accumulate in the soil. For example, potatoes are known to be a favorite delicacy Colorado beetles. If the plantation of this crop does not change location for several years, the pest does not need to migrate in search of food - after wintering, it immediately finds itself in favorable conditions and immediately begins to destroy the plant. In addition to the Colorado potato beetle, planting potatoes contributes to the accumulation of late blight pathogens in the soil, as well as the larvae of click beetles and moths.
With other cultures the situation develops according to the same pattern. In a plot planted with the same crop, the number of those pests will increase from year to year., which are dangerous specifically for it and, accordingly, it will be more and more difficult for the plant to withstand such an invasion. Cabbage, tomatoes, cucumbers, celery, beans, and lettuce especially suffer from this factor. 
The second is an increase in the concentration of harmful substances released by the roots of a particular crop (the so-called colins) and which are toxic to this crop itself. Some plants are very sensitive to the effects of such poisons (for example, beets and spinach), others are more resistant (carrots, pumpkin, radishes, parsley), and others almost do not react to colins (legumes, leeks, corn). Besides, different plants emit different amounts of such harmful substances, for example, there are especially many of them in the soil after cucumbers, carrots and cabbage.
Third – stock depletion nutrients in the soil. Each crop has its own set of nutrients necessary for normal development. It is clear that it is precisely these that such a plant will try to extract from the soil. For example, if cabbage really needs potassium, then after planting it, less and less of this element will remain in the soil, while, say, after radishes, potassium reserves are not depleted so rapidly.
It is easy to understand that the situation can be corrected by correctly alternating the crops planted on the site from year to year. This procedure is called crop rotation and is a whole science. However, if you don’t have time to engage in complex theoretical preparation, it is enough to learn a few fundamental rules, and the harvest on your plot will always be equally abundant.
Rule #1
Not only the same crop, but also close relatives (representatives of the same species) cannot be planted one after another for several years in a row, since they, as a rule, have common pests, react the same to toxins and consume the same composition of microelements.
Rule #2
The average period during which the soil must rest after a certain crop is two years(one year is usually not enough for complete recovery), but for some plants this period is much longer. So, carrots, cucumbers, parsley, beets should not return to their original place for at least 4 years, but for cabbage it is better to withstand all 7 years! These periods can be increased, but it is not advisable to decrease them.
Rule #3
Plants have the ability not only to consume microelements from the soil, but also to enrich it with certain useful substances and properties. Therefore, correct rotation of crops can not only preserve the elements that are especially necessary for the plant, but also improve the composition and structure of the soil without additional procedures. For example, legumes loosen the soil and enrich it with many minerals. Melon and buckwheat saturate the soil with calcium, datura grass with phosphorus, tobacco with potassium, stinging nettle- iron. Knowing these simple rules and taking into account the need of different types of crops for certain microelements, you can easily plan crops for several years in advance. By the way, the indicated properties of the listed crops can be used more fully by placing them in compost after harvesting.
The same rule applies to pests. There are crops that are not only resistant to certain diseases, but also repel their pathogens. For example, aphids do not tolerate plants such as garlic or tobacco. The Colorado potato beetle is afraid of thyme. If you plant such orderlies after plants exposed to these pests, there is good opportunity expel them from the site, freeing it up for planting in subsequent years.
Rule #4
The need of plants for nutrients is not the same. Crops that are too demanding on soil composition should not be planted one after the other. It is more correct to plant legumes in the garden after such a crop or add the necessary layer of fertilizers.
Thus, correct alternation of crops will avoid unilateral depletion of the same elements in the soil, an increase in the concentration of certain types of pests and pathogenic bacteria in it, as well as an uneven load on the soil of the same root system of plants.
Another reason that makes it necessary to rotate crops on a site is weed control. There are plants that are sensitive to such proximity (for example, garlic, onions, carrots, parsley, parsnips); it is better to plant them after those crops that leave behind a minimal amount of weeds. Such plants include tomatoes, peas, potatoes, cabbage.
What to plant next
So, we have found out that crop rotation is a necessary and quite economical technique that allows you to maintain soil fertility and ensure a uniformly high yield. But since the need different cultures in microelements, fertilizers and other conditions is different, knowledge general rules and principles does not always allow you to correctly determine which plants to alternate in what sequence on your site.
Did you know? There are two simple rules drawing up the order of landings. Firstly, you should not alternate representatives of the same family. For example, both tomatoes and potatoes are nightshades; both carrots and dill are umbelliferous. Secondly, plants in which the upper part is eaten should be alternated with those in which the root is valuable (“tops and roots”). You must understand that this is a rather primitive rule, and it should be used only if more accurate information could not be found for one reason or another.
What to plant next in the beds can be found out from numerous tables developed by agronomists and amateurs. For those who don't want to study theory and are looking for simple answers to questions about specific crops, below are some tips on which vegetables can be planted after which. What can you plant after cabbage?
Cabbage is susceptible to many pests and diseases, therefore, when answering the question of what to plant after cabbage next year, any gardener will confidently say: not cabbage, even if we are talking about other types of cabbage! This is the worst option imaginable, but if there is no other option, the soil must be very well fertilized with compost.
Cabbage as a predecessor is not suitable for crops such as radish, rutabaga and turnips, since these plants are favorite food for the same pests.
It is ideal to plant onions or garlic after cabbage. Carrots, celery, potatoes, beets, cucumbers, and tomatoes are also allowed. Cabbage also gets along well with these vegetables in the neighborhood, since in this case it is less damaged by diseases and harmful insects. But you shouldn’t plant cabbage next to tomatoes, beans, parsley and tomatoes. 
Potatoes, radishes, cucumbers, carrots, peas, onions, garlic, as well as annual herbs are considered good predecessors of cabbage.
What to plant after garlic
It is not recommended to plant garlic, as well as onions, for a long time in the same place, or alternate with each other. What can be planted after garlic in the garden are potatoes, especially early ripening ones. Tomatoes, cucumbers, legumes, beets or cabbage are also acceptable options.
But it is best to plant annual herbs after garlic and onions, which are intended to restore the soil for later use, replenish its mineral reserves and destroy weeds. Mustard, phacelia, some varieties of green peas, rye, and rapeseed work well in this role.
What to plant after cucumbers
Cucumbers are much more demanding on soil composition than many other crops. Before planting, the soil is usually especially carefully fertilized with both organic matter and mineral fertilizers. It follows that after cucumbers next year you should plant something less picky. For example, cabbage, which also requires fertile soil, is absolutely not suitable for these purposes. They feel good in an area where cucumbers and various root vegetables grew - beets, radishes, turnips, carrots, parsley, celery. In order to improve the composition of the soil, legumes can be planted after the cucumbers and only after that other vegetable crops can be used, for example, onions, potatoes, tomatoes, corn, lettuce.
Important! The soil is fertile not only due to the presence of a certain set of microelements in it. A necessary condition is also the creation of a natural complex of all kinds of microorganisms and various types of organic substances. Therefore, a big mistake is the belief among summer residents that it is possible to restore depleted soil by thoughtlessly dumping a bucket of compost on the garden bed and watering it on top with complex mineral fertilizer purchased at the nearest supermarket.
What to plant after strawberries
Strawberries tend to deplete the soil very much, so immediately after transplanting them (and doing this better time at four years old) the bed where it grew must be carefully fed with minerals and organic fertilizers. It is better to do this right in the fall, thoroughly digging the soil after adding additives to it.
