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this is my 2nd year with my backyard vegie garden. a few years back, I made my first, somewhat successful attempt in a smaller area - but when the kids finally outgrew the trampoline and I had some room, I got a little more serious and last year I had a great garden. when I originally started a few years ago, I grew some tomatoes and they did great for a while and then suddenly fell ill - my neighbor, who's been gardening a long time said it was most likely a virus in the soil. so when I started my garden last year, I built two raised beds 4'x5' each. I grew my tomatos in one of those and they did great. I have strawberries in the other. In addition, I have two plots: one is approx 10' x 15' and the other is 6' x 12'. I had corn in the 6'x12' area and zucchini, pumpkins, cucumber, lettuce, and green beans in the other. This year, I want to grow all of those things plus some onions and potatoes. I'm aprehensive about moving the tomatos out of the raised bed for fear of the dreaded virus...

I like to rotate my crops from area to area on a 3 year rotation. That said, many folks don't rotate and have good success. How's that for a non-answer?

When I gardened in the ground, I faithfully followed what my grandmother had taught me and rotated my tomato plants with my bean plants every year. Then, I began gardening in containers, and for some reason, got the idea that I didn't need to bother with crop rotation anymore ... until the year arrived when I lost every tomato plant I planted. Ever since then, I use new soil each year for my tomatoes.

As hit or miss stated, some people seem to get along just fine without crop rotation. I learned the hard way that I'm not a member of that lucky group.

I like to rotate because I feel it may help avoid some diseases. One thing I can recommend is grow tomato varieties with disease resistance.

Tomatoes, peppers and potatoes are all in the same family and susceptible to the same diseases.

does that mean crops can stay in the same location for three years ? - or does it mean that they cannot be in the same place for three years?

My garden is relatively small and I do my best to move things from row to row over the years. This year I have tomatoes planted where I had eggplants planted last year. I have 2 trellises I use for pole beans and cucumbers and rotate the crop from year to year, beans one year, cucs the next. My soybeans for edamame are in a different row that last season, etc.

The only thing I plant in the same spot every summer is Okra. I've been growing it in the same 2 partial rows for years now and it never ceases to amaze me with the amount it produces.

bhapimama wrote:does that mean crops can stay in the same location for three years ? - or does it mean that they cannot be in the same place for three years?

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That means you don't plant in the same location but once in 3 years.

I have 4 raised veggie garden beds with an herb area in the middle. The perennial herbs are there, but I relocate the annuals.
I rotate the vegetables for the same reasons as Jal. The strawberry bed stays there 3 years of production, but then I relocate it, too.

Looking for some sun and heat so we can actually get the garden going.

Try typing crop rotation or rotating crops in the Search the Forum key word box to find lots of information already here about it. Here's some samples:


https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=156611&highlight=rotate+crops#156611


https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=28928&highlight=


https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=161136#161136