Grow it Yourself - “People Like Bunches of Roses”
No, we are not getting an early speak in for Valentine’s Day. The title is a handy way to remember the sequence for rotating crops; potatoes, legumes, brassicas, onions and roots. Crop rotation is important for the soil “health” of your vegetable garden. The idea is not to grow a crop in the same place year after year to prevent disease and nutrition problems in the garden. You’ll need to split your crops into 5 crop families, and they are:
disease. Disease organisms can build up over time, resulting in eventual crop failure. Rotating crops keeps these organisms in check. Crop rotation also helps reduce insect infestations. Different families of plants require different nutrients. By rotating Also; amendments to keep your garden balanced. Some plants enhance the soil, so rotating them through the garden can produce free organic soil conditioning. The potato family are the biggest feeders. In the autumn months (once the root crops have been cleared), apply well-rotted manure or compost or grow a your crops, you keep the soil from being depleted and can target soil
nitrogen themselves so do not require extra manure. They will benefit from leaf mould mulch once they’ve been planted out however (to improve soil structure). Leafy veg (brassicas & salads) like to follow peas & beans. Dig in green manures or add compost (or well-rotted manure) in the spring prior to planting. Mulch with leaf mould in the autumn. Apply compost in the spring where onion family plants will grow. Root crops don’t need much feeding, as they’ll use up everything that’s left over from previous crops. If you only have one small bed, don’t worry. Just divide it and plant your families in the different squares or rectangles.
Potato: Potato, Tomato, Pepper, Aubergine.
Legumes: Peas, Broad Beans, French Beans, Runner Beans.
Brassicas: Brussels sprouts, Cabbage,
Cauliflower, Calabrese, Broccoli, Kale, Kohlrabi, Oriental Greens, Radish, Swede and turnips.
green manure. In spring, dig in the green manure leaving a few weeks between manuring and sowing if you can. After harvesting the potatoes, plant anything from the legume family.
Onions: Onions, Garlic, Shallots, Leeks.
Roots: Beetroot, Carrot, Celeriac, Celery, Florence Fennel, Parsley, Parsnip and all other root crops except turnips and swede which are in the brassica section.
The main reason to rotate crops is to prevent the spread of plant
The Legumes fix
Adapted from https://www.quickcrop.ie/blog/2012/01/crop-rotation/ & https://greensideup.ie › media › Crop-Rotation
About Rush GIY We are a local community group and part of the GIY Ireland network. Our vision is for a healthier, more sustainable, and more connected world where people grow their own food. We were founded in 2012 under the ROOTS umbrella (Rush & Lusk Open Organisation for Transition Status), which promotes community resilience in a future with declining fossil fuel resources. our email list or get more information by contacting: rushgiy@gmail.com or https://www.facebook.com/RushGIY/
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