Strawberries consume especially a lot of nitrogen, so it is best to plant beans, peas and other legumes after them - they, as mentioned, enrich the soil with this element.
The antifungal and phytoncidal properties of garlic make it a good helper for cleansing the soil of pests remaining in it after strawberries.
Along with the garlic, you can also plant parsley, celery and other aromatic herbs here to drive slugs away from the garden.
Important! Raspberries and strawberries should not be alternated with each other, as these plants have similar pests.
It would be nice to set up a flower garden on the site of a former strawberry bed. Perennial peonies, daffodils, tulips and violets will help the soil recover from the berries that have depleted it.
What to plant after potatoes
Potatoes, unlike strawberries, consume a lot of potassium and phosphorus, so the soil after harvesting the tubers lacks these elements. You can make up for the loss with mineral fertilizers, or you can plant annual grasses that generate potassium and phosphorus. This role can be performed by datura grass, mustard, oats, peas, rapeseed, and phacelia.
If it is not possible to completely clear the area after potatoes are planted whole year, you can plant a pumpkin on it. Other crops require prior application of mineral fertilizers to restore soil fertility. However, as mentioned above, tomatoes, eggplants and other nightshade crops cannot be planted after potatoes. The same applies to pepper.
It is good to make the same pumpkin, zucchini, cucumbers, cabbage, and onions as predecessors to potatoes.
What to plant after tomatoes
We decided that after tomatoes we should not plant eggplants, potatoes and peppers. As with other cultures, After tomatoes, it is ideal to plant annuals that will fill the soil with the missing elements. If you don’t have the opportunity for such luxury, it doesn’t matter! Peas, beans and other legumes will help replenish the lack of nitrogen in the soil; cabbage will also do well in the bed where tomatoes grew, since the pests of these crops are different. There are no contraindications for planting cucumbers, zucchini, pumpkins, carrots, beets, green salads, onions, and garlic. In addition, tomatoes are the little thing after which you can plant carrots.
What to plant after beets
The choice of what can be planted after beets next year is quite large. Potatoes, tomatoes and other nightshades are suitable for these purposes, but before planting, the soil must be well fed with humus or peat. You can also plant garlic and onions. Carrots are also a good option. By the way, the predecessors of carrots in the garden, in addition to beets and the tomatoes mentioned above, are also cucumbers, onions, garlic and cabbage.
The above crops also work in reverse order, that is, regarding what is the best time to plant beets. To this list you can add cabbage, cucumbers, zucchini, pumpkin, legumes, lettuce, herbs - parsley, dill, celery.
What can you plant after pepper?
The root system of sweet peppers is in the upper layers of the soil, so after them it is best to plant crops with deeper roots. These can be root vegetables (radish, radish, beets, carrots), except potatoes, as well as onions, garlic, cucumbers, beans and greens.
You cannot plant any crops of the nightshade family after pepper. The sweet pepper itself can be planted after peas, zucchini, pumpkin, cabbage, beets, and celery.
What can you plant after peas?
Peas, as mentioned above, are a good predecessor for many crops. Thus, the ability of this plant to enrich the soil with nitrogen will have a particularly beneficial effect on the harvest of potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, beets, carrots, radishes, cucumbers, zucchini, squash, pumpkin, melon, as well as various types of cabbage.
However, peas have one unpleasant feature: they are very susceptible to fungal diseases and root rot, especially in conditions high humidity. Therefore, if a crop affected by such a disease grew on the site, neither peas nor other legumes should be planted in this place next year. Spores of such diseases can persist in the soil for 5-6 years, so during this entire period it is better to use the garden bed for crops that are less susceptible to these diseases.
What to plant next: table of predecessors of vegetable crops when planting
Regarding desirable and undesirable precursors of specific vegetable crops, there are a huge number of general and specific rules, summarized for clarity in various tables. They can be consulted whenever planning appropriate rotations.
For example, you can group crop rotation rules as follows:
| Culture | Good predecessor | Possible predecessor | Bad predecessor |
| Legumes, cucumbers, cabbage | Carrots, beets, onions | Nightshades (tomatoes, eggplants, peppers) | |
| Garlic, onion | Potatoes, carrots, legumes, cucumbers | Cabbage, tomatoes, beets | Onion, garlic, pepper, physalis |
| Tomatoes | Cabbage (especially cauliflower), carrots, onions, cucumbers, greens | Any nightshade, physalis | |
| Pumpkin (cucumbers, zucchini, squash, pumpkin) | Legumes, nightshades (potatoes, tomatoes), cabbage, onions | Beets, greens | Any pumpkin |
| Legumes (peas, beans, beans) | Strawberries, cucumber, potatoes, cabbage, | Tomatoes | Perennial herbs |
| Carrot | Onion, cucumber | Radishes, beets, cabbage | |
| Greenery | Cabbage, cucumbers | Legumes, potatoes, tomatoes, onions | Carrots, parsnips, celery |
| Eggplant | Legumes, turnips, rutabaga, cucumber, cabbage, onions, melons | Solanaceae | |
| Pepper | Turnips, carrots, cucumbers, cabbage, rutabaga, legumes, | Onion garlic | Nightshades, pumpkin |
| Potatoes, cucumber, onion | Legumes, tomatoes | Carrot | |
| Legumes, nightshades, onions, garlic | Lettuce, corn | Pumpkins, rutabaga, carrots, turnips, radishes, turnips |
Thus, by turning to such tips, you can always clarify what to do next, for example, to plant onions or what to sow the bed where tomatoes grew.
However, not only tables, but also firmly understood rules will help you correctly identify the predecessors of vegetables when planting.
Important! Categorically bad predecessors are: beets, radishes, turnips and radishes for cabbage (and vice versa); carrots, tomatoes and cabbage - for onions, beans - for carrots and cucumbers, carrots for cucumbers and beets.
But after what you can plant carrots and other root vegetables, it’s after garlic or onions. Also, root vegetables grow well after greens and vice versa.
Neighboring cultures
In addition to answering the question of what to plant next, it is also equally important to know what to plant with what, that is, which crops can and cannot be planted next to each other. The fact is that plants have an influence on each other, which can be both positive and negative. Knowing the basic rules, you can avoid mistakes and solve many problems that prevent you from obtaining a stable harvest.
For example, as mentioned above, the root system of plants releases toxic substances that protect the crop from diseases and pests. Moreover, such poisons can harm neighboring plants, or, on the contrary, they can provide them with additional protection. Thus, colins secreted by mustard have a beneficial effect on peas, carrots and garlic, but are poorly tolerated by cabbage. Knowing this feature, it is easy to determine what you can plant peas with and what you should not plant cabbage with.
What crops are best to plant in the neighborhood?
So, joint planting is an important rule of crop rotation, allowing optimal use of limited space on a plot, as well as improving crop yields. 
For example, potatoes and beans are wonderful neighbors. It protects it from such a pest as the weevil, and it replenishes its need for nitrogen and repels the Colorado potato beetle. In addition to beans, it is useful to place cabbage, corn, spinach, eggplant, horseradish, carrots, radish, dill, and lettuce next to potatoes. All these plants have a beneficial effect on the potato harvest by removing excess moisture from the soil. And onions and garlic, planted nearby, protect potatoes from late blight.
