Rotation, companion and succession planting plan

[lisasGarden]

Can anyone help me with a garden plan. I am trying to put together a base plan for my garden to grow on year to year that takes plant rotation, companion and succession planting in to consideration. I am just looking for something to start off of and to adapt to my area (Georgia). I have bought more than 5 books on the subject, but am having a terrible time pulling them all together into a plan. I would really like to have 4 or 5 raised beds that are 6X12.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[digitS']

Welcome to TEG, Lisa !

Here is a graphic for companions that was put together by a very good gardener:

I'll try to organize my thinking on succession (which I do a lot of) and rotation and get back with some ideas.

Altho' my part of the world is seeing a rapid close of the growing year - we aren't there yet!

Steve

 

[lisasGarden]

Wow-Thank you so much. It's so nice to have it all in one integrated graphic, instead of flipping through pages. I have been working on this for a couple weeks. I suppose it doesnt help that I am fairly new to gardening, so I have a big learning curve. I really appreciate it, I am trying to develop a plan that I can stick to- and just adapt as needed.

 

[hoodat]

Welcome to our gardens. Sorry to say I'm not that well organized. I sort of fly by the seat of my pants in my garden. By the end of the season my well planned garden has turned into a hodge podge as I stick plants into odd corners.

 

[lesa]

Hoodat, I'm with you! I sort of, kind of, have a plan- but mother nature and I don't always have the same plan! I tend to treat gardening as more of an art than a science! Most things really do want to grow and they really don't need too much help... Not there is anything wrong with planning and being more scientific- just not my style!
Welcome! Welcome!

 

[lisasGarden]

Thanks for your comments. I thought I could use companion planting for pest control. I guess some plants deter certain pests, if planted next to one another. Help your buddy out sort of thing. A garden interplanted seems like it would be more like real nature rather than the monoculture of single varietal in rows.
The succession planting is really just so I can get the most out of my garden space. I dont have a real big area. Although I have had gardens, I leave plants and they overgrow. It would be nice to have a rough sketch of when I should plant this and that, and when it should be taken out of the garden and then followed by something else.
And lastly- crop rotation.. Again to help with pest and disease control.
But youre right. Its probably not as realistic once you get going, but right now I dont have any idea of where or when to put things in the ground. I might be a bit type A.

 

[hoodat]

You're right about plants helping one another. If you're looking for pest control don't neglect to plant a few nectar sources for the tiny predator wasps and syrphid flies. They are so small they can't reach the nectar in a lot of flowers and they're worth their weight in gold when it comes to pest control. Your nectar sources can serve double duty. A lot of the herbs such as savory, thyme, mint and Asian basil have flowers that are just right for them.

 

[Ridgerunner]

It would be nice to have a rough sketch of when I should plant this and that, and when it should be taken out of the garden and then followed by something else.
And lastly- crop rotation.. Again to help with pest and disease control.
But youre right. Its probably not as realistic once you get going, but right now I dont have any idea of where or when to put things in the ground. I might be a bit type A.

I have a plan, but it only lasts until I start planting. I try to do basic things lik heavy notrogen users after beans and peas, or beans and peas after heavy nitrogen users like sweet potatoes or corn, but that is just a general nice to do idea.

To get a planting schedule, when you can put what in the ground, you might try contacting your county extension agent, in the phone book under county government. I got a calendar from mine that tells what can be planted when in my area. Very useful. The official name of mine is Year-Round Home Planting Guide. Not sure what it would be called in your state.

Good luck!

 

[journey11]

Here's a helpful chart for crop rotation....Succession Cropping . It's pretty exhaustive, but outlined very simply--column 1, what's coming out: column 2, choices to follow with.

I always have good intentions, charts and plans in February, but come July, I'm with Hoodat and Lesa! What I get around to or feel like gets tucked in here and there.

ETA: My ag extension puts out a wonderful garden calendar every year too. I always look forward to it. It gives me regional guidelines for when to plant what. Being in GA, you probably won't have any trouble with fitting in your succession crops. But the further you go north, some people with shorter growing seasons may not be able to squeeze some things in.

 

[digitS']

I'm one of those northern gardeners - at just about 48 north latitude and a couple thousand feet in elevation. For me, timing is everything when it comes to succession.

It isn't always - how many days-to-maturity is this variety rated? This is an arid climate and when the influence of the coast, 300 miles to the west, finally wanes - it gets hot and dry! The deeper sowing of larger seed is a good deal less problematic as the soil surface dries quickly and shallow-sown, small seeds can't get a start.

Others may be able to say that "this crop, follows that crop" but I pretty much just ask myself "what is coming out and what can germinate/grow right now?"

I fit summer squash between the early cabbage as it is being harvested. Bush beans can be planted right to mid-July without any real chance of failure and, they can follow the peas - I've done it for years. Even tho' the sowing of peas was late/late this year, I've managed to harvest some bush beans since we haven't had an early frost this year. I even planted a teepee of pole beans in mid-July and harvested a hatful off the plants twice now.

I can plant snow peas at the end of July. They don't do quite as well as they do when spring sown but the vines will have pea pods to harvest right about now.

Leaf lettuce has been started in protected areas in the backyard and set out repeatedly this year. Handling the lettuce this way has meant that it has been available, every week this season. That's something new for me ! The plants go in wherever there is room for them, altho' afternoon shade is preferred from mid-summer on. The entire plant is harvested when they are ready. A lot of the latest transplants followed sweet onions and shallots harvested in July.

Bok choy is sown repeatedly thru the spring. Thinnings are transplanted wherever there is room. In August, the sowings of bok choy can begin again. I also grow other Asian greens and they perform just about as well. I have lately been harvesting bok choy for weeks again and will have some Tokyo Bekana and Komatsuma in just a few days. All, from August sowings - a lot of them, on the bed that grew early varieties of potatoes.

Let's see. . . that's about all I can think of. Oh yeah, there has been lots of radish again lately and the arugula is about ready . Hardly a square foot of the garden was vacant at any time during the season. Your season is different from mine but, if you have a supply of seeds on hand, you should be able to replace crops one right after the other in a somewhat similar fashion.

Steve