The combination of landings on the garden. According to the requirements for heat. Forget about crop rotation

Even the ancient tillers noticed, if from year to year, in the same field to sow the same grain, the yield drops. Therefore, where rye grew, they planted turnips, and a part of the field was allowed “under pairs” so that the earth could rest. Currently, this is called crop rotation or fruit exchange. If the same plants are grown, the soil is depleted, the plants release substances characteristic of this plant into the soil and into the environment. And, accordingly, influence, thus, on other plants. This influence can be both positive and negative. There is a science that studies the influence of plants on each other - alillopathy (from the Greek. Mutual suffering). Plants in the process of vegetation emit various enzymes, sugars, minerals, enzymes, which in turn can be both stimulants and growth inhibitors for other plants. For example, the well-known dandelion, seemingly a weed, when growing, produces ethylene, which contributes to the ripening of fruits. And the beans planted next to, scare. But mixed plantings of vegetables will not replace crop rotation. So where to plant?

Mixed landing video:

Consider the crop rotation on the site more specifically. To do this, conditionally divide the plot into four parts. and on each of these parts we will carry out planting vegetables. For example:

On next year, the same sites are swapped:

1. Tomatoes, peppers, basil, beets, dill, parsley
2. cabbage, onions, eggplant, carrots, nasturtium
3. cucumber, kohlrabi, salad, pumpkin, chamomile, garlic
4. beans, corn, sunflower, potatoes

A year later:

1. cabbage, onions, eggplant, carrots, nasturtium
2. cucumber, kohlrabi, salad, pumpkin, chamomile, garlic
3. beans, corn, sunflower, potatoes
4. Tomatoes, peppers, basil, beets, dill, parsley

And one more year:

1. cucumber, kohlrabi, salad, pumpkin, chamomile, garlic
2. beans, corn, sunflower, potatoes
3. Tomatoes, peppers, basil, beets, dill, parsley
4. cabbage, onions, eggplant, carrots, nasturtium

And after four years, all the beds will return to the place they occupied in the first year.

But back to the mixed plantings of vegetables. Rudolf Steiner, a scientist who worked on the issues of biodynamic farming, studied a lot. He practiced mixed landing. Garden - wide meter - for ease of processing. the middle of the bed is the main crop. Along the edges - additional cultures -,.

Beautiful beds photos:

Joint planting of vegetables not only protect each other from pests and diseases, but also improves the taste. For example: and protect each other from onion and carrot flies. which grows with improves the taste of the tomato. Calendula growing in the garden with tomato or cucumber protects them from. Spicy herbs - basil, coriander, sage protect vegetable crops from pests. Grow well together Corn, beans and pumpkin. Corn is a support for beans, which in turn enrich the earth with nitrogen, which is needed for corn and pumpkin, and pumpkin covers the ground with its large leaves and protects it from drying out, and, moreover, does not allow weeds to develop.

Joint planting: cabbage, dill, calendula, sorrel, lettuce

But there are enemies in the plant world. For example, onions are not combined with legumes, potatoes do not like to grow with tomatoes and eggplants, fennel is not combined with garlic, parsley is not sown with carrots.

The best combinations for joint planting of vegetables, examples:

• cabbage + sage roses + garlic
• Beans + Basil
• tomato + basil
• onion + carrot
• dill + cucumber
• mustard + pea
• eggplants + beans + asparagus beans

Beautiful beds video:

Any gardener, faced with a lack of space, poor germination or crop yields, the dominance of diseases or pests, trying to optimize environmental conditions, not even assuming that most of these problems can be solved in a much simpler way. So, if instead of planting vegetables by specific groups, mixed plantings of vegetables are used, it is possible not only to rationalize the use of the land, but also to provide some plants with protection from weeds and pests, others with immunity from diseases, third with a nutrient medium, and fourth with improved taste.

But, before mixing all the existing crops, it is necessary to clearly understand the conditions in which certain types of plants behave, otherwise the result may be quite the opposite of what was expected. Here are some basic rules, the observance of which will not allow plants to harm each other:

1. The soil should not be dry and loose, but have good breathability.
2. Culture of one family should not be mixed.
3. A view with a much more developed root system will inevitably supplant all others.
4. Low-growing light-loving plants should not be in the shadow of large neighbors.
5. The best result is obtained by planting the main species (up to 60%), diluted with one or two species with different ripening terms.

Now consider examples of mixed planting vegetables in the garden and the advantages of such combinations.