By the way, garlic has a beneficial effect on many crops, so there are plenty of options for what to plant it with. Strawberries are considered a classic, since these plants are equally useful for each other: garlic protects capricious strawberries from diseases and pests, and the berry helps the formation of more cloves in garlic. Enzymes secreted by carrots have the same effect on the plant: under their influence, the garlic bulb becomes larger.
Did you know? If you plant garlic and horseradish next to each other, the amount of vitamin C increases in both.
From various diseases and pests (aphids, mole crickets, chafers), garlic saves not only vegetable crops, for example, tomatoes, beets, cucumbers, carrots, but also flowers - gladioli, carnations, roses, etc. But garlic itself from the dangerous onion flies can protect calendula and chicory.
Dill and corn are something that can be planted next to cucumbers, carrots get along well with peas, and peas themselves - with potatoes, tomatoes and eggplants. It is better to plant melons separately.
Other rules regarding what to plant with what in the beds can be presented in the form of a table:
| Culture | ||
| beans | cucumbers, potatoes, cabbage, lettuce, radishes, beets, tomatoes, eggplants, melons | peas, garlic, onion |
| peas | cabbage, lettuce, carrots, radishes | beans, potatoes, garlic, onions, tomatoes |
| strawberries | garlic, onion, lettuce, radish | |
| cucumbers | beans, garlic, cabbage, lettuce, celery, onion, greens | tomatoes, radishes, potatoes, zucchini |
| potato | beans, onions, garlic, cabbage, eggplant, horseradish, carrots, dill, lettuce | tomatoes, peas, sunflowers |
| cabbage | peas, cucumbers, potatoes, lettuce, radishes, beets | garlic, onion, tomatoes |
| beet | cucumbers, salad | onion, cabbage |
| tomatoes | garlic, cabbage, lettuce, leek | peas, cucumbers, potatoes |
| onion | strawberries, cucumbers, lettuce, carrots, beets | beans, cabbage, tomatoes |
| pepper | cucumbers, kohlrabi | tomatoes, legumes |
| zucchini | legumes, beets, onions | cucumbers |
"Neighbors are enemies"
As can be seen from the table above, in addition to a successful neighborhood, there is also an extremely undesirable neighborhood. As a rule, plants “are at enmity” due to the incompatibility of the substances they secrete. For example, black walnut has a depressant effect on most vegetables due to the juglone it produces. Vegetables are also not good in the vicinity of wormwood. If you plant legumes and onions nearby, both will develop poorly. Literally all crops feel depressed with fennel, so it is better to plant this plant separately from others. Potatoes and cucumbers, tomatoes and strawberries are also poorly compatible. 
Eggplants and tomatoes do not like the proximity of other nightshades; peppers and beets, cabbage and strawberries do not get along side by side.
Did you know? I wonder what is beautiful and loved by everyone conifer tree, like spruce, has adverse effects on almost all trees, and these effects persist for decades after the spruce itself is cut down.
Sometimes it happens that plants have different effects on each other depending on their number. As they say, there is medicine in a spoon, and poison in a cup. In this case, you can arrange the proximity of such a crop in small quantities, for example, along the edge of a garden bed. For example, such an experiment can be carried out with valerian, yarrow or nettle, planting them in small groups near vegetables.
Thus, it is important for any gardener to know what to plant next, and proper planning of crops when planting is a way to protect the soil from depletion and help plants naturally support each other for better growth and development.
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Crop rotation for a summer cottage: five ways of crop rotation. The word “crop rotation” is familiar to almost every gardener. However, in practice, the use of crop rotation turns out to be quite difficult and is often neglected, especially in a small garden. But if you are not afraid and delve into the question, then this principle of planting vegetables will not be so inaccessible. You just need to pick up a pencil, prepare a sheet of paper and draw up a planting diagram for your version of the beds. Moreover, there are as many as five ways to build crop rotation for small areas! And even the simplest of them can provide a significant increase in yield, and at the same time significantly reduce the problems that arise as a result of growing monocultures.
Making a list of crops
The first thing you need to start building a crop rotation is to make a list of vegetables planted in your garden. Potatoes, tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, onions, garlic, parsley... If something is not an annual crop, do not add it to the list so as not to complicate your task.
Calculating the number of beds
The second stage is to determine the number of beds allocated for crop rotation. The most practical is alternating 4 to 5 sections. But there are three-field, six-field, seven-field and even twelve-field crop rotations.
If you don’t have an established number of beds, then which option is right for you will become clear as the article progresses.
Autumn harvest of vegetables.
Building crop rotation
The basic principle of crop rotation is the annual change of crops grown in a certain place.
This, firstly, makes it possible to eliminate soil fatigue in a given area (since the same crop, grown on the same area, annually selects mainly the same nutrients from the soil, from the same depth). Secondly, it prevents the accumulation and spread of pests and diseases that affect not just one crop, but also different vegetables of the same family. Thirdly, it allows you to correctly use fertilizers applied to the soil, since different crops have different attitudes to fertility.
Thus, even if every year you plant vegetables in the garden that belong to a different family than those that grew last season, this will already be the most primitive way of observing crop rotation!
We could stop there, but it is interesting to consider deeper options for approaching this issue.
Crop rotation method No. 1. Alternation of crops by groups
One of the most simple solutions the construction of crop rotation is based on the breakdown of all vegetable crops into four main groups.
In this case, alternation is carried out in the following order:
- 1st year: 1st bed - fruit, 2nd bed - root vegetables, 3rd bed - legumes, 4th bed - leafy.
- On 2nd year fruits go to the 4th bed, root vegetables to the 1st, legumes to the 2nd and leafy ones to the 3rd. It turns out: 1st root vegetables, 2nd legumes, 3rd leafy vegetables, 4th fruit vegetables.
- For the 3rd year, the root crops go to the fourth bed, and the rest of the groups again move one step forward. And so, every new season.
Crop rotation method No. 2. Alternation of crops according to soil requirements
Next in a simple way Crop rotation is the alternation of crops according to soil requirements. According to this criterion, vegetables are also divided into 4 main groups.
However, it is also necessary to know the affiliation of crops to botanical families.
Alternation according to this principle proceeds as follows:
vegetables demanding on fertility → moderately demanding → not demanding → legumes.
Beds with vegetable crops.
Crop rotation method No. 3. Alternation of crops by family
This method is based on alternating crops from different families. Their sequence should be as follows:
nightshades (except potatoes) → legumes → cabbage → umbelliferae
or:
pumpkin → legumes → cabbage → goosefoot
or:
Solanaceae → legumes → brassicas → goosefoot
At the same time, garlic and onions can be planted before winter after nightshades.
Crop rotation method No. 4. Rotation of crops according to their effect on the soil
Based on the fact that each crop leaves behind not only pathogens, certain indicators of soil contamination with weeds, but also a deficiency of one or another element, it is possible to alternate crops according to the effect they have on the soil.
In this case, the principle of alternation is as follows:
plants that strongly deplete the soil → moderately deplete the soil → slightly deplete the soil → enrich the soil
Crop rotation method No. 5. Rotation of crops according to the best predecessor
And finally, the last, most labor-intensive method of planning crop rotation, but at the same time the most comprehensive.
