Comments on: Fall Vegetable Garden Maintenance

By: Home Decorating Ideas

Home Decorating Ideas — Sat, 15 May 2010 04:22:11 +0000

Yeah this is the time of the year when me and my mom start preparing the soil for winter vegetables. I make separate bed for different vegetable, and treat the soil likewise. Mostly i prefer planting under soil vegetables so i need to take special care of the soil, we use green fertilizer only, thanks for all the tips you shared in your post.

By: Craig

Craig — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:01:48 +0000

I’m helping a friend start growing her vegetable garden and I’m sure this post will be useful for her. Thanks!

By: tommy

tommy — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 18:31:48 +0000

Thanks for your comment. Actually, rotation of crops is not as much a requirement because of soil nutrients. The main reason for crop rotation is to avoid the buildup of soil borne diseases. Rotating crops of different families will lower the levels of soil diseases that affect specific groups of crops.

In your example, I would suggest you consider rotating your tomatoes out of that same location at least once every three years. A yearly rotation, with a return to the same location in the fourth year is optimal. I realize that is hard to do when you have limited space.

Peppers, eggplant, and tomatillos are all examples of vegetables in the same family as tomatoes. Generally, soil borne problems will affect an entire crop family. So, it is best to follow them each year with another crop such as cucumbers, beans, etc.

Good luck with your garden and thanks again for visiting.

Tommy

By: Eco-friendly bean bags

Eco-friendly bean bags — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 17:22:17 +0000

Speaking of tomatoes…do you guys swap locations for your tomato plants each spring? I’ve been told that when you plant them in the same plot year after year, you can deplete the soil because they require so much N, but I’ve never tested that. Three years in the same raised bed (mostly because it’s the one that gets the most sun), and every year they seem to grow vigorously. Maybe I’ve just been lucky so far, because I don’t treat the soil with much except a small bit of compost when I plant.

By: tommy

tommy — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:19:26 +0000

Marvin,

You make a good point. Too much nitrogen will cause most plants to remain in a vegetative state and not go into reproduction, which is what we want for fruit set.

As experiences are varied, I have personally never found a problem with following my nitrogen fixing green manure with tomatoes.

Thanks again for your comment. Nitrogen levels are definately something to keep in mind and perhaps a soil test is the only way to know what the levels are in everyone’s garden.

Tommy