Garden planning
Plant arrangement, crop rotation, and interplanting are the cornerstones of effective garden planning. Understanding these basics is crucial for selecting the right plants for our garden. We can achieve optimal results based on the available space and our gardening goals by growing the right plants.
When planning what and where to grow, consider the following points:
Space Requirements
Each plant has its personal space preferences. It needs enough room to stretch its roots and grow to its natural height, length, or spread.
Sunlight and Positioning
Plants, like us, have their preferences when it comes to sunlight. Generally, shorter plants should be positioned on the sunny side to bask in the most light, while taller plants, which can cast shade, should be placed on the shadier side – north and beside walls. However, there are always exceptions – some plants thrive in partial shade and can tolerate less sunny spots. For example, basil likes partial shade, has a strong scent, and is an edible herb used very often in the kitchen. Ideal for interplanting near high plants such as tomatoes.
Avoid Overcrowding
Plants we plant too close together compete for light, leading to poor fruit ripening and a humid environment that promotes fungi, pests, and diseases.
Overhead Space
Plants usually do not grow well under trees, overhanging branches, and roofs. Ensure an open sky above your garden beds for adequate light and air circulation.
Seasonal Planting
Every plant has different requirements regarding outside temperature, hours of daylight, and watering. For this reason, we must plant them in the right season. So, when starting a garden, we never plant all the plants simultaneously. Some may already be in the ground because they grow during the winter, some we plant directly in the spring, while others can still be in the greenhouse, waiting for warm weather.
Long-term growing plants
When discussing the proper seasons, we also have to consider another fact: some plants, like lettuce or radishes, grow quickly (we can plant them more times during the year), while others need months to grow, so they will occupy the same spot almost all the growing season.
Space-Hogging Crops
Some plants require a large area to be worthwhile. Potatoes, lentils, and chickpeas, for example, require a vast field to yield significantly. In small gardens, we can use them more for interplanting.
Sprawling Plants
Crops like melons and pumpkins need ample room as they spread widely. Position them so they won’t encroach on other plants or get trampled. If possible, let pumpkins grow vertically along a fence or wall.
Climbing vs. Bush Varieties
Choose dwarf or bush versions of climbing plants (like beans) if space is limited. If you have enough space, go along with climbing varieties because they often produce more fruits.
Personal Preferences
Only grow as much as you need. For example, I’m the only one in my family who likes radishes, so I only plant a few for myself. On the other hand, lettuce is a staple we enjoy year-round, so I grow different varieties according to the season.
Crop Rotation and Companion Planting
Rotating crops is crucial because repeatedly planting the same species in the same spot depletes specific soil nutrients and can lead to pest multiplication. Different plants have roots of varying lengths, drawing nutrients from different soil layers. Planting the same plant would lead to a significant yield decrease every year. Regarding the no-dig method or raised beds, crop rotation is usually unnecessary as the soil is replenished every season.
We need crop rotation when it comes to growing (much) more plants, mainly because we want to conserve them. When using interplanting, there is no need to rotate crops because appropriately chosen plants complement each other, and it is impossible to do so. Also, remember that growing a large amount of one crop will attract pests, so we have to prevent it or use natural methods to avoid insects eating the entire crop.
Main reasons for crop rotation:
Pest and Disease Prevention: Growing the same crop year after year can encourage pests and diseases to establish themselves in that location. Rotating crops breaks this cycle and helps maintain soil health.
Nutrient Management: Some plants replenish the soil, while others deplete it. If one crop did exceptionally well one year, planting it in the same spot the following season could lead to poor results due to nutrient exhaustion or unfavorable changes in the soil microbiome.
Industrial fields rely heavily on pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers to avoid these problems, but crop rotation and companion planting can be natural, better solutions in a home garden.
Creating a Simple Rotation Plan
The easiest way to start is by dividing the garden into sections and designating each for a specific plant family. Rotate each family to a new section every season or year.
A four-year rotation cycle is a good starting point, giving each section time to recover before the same crop returns.
