Tuesday, 14 August 2007

Whats Crop Rotation

The principle of crop rotation is to grow specific groups of vegetables on a different piece of land each year. Groups are moved around in sequence so they don’t return to the same spot for at least three years.


Benefits
Pest and disease control: Soil pests and diseases tend to attack specific plant families, so by rotating crops life-cycles are broken and build-up is reduced.

Weed control: Some crops (e.g. potatoes and squashes) can suppress weeds, minimising problems for following crops.

Soil fertility: Different crops have different soil requirements and benefits. Changing crops from year to year minimises deficiencies and allows the soil to replenish.
Soil structure: Alternating between deep-rooted and fibrous-rooted crops improves soil structure.

Exceptions: Some plants have so few soil-dwelling pests or disease that they can be fitted in anywhere in the rotation:
aubergines
chicory
courgettes
cucumbers
endive
fennel
French beans
lettuces
marrows
peppers
pumpkins
runner beans
squashes
sweet corn

Plan

There are a number of beds on my plot that i am not going to be rotating as these are perminant crops. These include

Fruits
Rhubarb
Asparagus

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