Crop Rotation

[wordwiz]

I probably need to be proactive and not wait until a problem develops. Most of my garden area is dedicated to potatoes, tomatoes and peppers, with a little room for beans, carrots, onions and lettuce. One is suppose to practice crop rotation to decrease the likelihood of disease, especially blight but the spuds, maters and peppers are the same family. Since they take up 95 percent of my space, rotation among different families is impossible. So what can one do to inhibit diseases?

I'm fairly sure sowing winter wheat and tilling it under in the spring helps - dad pretty much used the same ground year after year for tobacco.

Anyone have any suggestions, even if they are folklore?

Mike

 

[chilliman]

Cover cropping and Green manuring (4yr rotation) would interrupt all insect cycles and disease. But you dont really have the space ?

IMO companion planting or interplanting would suit your space. And help with both soil, and plant health.
Combined with old school sanitation. The obvious ones:
- removal, burning, or deep plowing of crop residues that could carry plant disease or insect pest agents
- destruction of nearby weedy habitats that shelter pests
- sterilizing pruning tools
- etc
BUT some of these techs can increase erosion and reduce biodiversity.

Hope that helped Mike.