It consists in choosing crops for rotation according to the best predecessor and includes a full set of factors that contribute to the preservation of fertility and the exclusion of weeds and disease contamination of the site. When constructing it, it is easier to use the resulting table.
| Major crops and their predecessors | ||
|---|---|---|
| Eggplant | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| melons, legumes, zucchini, white cabbage early varieties, cauliflower, onions, carrots, cucumbers, squash, green manure, pumpkin, garlic | medium cabbage and late varieties, corn, spices, beets | |
| Notes: Eggplant is an unacceptable precursor for nightshades and melons, but acceptable for all other crops. | ||
| Legumes (peas, chickpeas, beans) | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| garden strawberries, early potatoes, cabbage (all types), zucchini, onions, cucumbers, squash, pumpkin, garlic | eggplants, greens, carrots, peppers, spices, green manure, beets, tomatoes | legumes, corn |
| Notes: Legumes for vegetable crops are not only the best predecessor, but also an excellent green manure. They can be returned to their original place after 2-3 years, but these crops are not afraid of being grown in one place. | ||
| Greens (onions, spinach, lettuce) and spices ( , ) | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| legumes, cucumbers, zucchini, early white cabbage, cauliflower, onions, squash, green manure, pumpkin, garlic | eggplants, greens, early potatoes, corn, peppers, spices, tomatoes, beets | mid- and late-ripening white cabbage, carrots |
| Notes: These two groups of plants are a good and acceptable precursor for all vegetable crops, except onions. They can be returned to their original place after 3-4 years. | ||
| Zucchini | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| legumes, potatoes, early, parsley, corn, onions, garlic | , white cabbage of medium and late varieties, carrots, peppers, tomatoes, pumpkin | |
| Notes: Zucchini, as a predecessor, tends to leave behind a minimum of weeds. After it, you can plant any vegetable crops. Zucchini can be returned to its original place after 2-3 years. | ||
| Cabbage | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| legumes, zucchini, early potatoes (for medium and late varieties), onions, carrots (for medium and late varieties), cucumbers, tomatoes, green manure, beans | peas, greens, eggplants, peppers, lettuce, tomatoes | cabbage, cucumbers, beets, pumpkin |
| Notes: Cauliflower and early varieties of white cabbage are an excellent predecessor for all vegetable crops, but mid-season and late varieties are unacceptable as a predecessor for greens and spicy-flavored vegetables. It can be returned to its original place after 3-4 years. | ||
| Potato | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| legumes, early white cabbage, cauliflower, zucchini, onions, cucumbers, squash, green manure, pumpkin, garlic | greens, medium and late varieties of cabbage, corn, carrots, spices, beets | tomatoes, peppers, eggplants; |
| Notes: With increased care, potatoes can be grown as a monoculture. After potatoes, it is good to plant medium and late varieties of cabbage, carrots, beets, onions, legumes, but it is unacceptable to plant cauliflower and early cabbage, nightshades. In crop rotation, it can be returned to its original place after 2-3 years. | ||
| Corn | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| legumes, potatoes, beets | all cultures | millet |
| Notes: Corn can be grown in one place as a monoculture for up to 10 years, with the addition of manure for digging. After it, you can plant any crops. | ||
| Onion | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| legumes, zucchini, early potatoes, early white cabbage, cauliflower, cucumbers, squash, pumpkin, green manure | eggplants, white cabbage of medium and late varieties, corn, onions, peppers, beets, tomatoes, garlic | greens, carrots, spices |
| Notes: After onions, you can grow any vegetables except garlic. They can be returned to their original place after 3-4 years. However, leeks are not afraid of growing in one place for several seasons. | ||
| Carrot | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| greens, cabbage, onions, zucchini, early potatoes, cucumbers, squash, spices, pumpkin | eggplants, legumes, cabbage, corn, onions, peppers, radishes, beets, tomatoes, garlic | beet |
| Notes: Carrots are a good precursor for cabbage, tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, but unacceptable for melons, onions, herbs, and spices. | ||
| cucumbers | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| legumes, potatoes, early white cabbage, parsley, cauliflower, corn, onion, garlic | legumes, greens, early potatoes, spices, beets | |
| Notes: After cucumbers, you can plant any vegetables. They can be returned to their original place after 2-3 years. | ||
| Squash | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| basil, legumes, potatoes, early white cabbage, cauliflower, corn, onion, garlic | legumes, greens, early potatoes, spices, beets | eggplants, white cabbage of medium and late varieties, carrots, peppers, tomatoes, pumpkin |
| Notes: Patisson is a good predecessor for all vegetable crops. It can be returned to its original place after 2-3 years. | ||
| Pepper | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| melons, legumes, greens, zucchini, early white cabbage, cauliflower, onions, carrots, cucumbers, squash, green manure, pumpkin, garlic | medium and late varieties of cabbage, corn, spices, radishes, beets | eggplants, early potatoes, peppers, tomatoes, pumpkin |
| Notes: Pepper is an acceptable precursor for all crops except nightshades and melons. | ||
| Sunflower | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| legumes, corn | potato | peas, tomatoes, beets, beans |
| Notes: Sunflower is a very bad predecessor for any crop; it can be returned to its original place no earlier than after 6 - 8 years, after which sow green manure - white mustard, peas, vetch. | ||
| Radish | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| legumes, potatoes, onions, cucumbers, tomatoes, garlic, strawberries | eggplants, greens, corn, peppers, spices, tomatoes, beets | cabbage, carrots |
| Notes: Radish is a fast-growing crop, so it can be grown between rows of main crops. After it, it’s good to plant strawberries. | ||
| Beetroot | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| greens, zucchini, onions, cucumbers, squash, spices, pumpkin, green manure | legumes, eggplants, early white cabbage, cauliflower, corn, onions, carrots, peppers, tomatoes, garlic | medium and late varieties of cabbage, potatoes, beets |
| Notes: Beets must be placed in the garden for 2–3 years after applying organic fertilizers. After it, it is good to plant legumes, but it is unacceptable to plant cabbage and root vegetables. Beets can be returned to their original place after 2-3 years. | ||
| Tomatoes | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| basil, peas, greens, early white cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, cucumbers, green manure | legumes, white cabbage, medium and late dates ripening, corn, onion, spices, beets, garlic | eggplants, early potatoes, peppers, tomatoes |
| Notes: Tomatoes are allowed to be grown without crop rotation, but in this case they require increased care. After the crop, it is not recommended to plant nightshades and melons; for the rest, tomato is an acceptable predecessor. It can be returned to its original place after 2-3 years. | ||
| Pumpkin | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| legumes, potatoes, early white cabbage, cauliflower, corn, onion, parsley, garlic | legumes, greens, early potatoes, spices, beets | eggplants, white cabbage of medium and late varieties, carrots, peppers, tomatoes, pumpkin |
| Notes: Pumpkin leaves behind weed-free soil and can be a good predecessor for all crops. It can be returned to its original place after 2-3 years. | ||
| Garlic | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| legumes, zucchini, early potatoes, early white cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, cucumbers, squash, pumpkin, green manure | eggplants, white cabbage of medium and late varieties, corn, peppers, beets, tomatoes, garlic | greens, carrots, spices, radishes |
| Notes: Garlic not only disinfects the soil well, but also leaves it practically free of weeds. After it, you can grow any crops except onions. Garlic can be returned to its original place after 3-4 years. | ||
| Garden strawberries | ||
| the best | acceptable | unacceptable |
| legumes, onions, radishes, carrots, garlic, dill | cabbage, corn | potatoes, cucumbers, tomatoes |
| Notes: After tomatoes, potatoes and cucumbers, strawberries can be grown no earlier than 3-4 years later. The culture itself is an acceptable precursor for legumes, garlic, onions, and parsley. | ||
An example of crop rotation based on this principle could be the following:
However, due to the need to grow over large areas, potatoes can be excluded from crop rotation and grown as a monoculture. In this case, they contribute annually a large number of organic and mineral fertilizers and carefully monitor the quality seed material. At the same time, once every few years, organic fertilizers are replaced with green manures.