In the past, we could see that three-field systems were used – one field was always empty. Now we know that some plants, such as clover, can help the soil recover, so instead of leaving one part empty, we can plant this one.
Understanding Plant Families
Every plant we want to grow in our garden belongs to a concrete plant family. Understanding each family helps us to choose the right plants and their companions.
Families of commonly grown vegetables:
- Legumes: Beans, chickpeas, lentils, peas, broad beans, lupine, fava beans, clover
- Cruciferous Vegetables: Cabbage, kale, cauliflower, turnip, brussels sprouts, radish
- Nightshades: Potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, peppers
- Umbellifers: Fennel, carrot, parsley, celery, cilantro
- Beet Greens: Spinach, beetroot, Swiss chard
- Gourds: Cucumbers, pumpkins, melons, zucchini
- Alliums: Onions, garlic, leeks
- Leafy Greens: Lettuce, arugula, rapini, romaine, endive, dill, mustard greens, collard, chives
In the “What to Grow” chapter, I will describe each plant group and its specific needs in more detail.
Implementing Crop Rotation
Start your rotation with legumes, as they are the least demanding on soil nutrients and can fixate the nitrogen in the ground. After one cycle, rotate the plot to a different plant family. This way, each plant family will return to its original section every four years or more.
However, some plants from the same family do not tolerate each other. For instance, eggplants belong to the same group as tomatoes, potatoes, and peppers, but cannot be grown near them. Similarly, beans and peas often struggle to coexist and don’t mix well with other plants. Mainly, it’s because they compete for nutrition, attract the same pests, or can also be alleophatic.
Rotation vs. Interplanting in Small Gardens
Crop rotation works best in extensive gardens and fields. A large area used for monoculture will be drained after the season is over. Interplanting allows us to grow more plant families in one place, which is excellent for smaller gardens or specific vegetable garden areas.
For instance, I have an area where I planted over 100 tomato plants. Next year, I won’t replant tomatoes, potatoes, or other high-demand crops there. Instead, I’ll opt for less demanding ones. Then, I have another garden where I choose interplanting to have more plants from different families and yield at various times of the year.
Basics of interplanting
Interplanting – where multiple compatible plants are grown together might be a better strategy for many gardens. This approach helps maximize yield while maintaining soil health and reducing pest problems – as their preferred host plants are present only in small quantities, making it less likely for the pests to thrive and reproduce.
The reason why we focus on interplanting is simple. In nature, plants coexist and support each other, enriching the soil and promoting mutual growth. This harmony continues until humans intervene, introducing non-native species that disrupt the balance and potentially overwhelm the environment. But that’s another story.
The same principle applies to the garden. But, being a human-created environment, it’s our work to select plants that complement and support each other. We also stand to gain from this approach because the result will be a beautiful, rich garden where everything is visually appealing and edible.
Weeds are lousy company
Let me start by saying that the vegetables we plant don’t like to grow together with weeds. Weeds grow naturally without any help, which means they already have the best conditions for growth. This allows them to absorb the nutrients intended for our crops quickly. If left unchecked, weeds will spread rapidly and potentially damage the root systems of our plants. They can also shade the plants or create a very humid environment. The longer we wait to address the issue, the more time and effort it will take to remove them.
The weeds will always win if you allow weeds and our vegetable plants to grow together. It’s never the other way around. That’s why it’s beneficial to plant edible or ornamental companions alongside your vegetables to increase yields and reduce the space for weeds to take hold. As well as growing other crops or using mulch.
A few years ago, I had a foolish idea. In the spring, I noticed nettles sprouting in my garden and thought I’d let them grow so I could harvest and dry them later. I underestimated just how invasive and robust their root systems could be. Although I managed to dry some nettles, it wasn’t worth the nightmare of digging them out afterward. The nettles formed an impenetrable root network that took forever to clear out.
I mention this because there are often beneficial herbs among the “weeds,” so we may tend to “keep” them. Trust me; it’s a bad idea. It is better to keep a separate place for meadows and wild plants and not mix them with our edible garden.