Companions for cucumbers and tomatoes

These two plants are perhaps the first in the number of unsuccessful attempts to grow together with other vegetables. The similar statistics is caused, more likely, by an erroneous choice of neighbors and unfair leaving. Let's try to understand the origins of such errors. Let's start with cucumbers. They belong to the pumpkin family and are a friendly plant that will easily get along next to:

• legumes;
• cabbage;
• onions;
• garlic;
• dill;
• eggplants.

However, the best result will be given by corn or beans, because, firstly, they will not create a thick shade, providing light-loving cucumbers with sufficient amount of solar energy, secondly, they do not require the same microelements for their development as the main plant, which means depletion The soil will be uniform and not too strong. In no case can not combine cucumbers with potatoes, herbs.

To get a harvest of healthy and strong tomatoes, you can apply an unusual combination scheme in which they will be combined immediately with three plants: lettuce, spinach and radish. All of them are planted on a bed in two rows without additional intervals according to the scheme tomato-lettuce-spinach-radish-tomato, etc. Moreover, joint planting of tomatoes with such plants will give good results:

• beans;
• carrot;
• celery;
• parsley;
• basil;
• mint.

In the event of a pest invasion, tomatoes can be protected by planting cucumber grass between their rows. Its smell perfectly repels harmful insects.

An interesting effect can be given by planting between rows of cucumbers and tomatoes of certain colors, such as marigolds. They will enrich the soil and attract beneficial insects that will pollinate vegetables, contributing to higher yields. Some sources, by the way, recommend in this case the scheme tomato - marigold - cucumber - marigold - tomato, etc.

  What to plant with potatoes?

Potatoes are not a very sociable plant, capable, thanks to a developed root system and high shoots, to destroy many weak cultures, but, in turn, suffering from a neighborhood with strong and tall ones. Pick up vegetables for mixed planting with him must be very careful. Potatoes do not tolerate:

• pumpkin;
• sunflower;
• tomatoes;
• cucumbers;
• kohlrabi;
• raspberries

However, it will be excellent fruit, not interfering with the neighbors, if they are:

• cabbage;
• legumes;
• eggplants;
• carrot;
• corn;
• horseradish.

As in the situations described above, a good result can be marigolds. However, it would be best to take into account the parameters of crop rotation and use potatoes as an intermediate crop, using resources not affected by the predecessor and unnecessary follower. For example, after finishing spring in the collection of lettuce (leaf or cress, or better, their combinations), we plant on the same bed early ripe varieties  potatoes, and after its ripening, we use the land for growing Peking cabbage and kohlrabi. To plant them at the same time need to staggered. Other types of plants that develop well after harvesting potatoes are strawberries and strawberries, therefore such a land plot is perfect for breeding these plants through rosettes.

  Squashes, melons and pumpkins

All these vegetables belong to the pumpkin family and have general requirements for growing conditions. They are friendly to almost everyone, with the exception, perhaps, of the notorious potato. But the best companion for them will be garlic - it will scare away pests and protect plants from diseases. Garlic can be planted randomly, but the best results will give a decent alternation. Other plants with which pumpkin feel comfortable are:

• corn;
• radish;

In addition, a good effect is provided by the use of flowers and herbs, which attract pollinators and protect them from harmful effects. Some herbs can also improve the taste of zucchini and pumpkins, saturating the soil with valuable trace elements and organic substances. These plants include:

• nasturtium;
• marigold;
• borage grass;
• savory;
• tarragon.

The latter is a universal “thinner” of almost any vegetables, not only harmonizing with certain species, but also smoothing out their interspecific differences by stabilizing the composition of the soil.

  Combination with cabbage

Cabbage (both white and broccoli, kohlrabi, etc.) is an extremely capricious plant. He has both friends and enemies. The latter are tall climbing plants, first of all, climbing beans and grapes, as well as:

• peas;
• tomatoes;
• strawberry;
• mustard.

However, the cabbage gets on well with such species as:

• bush beans;
• cucumber;
• radish;
• rosemary;
• basil;
• dill;
• garlic.

Beetroot will help to enrich cabbage with calcium, and celery, onions and potatoes will improve its taste. However, you need to be careful with the latter - the plants should not occupy each other and hinder the development. Many varieties of cabbage love complex planting schemes. Here are some of them:

1. 1. Cabbage, spinach and radish are arranged in 3-4 rows in a staggered manner and are closed in the "frame" of the string bean.
2. 2. One row of two cabbages is followed by a row of cucumbers and bush beans.
3. 3. Plants alternate in the sequence of cabbage - cucumber - salad.

All mixed planting of vegetables, including cabbage, should be carried out on a bed 1-1.4 m wide.

