Crop rotation

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Crop rotation

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Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Mon Mar 28, 05 9:52 pm Post subject: Crop rotation
Still something I find a bit difficult to keep track of, but Gavin has kindly provided us with a no-nonsense guide to the mysteries (or not!) of this concept. Any questions, all you new allotmenteers and veg growers?

nettie

Joined: 02 Dec 2004
Posts: 5888
Location: Suffolk

Posted: Mon Mar 28, 05 10:02 pm Post subject:
Yep, how to do a 3 year rotation for complete novices like me, that includes spuds! At the moment I've got them in the same bed as the roots, all will be shifted next year. Great article, I am very pleased that corn, gourds and legumes aren't fussy, makes life much easier

Blue Sky

Joined: 30 Jan 2005
Posts: 7658
Location: France

Posted: Mon Mar 28, 05 10:41 pm Post subject:

Yep ... Gavin certainly has it sussed. Worth visiting his superb website too as there is a whole host of info on there that is worth a look at. As far as crop rotation goes over here, we currently have four beds - one permanent (he says - sneaking an early crop of spuds on it) and three rotational, presently: Brassicas, Beans/legumes & Roots. It sure takes some sorting out this crop rotation thing. All the books tell you different - especially where turnips/swedes are concerned but Gavin's system looks set to top them all so we will be digging another two beds out in the back field very soon.

Happy cultivating

S

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 05 9:02 am Post subject:

Does anyone else find it diffucult to balance their rotations? For example, we love most veggies, but aren't keen on cabbage and sprouts, so the brassica rotation is smaller than all the others and wouldn't use the whole bed. At the moment it's not a problem, as my rotation is weird anyway, because I'm not growing maincrop roots, onions or spuds. I suppose you can be a bit flexible with the odds and sods though.

Where does pak choi fit in?

Does anyone companion plant - doesn't that interfere with your rotaion pattern?

Blue Sky

Joined: 30 Jan 2005
Posts: 7658
Location: France

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 05 9:15 am Post subject:

wellington womble wrote:

Where does pak choi fit in?

Does anyone companion plant - doesn't that interfere with your rotaion pattern?

Not heard of that one???

We just grow a batch of everything we can to keep the rotation plan simple and makes gifts of what we don't eat alot ourselves. I draw the line at celery though. I find it more of a problem that the veggies all grow in there own seasons so we are always chasing the gaps where early crops have gone and the next lot aren't due yet. Salad stuffs come in handy here but this does upset rotation.

We companion plant carrots, onions, etc. and as you say this can muck things up too but so far we have tended to sneak our roots in with the other stuff and use the whole of the "root" plot for spuds. This year we are increasing our plots and will try a method similar to that at the head of this topic.

So what is Pak choi? It sounds oriental.

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45670
Location: Essex

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 05 9:44 am Post subject:

simon wrote:

So what is Pak choi? It sounds oriental.

Pak Choi is an oriental Brassica, very tasty, I can't grow it though because the pigeons love it.

gavin

Joined: 10 Feb 2005
Posts: 93
Location: Leeds, W Yorks

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 05 9:56 am Post subject:

Thank you for the generous feedback! Much appreciated, lads and lasses

For Nettie - it depends what all you're growing and your space? (Now there's helpful

!) On my own plot, growing a bit of everything, I'd probably do a basic

year 1 potato bed (followed by lime in winter - if it's necessary)
year 2 brassica bed
year 3 onions bed

Roots/legumes/the rest? Wherever the "space fits" - roots with pots, beans and peas with brassica (

), carrots with the onions (

) salads in odd bits?

For Wellington Womble - fit rotation to what you grow, not what you grow to a "rotation strait-jacket"

- just means you've got a great opportunity for extra growing space!

Pak choi is a brassica, though (so are most of the Chinese/Japanese greens?).

Companion planting - huge question! So a quick generalisation doesn't do it justice - but few of the "goodies" are plants which would cause problems? I'll have a think about it

All best - Gavin

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 05 10:09 am Post subject:

Aha - pak choi solves the brassica problem then! It's really nice, we had some in our veggie box, and it looks like a cross between lambs lettuce and cabbage. I was expecting it to taste cababgey, but it was like fresh beans, only leaf shaped. Very nice, anyway.

My crop rotation this year is very perculiar - it goes (sort of) potatoes and tomatoes, squash and a few brassicas, legumes and a few oniony bits. I haven't got any manure (nowhere to tip it) but I'm going to shove municipal compost in everywhere, and boost the squashes with worm casts or worm tea. I've got a tub of seaweed something for the spuds, and the tomateos will get woodash. it's not in any of the books, but I'm working with what I've got!

boff

Joined: 23 Mar 2005
Posts: 354
Location: Still alive and kicking

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 05 10:14 am Post subject:
I couldn't find any pak choi seeds anywhere - as for crop rotation,Ive only just got the stuff in let alone worry about rotating it......

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45670
Location: Essex

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 05 10:21 am Post subject:

boff wrote:

I couldn't find any pak choi seeds anywhere

www.vidaverde.co.uk
www.simpsonsseeds.co.uk
www.dtbrownseeds.co.uk

nettie

Joined: 02 Dec 2004
Posts: 5888
Location: Suffolk

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 05 5:43 pm Post subject:
Thank you Gavin!

moggins

Joined: 24 Feb 2005
Posts: 942
Location: Gloucester

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 05 7:25 pm Post subject:
Thanks for those links, I've found the salad leaves seeds that I wanted

Blue Sky

Joined: 30 Jan 2005
Posts: 7658
Location: France

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 05 7:41 pm Post subject:
I don't suppose anyone has any such links for us frenchies?

Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 05 7:53 pm Post subject:
I'm sure a few of them will send to France, Simon, worth asking. And there's one in France called something I can't type like Association Kokokapelli...they're probably in our web links section or if you visit Gavin's site I think I saw them there. I would send some but I used up the last of ours in a mixed salad sowing...

gavin

Joined: 10 Feb 2005
Posts: 93
Location: Leeds, W Yorks

Posted: Tue Mar 29, 05 11:00 pm Post subject:
Association Kokopelli - here's the url https://www.kokopelli-seeds.com/ All best - Gavin

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