So what is the best company?
First, we need to decide which vegetable varieties can grow together harmoniously. After that, we can add suitable companion flowers to enhance the bed’s aesthetics and functionality.
This technique of growing multiple crops in the same space is called intercropping.
To keep it as simple as possible, consider the following factors: the height of the plants, which get along with deep roots, their water needs, and whether they are compatible with each other. I describe all these factors in the following chapters.
And don’t forget the seasons.
It’s usually better to start with seedlings, but that doesn’t mean every plant should go in the ground at the same time or that they’ll all mature simultaneously.
For example, I plant garlic, onions, and faves around mid-autumn. These three grow well together, have similar space requirements, and have nearly identical water needs (which are minimal in my case). Garlic and onions are ideal for interplanting because they work as pest control, thanks to their strong scent. They are already visible and prominent in the spring, so I can easily plant spinach and lettuce between them. However, I leave fava beans without other plants because they grow quickly and create significant shadow.
Alleopathic plants
Allelopathic plants are precisely better to grow in wholly separated areas, as a cover crop, or only in ornamental gardens. They release chemicals, known as allelochemicals, into the environment to influence the growth, survival, or reproduction of other plants nearby. These chemicals can be released through various plant parts such as leaves, roots, bark, or decaying plant material. These plants use allelopathy to reduce competition for water, nutrients, and light.
How Allelopathy Works
Allelochemicals can affect neighboring plants in several ways:
- Inhibiting germination: Some chemicals can prevent seeds from sprouting.
- Stunting growth: Allelochemicals may slow down or completely halt the growth of other plants.
- Suppressing nutrient uptake: They can interfere with the ability of nearby plants to absorb essential nutrients.
- Impacting soil microorganisms: Allelochemicals may also affect beneficial soil organisms that help other plants grow.
Examples of Allelopathic Plants
Black Walnut (Juglans nigra)
Releases a chemical called juglone, which is toxic to many other plants, especially tomatoes, potatoes, and apple trees. Juglone is found in all parts of the black walnut tree, including the roots, leaves, and bark.
I have several walnut trees in my garden, but in a separate area where I only collect wood for winter. I also have one in my garden, which doesn’t cause any problem, but I plant only veryant flowers nearby.
Sunflower (Helianthus spp.)
Produces allelochemicals that can inhibit the growth of weeds and some other crops, such as potatoes and pole beans. The chemicals are present in the roots, leaves, and hulls.
Eucalyptus
Releases allelochemicals from its leaves and roots, which can suppress the growth of nearby plants.
Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor)
Contains a compound called sorgoleone, which is exuded from the roots and can inhibit the growth of weed species. It’s often used as a cover crop to help manage weeds.
Garlic and Onion (Allium spp.)
These plants release sulfur-based compounds that can inhibit the growth of certain bacteria, fungi, and even some nearby plants. They are often used in crop rotation to help suppress soil-borne diseases.
Mint (Mentha spp.)
Mint is known for its strong scent and rapid spread; mint also produces allelopathic chemicals that can deter the growth of some nearby plants, which is why it can quickly dominate a garden. We can use this to our advantage and plant it in areas where we don’t want anything to worry about or cut the grass.
Thanks to its strong smell, we can use it to repel pests in the vegetable garden, but we don’t plant it directly in the ground; we leave it in the flower pot so the roots will not spread.
Rice (Oryza sativa)
Some rice varieties produce allelochemicals that can inhibit the growth of weeds in flooded fields, making them useful for natural weed management in rice paddies.
Radishes
Radishes are not harmful to other plants while they are growing. However, once they have finished, it is advisable to compost the plant remains separately rather than letting them decompose in the same spot where they grew. This is because their decomposition can have an allelopathic effect, potentially inhibiting the growth of other plants.
Uses of Allelopathic Plants
We can use allelopathic for natural weed control in large and otherwise empty areas, cover cropping, and pest control. Regarding interplanting, it’s better to control their effect on our vegetable plants.