gardeningharpist

I suspect it's very important if you can do it. A lot of gardeners can't because of limited space. I'm treating my melon plants for anthracnose right now, and at least it isn't getting any worse. But I know it will stay in the soil if I don't do something to the soil itself.

I'd like to see a discussion about how to "treat" garden beds before planting and while plants are growing to cut down on diseases that may already be in the soil. If you begin with "clean" soil, over time they can become contaminated with plant diseases and stay that way unless you can do something about it.

If you rotate crops every year, I don't know if that's enough time to foil the diseases in the soil anyway. Some recommendations are to rotate on a 2-3 year basis.

I think what I'll do in the fall is clear out all the garden debris, even the mulch, put it in a compost pile, and drench the bed soil with Ortho Garden Disease Control. It IS non-organic, but there comes a time for the fungal weapons that you know will work. Next Spring I'll return to whatever organic treatments I can find and hope to keep the diseases at bay that way.

So to answer your question, some people just can't rotate their crops very adequately. Some can. It depends on space and growing conditions.

I have also wondered this. This is my second year gardening in raised beds and I did not rotate crops.

I wondered if I took out the dirt that I had brought in to fill my raised beds (about 16") and put new dirt in if that helps, or do the diseases go all the way down into the dirt. that is under the raised beds.

Any thoughts?

Can someone explain this to me also? I grew up in farm country, and I know in the fields, farmers had to rotate corn and soybeans. From what I understood, corn took nitrogen out of the soil, and soybeans put N back in. That was the reason for the rotation because you obviously could not compost/amend hundreds of acres of farmland. For home gardening, if there is disease in the soil, won't it always be there regardless of what is growing there? For example, if you have some tomato virus in the soil, and you plant basil there instead, won't the virus still be there? The basil won't "cure" the soil of that virus, would it? If you plant tomato back in that same location in a few years, wouldn't the disease still be there?

Lots of interesting threads for you in the Soil, Compost, Mulch Forum.
I do not rotate, and have had good luck lately.
I do believe that 90% of gardening success starts in the soil.
Should you find a compost source or correctly compost yourself, replenishing the soil each spring with healthy clean compost will do wonders for the garden.

You can maintain this during the growing season with the application of a strong compost tea.

Do NOT till the soil deeply ....ever.... this dredges up pathogens and diseases laying down there, just waiting for air and light to thrive and attack.

Sow a cover crop in the fall and turn over into the topsoil late winter and add the fresh layer of compost.
Plant....mulch...water conservativly.....feed (I find it more fun, and satisfying to do this naturally, as opposed to chemicals) ....harvest...and live well:) No real need to rotate unless you do nothing to your soil.

Tom

Since the OP is using SFG raised beds that will have to be amended w/ new compost due to shrinkage(and hopefully composting all those plants this fall) NO. Crop rotation in a small back yard garden or raised beds is going to make minimal difference.

A cover crop in the fall is a great idea, but not necesarry as long as proper attention is given to replacing what was taken out of the soil by this years crop.

Corn is a very heavy feeder, a large patch of corn w/ a fall crop of legumes or alfalfa would be very beneficial.

Many large farms are monoculture and have no rotation at all, except for a cover crop of green manure.

I've read many stories about old school farmers planting potatoes here, toms there, corn over there year after year and it worked for them.

I agree with rj - rotation just isn't applicable if you are using Sq. Foot gardening. One of the underlying principles of that approach is that it eliminates the need for rotation - if indeed there is one. And as others have already pointed out, while it may play a role in large farm or commercial production, it doesn't in the home garden for most simply because the average home garden isn't large enough.

There are indeed many discussions on this issue over on the Soil & Compost forum as well as the Vegetable Gardening forum that a search will pull up if you will search 'crop rotation'. And the consistent recommendation is annual (or more often) additions of good compost. The beneficial fungi and bacteria in quality compost have been proven time and time again to be most effective at controlling, and even eliminating pathogens in the soil. You, in effect rotate the soil, not the plants.

Since SQ. Foot gardens (which do have a forum here so check out this discussion on it from that forum) are composed of 1/3 compost of high quality and peat and not dirt (assuming they are true SQ. Ft.) rotation is a non-issue according to Mel.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: Crop rotation discussions

Thanks so much for all of your advice. My SFG bed is filled with Black Kow/or horse manure and a 3D soil mix from a local hardware store.

I appreciate your expert help!

Thanks, Laura

The main reason for rotating where tomatoes have been planted is b'c of plants shedding fungal and bacterial foliage pathogens to the soil and there can be a buildup of those in the soil and then the next year splashback reinfection can occur.

If you mulch that can help, or if you can turn over the soil completely in the Fall that also can help.

Rotation is not due to depletion of the soil. Contrary to what most folks think tomatoes are not heavy feeders and most folks overfertilize them and/or grow them in too rich soils in the first place. ( smile)

Carolyn

If you are concerned about the carry over of pathogens and such, then you may want to consider solarization. It is particularly efective for smaller areas.

Bets

Here is a link that might be useful: Soil Solarization and Weed Control

I agree rotation of nightshade crops like tomato, potato, pepper, isn't for the soil depletion (easily fixed), but for diseases.

Most nightshade crop diseases can remain in the soil for years. Being organic, but not having space to rotate my nightshade crops for 5 years, I try soil solarization in 1 of 4 beds each year and red plastic mulch in the growing beds. The plastic mulch doesn't protect the roots, but it does prevent splash-up onto the leaves.

I thought this site had some interesting suggestions, I hope that they are helpful to others.

Good Gardening, Mary

Here is a link that might be useful: crop rotation