Corn can also be grown outside of crop rotation. This culture is not demanding on its predecessor and is itself a neutral predecessor for most cultures. However, wireworms accumulate underneath it quite quickly.
Tomatoes are also sometimes grown in one place, but in this case they also require more careful care.
Strawberries (strawberries) can also be included in crop rotation.
A bed of radishes next to corn.
Fertilizer application
Based on the fact that all crops have a different relationship to the soil, in crop rotation it is necessary to take into account the moment of applying the main fertilizer.
Thus, it is advisable to apply manure to cabbage (this is the most demanding crop in this regard), potatoes, and cucumbers; they are very demanding in terms of nutrition. But tomatoes, carrots, onions, and beets respond better to this fertilizer applied under their predecessor. Peas, greens and strawberries make do with organic matter embedded in the soil under the predecessor of the predecessor.
In addition, the full rate of the main fertilizer is applied to the most demanding crop, while for the rest of the vegetables, fertilizers are applied taking into account the aftereffect of the main fertilizer. (For reference: in the first year, plants remove up to 30% nitrogen, 30% phosphorus and 50% potassium from manure; therefore, it is not advisable to apply manure every year).
Example. In the crop rotation cabbage - cucumbers - tomatoes - carrots, the most advantageous time to apply the full rate of manure is in the fall before planting cabbage.
Combination of cultures
Based on the fact that we grow different vegetables in different volumes, making up a crop rotation, it is advisable to place several crops at once in one area. This allows not only to effectively plan the planting area, but also to improve the growing conditions of plants, since many of them have a beneficial effect on each other.
| Compatibility of vegetable crops (for joint and compacted crops) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Peas | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| carrots, cucumbers | strawberries, corn, parsley, radishes, lettuce, beets, dill, spinach | legumes, cabbage, potatoes, onions, tomatoes, garlic |
| Eggplant | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| beans, greens, leeks, garlic | strawberries, cucumbers, parsley | - |
| Zucchini | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| greens, corn, legumes | eggplant, strawberries, carrots, sunflowers, garlic, spinach | potatoes, tomatoes, radishes |
| Cabbage | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| strawberries, carrots, lettuce, beans | potatoes, corn, leeks, cucumbers, radishes, beets, tomatoes, dill, garlic, spinach | peas, onions, parsley, garlic |
| Potato | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| beans, spinach | strawberries, cabbage, corn, onions, carrots, radishes, lettuce, dill, garlic, spinach | peas, cucumbers, tomatoes, beets, pumpkin |
| Corn | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, beans | peas, strawberries, cabbage, potatoes, onions, carrots, radishes, pumpkin, dill, garlic, spinach | beet |
| Bulb onions | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| carrots, tomatoes, beets | strawberries, potatoes, corn, radishes, cucumbers, lettuce, garlic, spinach | peas, cabbage, onions, dill, beans |
| Leek | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| strawberries, tomatoes | potatoes, cabbage, corn, carrots, cucumbers, radishes, lettuce, beets, dill, beans, garlic, spinach | peas, onions |
| Perennial onion | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| - | strawberries, carrots, cucumbers, parsley, radishes, lettuce, tomatoes | legumes, garlic |
| Carrot | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| peas, cabbage, onions, spinach | potatoes, corn, cucumbers, radishes, lettuce, tomatoes, garlic | beets, dill, beans |
| cucumbers | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| legumes, cabbage, corn, lettuce, beets, dill, beans | eggplants, strawberries, onions, carrots, sunflowers, garlic, spinach | potatoes, tomatoes, radishes |
| Patissons | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| legumes, greens, corn | strawberries, carrots, sunflowers, garlic | potatoes, tomatoes, radishes |
| Pepper | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| basil, carrots, onions | parsley | beans |
| Parsley | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| strawberries, tomatoes | eggplants, peas, leeks, perennial onions, carrots, cucumbers, peppers, radishes, lettuce, spinach | cabbage |
| Sunflower | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| - | cucumbers | potato |
| Radish | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| carrots, beans,; | peas, strawberries, cabbage, potatoes, corn, onions, parsley, radishes, lettuce, beets, tomatoes, dill, garlic, spinach | onions, cucumbers |
| Lettuce | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| cabbage, corn, cucumbers | peas, strawberries, potatoes, onions, carrots, parsley, tomatoes, radishes, beets, dill, beans, garlic, spinach | - |
| Beet | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| onions, tomatoes, beans, spinach | peas, strawberries, cabbage, cucumbers, radishes, lettuce, dill, garlic | potatoes, corn, leeks, carrots |
| Tomatoes | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| corn, carrots, parsley, radishes, beets, beans, spinach | strawberries, cabbage, onions, lettuce, garlic; | peas, potatoes, cucumbers, dill |
| Pumpkin | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| greens, legumes | corn | potato |
| Dill | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| cabbage, cucumbers | peas, strawberries, potatoes, corn, leeks, radishes, lettuce, beets, beans, garlic, spinach | onions, carrots, tomatoes |
| Beans | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| eggplants, strawberries, cabbage, corn, potatoes, cucumbers, tomatoes, radishes, beets, spinach | lettuce, dill, spinach | peas, onions, carrots, garlic |
| Garlic | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| - | strawberries, leeks, carrots, cucumbers, radishes, lettuce, beets, tomatoes | peas, perennial onions, cabbage, beans |
| Spinach | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| strawberries, potatoes, carrots, beets, tomatoes, beans | peas, cabbage, onions, cucumbers, parsley, radishes, lettuce, dill, garlic | beet |
| Garden strawberries | ||
| good neighborhood | admissible neighborhood | unacceptable proximity |
| cabbage, carrots, parsley, beans, spinach | eggplants, peas, potatoes, corn, onions, cucumbers, radishes, lettuce, beets, tomatoes, dill, garlic | - |
An example of such a crop rotation could be the following:
cabbage+cucumbers → tomatoes → carrots+onions → potatoes
When choosing crops based on the principle of combination, it is necessary to take into account the timing of their maturation. So, for example, radishes manage to grow by the time when melons can still be sown.
And, of course, in combined crops it is necessary to find a place for flowers, because they not only decorate the beds, but also repel pests. These can be marigolds, nasturtium, calendula, matthiola.
Garden.
Green manure
And one last thing. To maintain soil fertility at the proper level, it is necessary to provide for crop rotation in your scheme and the mandatory use of green manure. They can be sown during free time from vegetables, before winter, or as part of crop rotation, occupying a separate bed. What could it be? Winter rye, vetch, leaf mustard, peas, lupine and their various combinations.
For example: zucchini → → carrots → potatoes → green manure (legumes)
For many today, growing vegetables and herbs in their garden is both a useful and favorite activity. Of course, it is very important to receive from your site good harvest. Best result is achieved when crop rotation in the garden is correctly adjusted.
