Grow your Own
Crop Rotation
Crop rotation is simply a way of ensuring that crops are grown in different sections of the vegetable patch year on year. The main reason for doing this is to minimise the build up of certain soil borne pests and diseases. If a certain vegetable is grown in the same spot each year the pests and diseases specific to that crop are likely to build to dangerous levels and can then cause great problems. A good example of this is clubroot which attacks many brassicas the risk of which can be massively reduced by changing where these crops are grown.
There are many other benefits to crop rotation too, legumes for example fix nitrogen in the soil whilst they grow and this is then available for the next crop. It is a good idea to follow these crops with leafy brassicas or potatoes which like a high level of nitrogen.
Potatoes also tend to smoother out weeds so they are unable to grow. Follow these with hard to weed veg such as onions.
Crop rotation does require organisation though and you need to be plan at least for the following 3 seasons. For the best results the further ahead you can plan the better.
