Veges come full circle
Different plants have different soil needs, but even in a small garden, a good crop rotation plan will help you grow all the veges you want to eat. Jo Mccarroll reports.
Every vegetable has a different soil requirement. For instance, lettuce and leafy greens are nitrogen hungry, but fruiting crops such as capsicum, eggplant and tomatoes will produce foliage rather than the edible fruit (and yes, they are technically fruit as they grow from flowering plants) if there is too much nitrogen in the soil.
Gross feeders such as corn and pumpkins like a rich soil, so you can pile on compost and manure but carrots will twist and fork if soil is too rich.
Crop rotation is basically shifting certain plant groups each year so you don’t strip the soil of any one thing.
Plus, as specific plant families are affected by certain pests and diseases, rotating where you grow them each year will prevent those pests and diseases building up in one spot.
How to start rotating your crops
Draw up a plan of your garden. Map what you’ve grown previously, and mark any areas where you’ve added compost and manure, dug in fertiliser, limed and rested beds, or grown green crops.
Most basic crop rotation plans are based on a four-bed system, like the one I use outlined below, but if that doesn’t work for you, just divide your garden into four areas or zones. Next year, move the bed one crops to bed two, the bed three crops to bed four and so on.
In bed one
Grow legumes and brassicas. So that’s beans (runner, climber and broad), peas, cabbages, cauliflower, broccoli, brussels sprouts and kohlrabi. Swedes and turnips are technically brassicas too, but grow those alongside your other root crops.
Use supports for climbing beans and peas at the back of the legume bed so it doesn’t shade other crops. Sow dwarf peas or bush beans around the edges for easy harvesting.
In bed two
Plant herbs and heat-loving solanaceae, such as tomatoes, eggplants, chillies and capsicums.
Potatoes are also in the solanaceae family, but again grow those with your other root crops.
When the soil is warm enough, direct sow basil, Italian parsley and other culinary herbs.
In bed three
Grow cucurbits (melons, zucchini, pumpkins and cucumbers) and corn, and pop lettuces in to any gaps.
Sow pumpkins direct on the north-facing edge of your bed. The vines will wander off, soaking up sun and saving you planting space.
Always sow sweetcorn in blocks, rather than rows, as corn is wind-pollinated, and train trailing cucumber vines up the stalks.