The importance of crop rotation
If the same plants are constantly planted in one place, then their enzymes (root secretions) poison the soil and the yield drops. For example, when celery, tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, and cabbage are grown in one place for a long time, pathogens of various diseases accumulate in the soil. Therefore, crop rotation in the garden is necessary, that is, an annual change of where crops are grown on the site.
It is recommended to plant the same crops and related crops in the same places after at least three seasons. It is important to comply with this condition because different cultures require different fertilizers. For example, cucumbers, cabbage, zucchini, leeks, and pumpkin need organic fertilizers; carrots, beets, parsley - in minerals; onions, garlic, herbs, tomatoes - both in minerals and in organic matter.
Benefits of crop rotation
Rotating crops in the garden allows you to:
- reduce the impact of pests and pathogens accumulated in the soil, especially dangerous for the previous crop and less dangerous for the next one;
- improve the uptake of nutrients from the soil by plants;
- use mineral and organic fertilizers more rationally, taking into account their effect and after-effect on different crops;
- avoid negative phenomena that are caused by root secretions of this plant species;
- deep digging should be carried out gradually (only for crops that require deep loosening of the soil).
Organization of crop rotation
In order to organize your garden and not get confused about planting locations, the following solution is often proposed. The entire garden is conventionally divided into four zones (although three are possible). We plant crops in groups. The first group is vegetables that need organic matter. The second group is vegetables that require mineral fertilizers. The third group is vegetables, for which both organic matter and minerals are important. And the fourth group is potatoes.
For the next season, you need to choose places for planting plants so that the previous crops are suitable for them:
- Legumes - cabbage, potatoes, root vegetables, tomatoes.
- Potatoes - legumes and early cabbage.
- Cabbage - root vegetables, legumes, tomatoes, potatoes.
- Tomatoes, peppers - legumes, root vegetables, cabbage.
- Onions - potatoes, pumpkin, root vegetables, legumes.
- Root vegetables - potatoes, tomatoes, early cabbage.
- Greens - legumes, cabbage, potatoes, pumpkin.
- For cucumbers and pumpkins - root vegetables, early cabbage, tomatoes, potatoes.
You also need to know invalid predecessors. For example, the following are not suitable:
How to increase productivity
By following certain rules of crop rotation in the garden, one piece of land can produce two crops per year. For example, before planting peppers, tomatoes, and eggplants, you can add spinach and lettuce. After cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, sow turnips and radishes. After early potatoes, plant kohlrabi and cauliflower. After peas, radishes, lettuce, peppers, and spinach grow well.
Fast-growing vegetables can be planted between rows of slow-growing vegetables. For example, between rows of carrots, beets, celery you can grow lettuce, radishes, spinach, green onions. Radishes and lettuce can also be grown between rows of cabbage (early and late). Greenery grows well along the edges of the beds.
It is useful to grow more heat-loving plants (cucumbers, peppers, eggplants) among taller ones (tomatoes, peas, corn).
J. Seymour's rules
- If potatoes are planted on heavy, damp soils, then other root crops can be grown there in the third or fourth year.
- Legumes love well-limed soil, which potatoes do not like. Therefore, it is better not to plant potatoes after legumes.
- Cabbage plants love lime, but not fresh lime. It is better to plant them after legumes.
- Radishes, salads, cucumbers, tomatoes, and zucchini love rotted manure and compost. After them it is good to grow root vegetables.
- In some places you can constantly plant greens (leaf lettuce, spinach, dill).
Crop rotation table
So, to make it easier to organize crop rotation in the garden, the crop rotation table will provide information in a more visual form.
| Culture | Predecessors | ||
| The best | Acceptable | Bad | |
| Cabbage of medium and late varieties | Legumes, cucumber, carrots, early potatoes | - | Beetroot, cabbage |
| Beet | Cucumber, greens, green manure, potatoes | Tomatoes, onions, carrots, cauliflower and early cabbage | |
| Cauliflower and early varieties | Legumes, onions, cucumbers, green manure | Tomatoes, carrots | Root vegetables, cabbage |
| Cucumber, zucchini, squash, pumpkin, zucchini | Onions, early and medium cabbage, cauliflower, garlic, legumes | Potatoes, beets, cucumber, greens | Tomatoes, carrots, late cabbage |
| Tomatoes | Turnips, cucumbers, greens, green manure, cauliflower | Average and late cabbage, beets, onions | Potatoes, tomatoes |
| Onion garlic | Cucumber, potatoes, legumes, cauliflower and early cabbage | Tomatoes, beets, onions, late cabbage | Carrots, greens |
| Potato | Legumes, cauliflower and early cabbage, cucumbers, green manure | Greens, cabbage, carrots, beets | Potatoes, tomatoes |
| Legumes | All varieties of cabbage, potatoes, onions, garlic, cucumbers | Tomatoes, greens, table root vegetables, green manure | Legumes |
| Greenery | Legumes, cauliflower and early cabbage, onions, cucumbers, green manure | Potatoes, tomatoes, greens, beets | Late cabbage, carrots |
"Conveyor" of vegetables
The so-called vegetable conveyor is very convenient for the constant supply of fresh herbs and vegetables to the table. This conveyor begins when we plant greens in the garden in the spring. Crop rotation in this case helps to achieve the best results.
The sequence of arrival of greens, vegetables, root vegetables on the table:
- In spring: feathers of perennial chives, spring onions, parsley, Jerusalem artichoke tubers left for the winter.
- A little later: sorrel, young nettles, rhubarb, onions planted at the end of April.
- Then: dill and radishes.
- From late May to early June: salad mustard, spinach, cabbage grown from seedlings, basil, coriander.
- In mid-June: early tomatoes and cucumbers, beets, bunched carrots.
- Late June: and early.
- July: tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage, beets, zucchini, carrots, broccoli, early potatoes.
- August: squash, legumes, corn, turnips, pumpkin, eggplant, sweet peppers.
- Autumn and winter: celery (transplanted into pots), onions, watercress, salad alfalfa, mustard leaves, grown at home.
Considering all the advantages of this approach, it is worth remembering about creativity when organizing plantings. Crop rotation in the garden will help with this, but you need to use it according to your needs, capabilities and desires.
Crop rotation in the garden is an extremely important thing, since any fan of growing garden crops is well aware that the soil is depleted over the years, becomes less nutritious and helps plants develop worse and worse. There are many prerequisites for this. How to avoid a fall in harvest and make your garden blooming and constantly bearing fruit? Details in this article.
What does crop rotation give us in the garden?
From year to year, pathogens accumulating in the soil and various pests worsen the quality of grown crops. If the plantations, which were made with the tender love of summer residents, are practically unchanged and do not change their location, then the pest does not leave its homes.
For example, who loves potatoes. If you do not alternate planting potatoes with beets every year, then the number of Colorado potato beetles will not decrease. And even if you take many measures to destroy it. In addition to the Colorado potato beetle, stagnant soil provokes the appearance of late blight pathogens, as well as the colonization of the larvae of other pests that live among the beds.
If we are talking about other cultures, then the same scheme applies to them. A plot that is always planted with the same crop will only increase the number of those harmful beetles that love to feast on fruits and roots. It is very difficult to withstand a huge invasion of insects, so not only those plants that are their favorite delicacy, for example, cabbage, tomatoes, cucumbers, celery, and lettuce, will suffer from this factor, but also those that are extremely vulnerable by nature.
The next factor is the increased content of harmful substances in the soil, which the system of various crops contains. These secretions contain toxins not only for surrounding plants, but also for the colin itself, as the root system of vegetables is called.
