Overwintering and crop rotation

[Gordonmull]

Hi folks

Sorry - yet another. I have a medium sized garden, no allotment, unfortunately. There are two beds, the left one is 5.5m x 4m and the right one is 3.5m x 4m.

I can't seee that I've got enough space to grow enough potatoes, carrots, onions and brassica in a four year rotation. The potatoes take up so much room it's basically one bed or the other, so I'm working on a not quite ideal 2 year rotation.

Now, what's confusing me is - should i put spring cabbage, broccoli, japanese onions into where the potatoes WERE this year and then put the appropriate families in the appropriate places next year, following the over-wintering crops or would it be better to put e.g. the spring cabbage where my summer cabbage was this year? Or does it even matter?

Hope that makes sense it's diffficult to explain.

Cheers

Gordon

[Gordonmull]

[Pescador]

Hi Gordonmull,
From the point of view of pests and diseases, don't worry at all, because in such a small area, if they're there, they will be transmitted.
By wind, pest, or soil on your tools and boots.
More important is to think about the condition of the soil; you'll probably want to add organic matter at some stage, so keep the roots away from any fresh FYM and grow cabbage and bean types on that bit, and then roots on it next year.

[antipodes]

Hi,
Because of the way my plot is, I always end up growing leeks and the brassicas where the early spuds were! Never seems to do them any harm. I always add some fertilizer before planting them, but the spud bed has always been heavily manured so they still seem to get enough goodness.

[Spireite]

How far apart should potatoes be planted to rotate them the following year then?? [I planted my first potatoes this year, and am wondering where to put them next year if I am successful :)]

[Gordonmull]

Cheers, Pescador.

Think I've got it now -  if I spllit a bed into two and manured/composted one half of that, then put the brassicas in that spot. Roots except potatoes on the other half. Potatoes in the other bed.

Then the following year, swapped potatoes to the old "everything else" bed and in the old potato bed did the same thing - i.e. split in half, one side manured for brassica and the other for roots? Just keep repeating that year on year, swapping about the half beds each time I come to use them.

Also, going by what you've said, I take it overwintering crops would be better go into where the summer/autumn harvested crops of the same family were located prior to harvest?

Cheers

Gordon

[Gordonmull]

Hi,
Because of the way my plot is, I always end up growing leeks and the brassicas where the early spuds were! Never seems to do them any harm. I always add some fertilizer before planting them, but the spud bed has always been heavily manured so they still seem to get enough goodness.

Oh dear, I didn't put anything in my potato bed but a top dressing of BFB!  :o Take it I'm going to have to be busy with the liquid fertilizer? i did dig in about a 1" layer of compost last year during the "Let's chuck some seeds in the ground and see what happens" attempt but I'm assuming all nutritional value from that is all gone.

[Pescador]

Sounds like you're spot-on Gordon.
You can always top dress with Growmore or chicken pellets, if you haven't added enough before planting.

[Gordonmull]

Nice one, cheers