Crop rotation vs companion planting

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

We don't really have enough sunny space to rotate anything, so we don't. Nothing here is ideal, but this year we are trying a "3 sisters" garden for the first time. Corn, squash and beans in one spot. Apparently the squash keeps out corn pests and the beans grow up the corn stalk and don't kill it. I hope.

I love the 3 sisters method. Works very well. Be sure to space them properly because once they are a couple of months into it, you can barely find the beans! (IF they are not spaced appropriately).

I do a "3 cousins" method (yes, my name). Mammoth sunflowers, vining cucumbers climbing up the flowers, and melons like cantaloupe or watermelon creating the moisture protector. Figured it out using that carrots/tomatoes book and it does really well. Be sure to give 2 SF of space for each sunflower.

 

[valmom]

I tried to do melons one year- I don't think our growing season is long enough for them. I had several small unripe ones by the time it snowed on them

 

[esmith413]

i have heard of the 3 sisters. that sound like a good idea

 

[Wannabefree]

One of our sisters is missing this year. Our beans are trained up the corn and are blooming really well right now. It does not appear to have hurt the corn either. I'll have to get that book!!

 

[FarmerJamie]

I tried to do melons one year- I don't think our growing season is long enough for them. I had several small unripe ones by the time it snowed on them

Did you plant the seed in the ground with the other stuff?
You could maybe start the seeds inside to get maybe another month out of the season?

 

[freemotion]

I'm planting a 3 sisters this year, too! Got 19 of my corn mounds planted today and yesterday and am working furiously to finish the rest (35 corn and bean mounds, 24 squash and pumpkin mounds) this weekend. I planted sunflowers around my tomatoes, hoping they will be sturdy enough to stake them with. The tomatoes are on temporary stakes for now.

Love the cucumber idea!

 

[Veggie PAK]

According to recommendations that I came across, in order to not have to do crop rotation, I am supposed to place 6 each, 5 gallon buckets of cured compost on each 100 square feet of area in the garden per year. This is supposed to provide/replenish the micronutrients and beneficial organisms that crop rotation would provide. Of course this recommendation is for small scale back yard gardens. Not multi-acre fields.

Unfortunately I cannot find the document at this moment, but I will keep looking. It was from a reputable source.

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

hey VPak - i think it was from that John Jeavons guy... i remember reading it as well. love the book - its currently open on my counter so i can refer to it.

 

[esmith413]

I just read that also in the famous carrots love tomatoes book, not the info about the compost but just that tomatoes like the same spot yearly. Thanks for the info......I am going to have to do that.

 

[Neko-chan]

I am totally keeping an eye on this thread. I grew tomatoes in our raised bed last summer, and right now it has snow peas and radish, but I was thinking it would need a nitrogen fix or something, so I was planning to plant a "living screen" of peas (or beans, whichever survives in summer heat better) to shade the kitchen window in late spring/summer, and then plant bush beans at their feet.

Is that not a good idea? Should I go ahead and plant the tomatoes back there again? I know they love it there, and I was already planning to top the box up with more compost. I was also planning on planting them with basil, instead of capsicums, because the caterpillars I had last year munched right across the row of plants, and I want to prevent that (or at least hinder the process).

I love the idea of the "three cousins"! I thought it would be fun to plant sunflowers under the bedroom window to shade us from the sun in summer time and keep the house cool (I need to find a suitable giant sunflower variety), so the idea of growing cucumbers and melons up the stalk is great, because I'll be able to utilize even more space.

My brother is growing the three sisters, and something he called the "three senoritas", which I think is peppers/chilies, cilantro, and something else, but I can't remember what. I will keep all of this in mind.