For example, beets and spinach are the first to be affected. Carrots and pumpkins are more resistant, and leeks practically do not pay attention to the poison of colin.
Crop rotation helps avoid depletion of vitamins in dacha soil. After all, each vegetable has its own set of nutritional substances, which is inherent in their cells from birth: the plant needs it for normal development and growth.
Naturally, vegetables, berries and fruits try to extract these substances from the soil when they run out of their “set”. Cabbage respects potassium, but if radishes are planted there, then potassium reserves will decrease somewhat more slowly compared to cabbage, which means it needs potassium in smaller quantities.
Sowing planning
To correct the situation with the content and quantity of necessary substances in the soil, you only need to observe the correct sequence of crops, and also plant them on the site year after year in the required sequence. This is called crop rotation and represents an entire agricultural science. There is no need to delve too deeply into the scientific jungle; it is enough to follow a few rules and, of course, adhere to a good sowing plan.
What to plant next or competent planning of crops using the following rules:
- You cannot plant the same crop in the same area for several years in a row.. The same applies to those plants that are “relatives”, since they have a set of common pests, and also show the same reaction to the amount of toxic substances that colin produces. Naturally, they take from the soil the same composition and set of substances necessary for growth. All summer residents who do not comply with this rule may end up with their soils becoming completely unfertile and completely depleted in terms of food supply. You will have to bring new soil to the site and fertilize it again, which of course costs a pretty penny for gardening lovers.
- Observing a certain break, after which the area should take a break from a certain crop planted on it.
- The properties of plants are difficult to overestimate, since not many summer residents suspect that they not only take nutrients from the soil, but also enrich it with their useful composition contained in the root system initially. Thus, if you alternate crops correctly, then you retain not only the necessary supply of microelements for of this plant, but also improve the composition and structure of the soil for the next crops. At the same time, without doing practically any procedures for this. For example, legumes loosen the soil well and add a lot of minerals to it. Planting buckwheat will help saturate the soil with calcium. If you plant dope grass on the sides of your plot, you will provide the plants with phosphorus, replacing weeds with tobacco - increasing the level of potassium in the soil. And if you plant stinging nettle between crops as a preventive measure, your soil will be enriched with iron, which is useful for the growth of many useful vegetable crops. If you follow these rules, you can easily plan planting for quite a long time. long time to accurately understand your benefit in terms of yield.
- Be sure to use compost after harvesting, as it helps the soil look fresher and healthier. It’s like feeding for those flowers that the caring hands of housewives cherish on their windowsill. If you add the plants listed above to the compost, then in addition to fresh microelements that will be supplied during the growth and development of these circuits, you will also receive universal fertilizer
- , which helps to increase yield even in those years when the soil seems to be losing ground. . Don’t forget also that you can remove pests from the site and thereby increase your crop rotation by planting those plants that repel beetles and do not allow their larvae to develop freely in the garden
- For example, a cloud of aphids can be destroyed by planting garlic or tobacco throughout the area. And the Colorado potato beetle is terribly afraid of thyme. Thus, by planting these plants, you can completely expel pests from the site and clear it for planting in the following years. And the last rule is to maintain some kind of subordination among plants.
Compliance with these rules will help the soil change systematically, and not unilaterally, and in order to increase the concentration of certain types of nutrients, the gardener will only need to carefully monitor and keep records of his crops.
Another added bonus of annual plant rotation is constant weed control. The scourge of all summer residents can be simply and easily removed from your garden if you plant plants that are insensitive to weeds, such as garlic, onions, carrots and parsley. It is better to plant them after heavy crops, for example, after potatoes or peas. The latter produce very few weeds, as they are absolutely insensitive to this species herbs.
Planting scheme: your personal crop rotation diary
The above rules are very good for studying the theory of crop rotation, but many summer residents who are faced with full workload in their gardens for the first time may not have enough time to fully study the science of crop rotation and understand the nature of planting plants on the site. To do this, agronomists compile special lists, lists or tables, which indicate which crops need to be planted first, which ones second and then, in order of general priority. Let's take a closer look at the most well-known crop rotation schemes.
Cabbage
Cabbage is the most difficult vegetable, since it not only often gets sick, but also collects a large number of pests around itself. Any gardener can easily answer the question: what can be planted after cabbage? Anything but cabbage!
Even other species of this plant can deteriorate the complex of soil nutrients very easily. This is an extreme option, and of course, after this plant, you need to fertilize the soil with compost.
Rutabagas and turnips are perfect as predecessor plants, since this group is not distinguished by its “set” of harmful beetles that are not averse to eating delicious vegetables. After cabbage leaves, onions or garlic take root best, but you can also plant carrots, potatoes, and tomatoes. Cabbage does not tolerate the proximity of tomatoes and beans with parsley. What can be planted in front of cabbage so that the soil is rich enough in a vitamin-mineral layer for our capricious vegetable.
Cabbage grows remarkably after the harvest of radishes, cucumbers and carrots, as well as after peas and representatives of the onion family. A previous harvest of annual grasses such as phacelia or rapeseed is also excellent.
Garlic or onion
Garlic crop is less demanding than cabbage, but, like onions, it cannot be planted in the same place. When using garlic, you need to alternate it with other vegetables. The best option When planting vegetables, potatoes will appear after garlic; the early ripening variety is perfect. Tomatoes, as well as legumes or cabbage with cucumbers, are also quite suitable.
It’s great, of course, to plant annual herbs after garlic, restoring the soil for subsequent crops and replenishing the supply of minerals. And phytoncides, substances secreted by garlic through its root system, will help destroy weeds and prevent late blight in neighboring crops.
Some annual herbs that go well after a garlic bed include: mustard, phacelia, some varieties green peas, as well as rapeseed and rye.
After what can you plant onions? Like garlic, it will sprout well after a harvest of legumes, potatoes and carrots.
cucumbers
Another no less demanding vegetable crop, along with cabbage, is cucumbers, so the soil in front of them is usually generously flavored with organic compost and all sorts of things. It has not been sufficiently studied how much nitrogen cucumbers specifically need, but nitrogen is generally useful for any plant, like hay for a cow. Therefore, for good grass stand, and in particular cucumbers, you need to sprinkle the powder, which enriches the soil with this substance, quite generously.
What should you plant after cucumbers next year? You need to turn your attention to something lighter, for example, beets, turnips, carrots, parsley or celery. It is strictly forbidden to plant cabbage in the garden after cucumbers, as it needs very fertile soil. After cucumbers, the soil is almost completely depleted, in fact, just like after cabbage itself.
To improve the composition of the soil after the cucumber family, it is better to plant legumes, as well as tomatoes, corn and lettuce.
Don’t be fooled by the misconception that pouring a bucket of compost on your garden bed will make the soil fertile. It becomes fertile over time due to the fact that it combines a certain set of nutrients and other useful microelements.
It is best to observe correct crop rotation than to constantly maintain the soil with fertilizers and nothing more. This will lead to the fact that the soil will no longer be alive and, like a victim of plastic surgery, will constantly wait for a new dose of tightening.
Strawberry
Another demanding berry representative of country crops is strawberries. This berry drinks all the juices from the soil so much that after it is replanted (once every 4 years), the soil is so thoroughly fertilized precisely mineral fertilizer that the compost layer sometimes reaches five centimeters. This should be done in the fall, after the entire garden has been carefully dug up and all the necessary additives have been added.
Strawberries love nitrogen very much, so after it you need to plant those crops that enrich the soil with just that chemical. These are beans, peas and beans; they secrete the largest amount of this substance through their root system.
Also, strawberry bushes leave behind a huge number of pests, and here garlic will help summer residents: it will not only clear the soil of remaining slugs that love to feast on strawberries, but will also help the soil acquire special phytoncidal properties. Your soil will bloom less and become sick. It is extremely important to observe the planting of raspberries, as they are similar to strawberries. These sweet fruits have common pests, so it is better not to plant them together.
The best option is actually to plant flowers in place of the strawberry bush: peonies, daffodils or violets, which help the soil acquire that supply of minerals that was completely lost during the growth of strawberries.
Potato
The heaviest and densest crop among vegetables sucks a lot of phosphorus and potassium from the soil, so the soil will lack precisely these microelements. You can make up for these costs with the help of minerals, or you can do it easier and plant the area with annual grasses that secrete these very substances through their root system.
Essential annual herbs include:
- Datura-herb;
- peas;
- rape;
- rye;
- phacelia.
If it is not possible to completely remove the potato crop from the plot, then try planting a pumpkin next to it; it adds just those very necessary minerals that the soil requires to grow the potato crop at the proper level. However, remember that the second harvest will be significantly smaller than the first, this may even affect the size of the vegetables.
After potatoes, it is better not to plant tomatoes, eggplants and all nightshade crops. It is best to plant pumpkin, zucchini, cucumbers, cabbage or onions before potatoes.
Tomatoes
Tomatoes will also be a rather capricious crop and after them it is better not to plant eggplants, potatoes and peppers. After royal tomatoes, as in relation to potatoes, you need to plant annual herbs that fill the soil with various missing beneficial vitamins and microelements. If this cannot be done, then beans and beans work well.
After what crops is it better to plant tomatoes? Of course after potatoes and carrots. Zucchini, pumpkin, carrots, beets and green salad. Of course, carrots behave better, since tomatoes are the few vegetables after which carrots can be planted completely without fear.
Beet
Beets are the most unpretentious vegetable crop, so after them you can plant almost any vegetable, and potatoes, tomatoes and other nightshades are perfect for this.
You still have to add fertilizers to the soil and feed the soil well. After beet tubers, garlic, onions and carrots also show a good harvest.
Carrot
A moderately capricious vegetable that needs a strong and strong shoulder. Therefore, excellent predecessors of carrots will be: beets, tomatoes, cucumbers and cabbage. Carrots, on the one hand, are an active vegetable, and on the other, quite dependent. She needs special mineral fertilizers, but at the same time has a fairly light vegetable character. Carrots can grow in completely different places on your site.
Is it possible to plant after onions? Here he is that “strong” predecessor or even neighbor who will help carrots grow into an excellent vegetable. Onions secrete special substances that help repel ticks, which often settle on carrot beds. Therefore, a pair such as carrots and onions is an ideal combination.
What to plant after carrots? After it, you can plant any vegetables in the garden, except potatoes and cabbage.
Pepper
Pepper is related to those vegetable representatives whose root system lives better in the top layer of soil, where it feels best, so after it it is good to plant vegetables that have longer and deeper roots. These are primarily onions, garlic, cucumbers, beans and any other greens. This also includes any root vegetables, for example, beets, carrots, or radishes.
After what crops is it better to plant pepper? After anything except potatoes and cabbage.
Peas
An almost ideal predecessor for half of the garden is peas. It will enrich the soil with nitrogen, but will also help the growth of other vegetables. What to plant after peas next year? This vegetable also nourishes the soil with potassium and phosphorus, so tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, peppers, beets, melons, zucchini and so on bear fruit well after it.
The only disadvantage of peas is their susceptibility to fungal diseases. Its root begins to rot when given too much water, so peas should never be overwatered. After it, the soil is completely unsuitable for planting other beans, which can also become “sick.” All this is because the spores persist in the ground for five to six years.
To collect all the knowledge visually, you can make a special table for alternating vegetables in the garden or crop rotation, which will help visually evaluate those crops that live well together in rotation. On the contrary, arrange all those vegetables that are undesirable for planting in future seasons. You can also put all your knowledge in order and make another list. This seems complicated only at first glance - you need to create another table: “what to plant next in the garden.”
Cultures “neighbors” and “enemies”
Another important issue when planting and establishing your own crop rotation in the garden is the rules of neighboring crops. Many garden residents have a certain influence on each other, which can be both good and bad. In order to avoid mistakes in this regard and get a good and bountiful harvest, you need to master the rules for correctly planting crops of “friends and enemies.”
All this depends on the root system present in each plant, because toxins released into the soil can either organize the protection of neighboring vegetables from problems, or attract them, thereby shortening the life of neighboring plants.
The following vegetable crops tolerate joint planting well:
- Potatoes and beans, cabbage, corn, spinach, eggplant, horseradish, carrots, radish, dill, lettuce. All these plants bring invaluable benefits to potatoes, sucking excess water from the soil, and onions and garlic located closely will protect the root crop from late blight, which can affect this crop.
- Garlic will have a positive effect on many garden neighbors who are planted next to it. A tandem of garlic and strawberries will look best in a summer cottage, since these two crops benefit each other mutually. Garlic helps strawberries get rid of pests and diseases, and the red berry helps garlic gain greater yield. Likewise, a garlic bulb will become larger if there are carrots growing nearby.
- It is better to plant dill and corn next to cucumbers, which enrich the soil with microelements.
- Peas will be an excellent neighbor for carrots, and for peas themselves best neighbor there will be potatoes, tomato or eggplant.
- Separately, it is worth mentioning the flowers adjacent to many vegetable crops, for example, gladioli, carnations and roses, which will help not only enrich the soil with a vitamin and mineral complex, but also protect vegetables from pests.
Cultures that absolutely cannot get along with each other:
- Nuts practically do not get along with anyone, as they depress root system Most vegetables release juglone into the soil.
- Wormwood and legumes planted at the same time also become a bad neighbor for vegetable crops.
- Fennel is generally a persona non grata in the garden, because all crops do not do well with it. It is better to plant it separately from others and next to a small flower bed or shrub.
- Crops such as potatoes, cucumbers, tomatoes and strawberries do not grow well together.
- Eggplants and tomatoes generally do not tolerate other representatives of nightshades. Therefore, if you risk planting pepper next to each other, both will develop poorly.
- A pair of cabbage and strawberries will also be a bad neighbor, since the first is the most demanding vegetable of all garden crops, and the second surrounds itself with a huge number of pests that can damage the root system of cabbage.
Having memorized these rules by heart, the summer resident can still experiment on his site. Because it happens that a large neighborhood can be harmful, and a small amount of “communication” does not affect the growth of other cultures at all.
For example, valerian, yarrow or nettle, which are planted in small quantities on the edge of the garden bed, do not in any way affect the yield of vegetable crops; on the contrary, they will even help them by enriching the soil necessary substances and microelements.
Thus, any gardener can master such a concept as crop rotation, and by applying it in practice, he will plan sowing on his summer cottage for many years. This will help protect the soil from losing all nutrients, and will also help plants, with the help of the forces of nature, maintain a normal balance. At the same time, the summer resident will not have to spend money on various fertilizing, since the site will be fertilized naturally.