  Useful properties of some plants

Certain species get along with almost all vegetables and have a beneficial effect on them, which we have not mentioned before. These are:

1. 1. Horseradish - protects against the Colorado potato beetle, increases disease resistance.
2. 2. Garlic - discourages aphid, hammer, accumulates sulfur, protecting the soil from disease.
3. 3. Parsley - planted between the rows, protects berry crops from slugs.
4. 4. Calendula - protects against nematodes, chard, but you should not grow it in close proximity to vegetables.
5. 5. Clover - attracts predatory insects that eat aphids.
6. 6. Peas - saturates the soil with nitrogen, which is useful for the root system of all plants.
7. 7. Corn - destroys weeds, but also destroys tomatoes and celery.

The main thing in mixing vegetable crops  - find the optimal balance between the theoretical base and the boldness of the experiment. Competently selected combinations, undoubtedly, will please you with a bountiful and tasty harvest.

COMMUNAL ON FACILITIES

Use full acreage. For example, for radish planting can be done according to the 4 × 4 cm scheme, completely seeding the allotted area. For carrots, an area of ​​5 × 5 cm is sufficient, and for beets is 9 × 9 cm. A turnip, summer radish can be planted according to the 8 × 8 cm scheme, for late black radish, an area of ​​12 × 12 cm is required.

Cauliflower can be planted according to the 30 × 30 cm scheme, and the cabbage - 40 × 40 cm. At the same time, upright (tall) marigolds should be planted between any cabbage plants and compacted with lettuce or spinach and even radish.

Cucumbers are best sown in one row after 20-25 cm, and tall tomatoesformed in one stem, an area of ​​30 × 30 cm is enough, that is, I place 9-10 plants on one square meter. For non-stemming undersized tomatoes, the area should be left a little more (40 × 40 cm), since the main crop they have goes to stepchildren, and therefore the bush becomes razlapisty.

Peppers will cost 25 × 25 cm. But the bush dill Buyan (or Salute), as well as parsley, in particular the Sorceress, require the same distance between plants as cauliflower, then you really get a big harvest.

It is best to plant the beds located in the garden, not the same culture, but to make a large communal apartment from the garden, populating it with different inhabitants that are compatible with each other.

COMPATIBILITY OF CULTURES

There are plants that get along well together, protecting each other with their odor from pests, are reciprocal biostimulants, and there are warring that strongly suppress each other, for example, beans are very sociable, she has almost all the plants - friends, but fennel - all the fierce enemy.

When planting plants in a small area, this fact must be taken into account, so that there is no hostility on the beds. There are three factors to remember: you can not plant next to or after each other cultures of the same type, those that take out the same nutrients in the same ratio, have the same habit, that is, the same height of the aerial part and one the same depth of roots. In addition, plant roots secrete mycotoxins to protect their territory from the invasion of uninvited aliens, therefore, the compatibility of plant root systems must also be taken into account.

Garden beds planted with various compatible plants are much better able to resist pests than garden beds planted with one crop, as noted by many amateur gardeners.

The mixture of their smells fools the pests, even omnivorous ones, because it prevents them from giving off the smell of those plants - their breadwinners, which they feed on. And just in case pests fly around such communal parties. Do not believe - check.

This summer, a bed designed for carrots, sow around the perimeter of the crown with seeds of undersized marigolds. Then sow in the center a row of parsnips (white carrots) or broccoli cabbage seeds. Stepping back 20 cm on each side, sow one row of radish on each side, then a row of carrots, a row of black onions (or a small sevka), again a row of carrots on each side.

Instead of broccoli, you can sow a salad. In the middle of the beds sow the seeds of tall marigolds in 15-20 cm. Cover the bed with double lutrasil. When frosts and flies of vegetable flies are gone (after cherry blossom), lutrasil can be removed.

It is possible to do such sowing in the North-West at the very end of April - beginning of May, as soon as the soil thaws (the time of flowering of a coltsfoot). At the end of May, the bed will be freed from radish, then from lettuce, and for other grown crops, the area of ​​food and lighting will increase.

COMPATIBLE LANDINGS

Eggplant - beans.

Broccoli - beet,sage.

Peas - eggplant, calendula, corn, cucumber, radishes, carrots.

Pear - see apple tree.

Strawberries - marigold, borage, lettuce, beans, garlic, spinach.

Head cabbage - anise, potatoes, onion, peppermint, rosemary, chamomile, beet, celery, dill.

Cauliflower - celery.

Calendula, garlic - gladioli, strawberries, roses, currants, tulips. Kohlrabi - onion, lettuce, beets, cucumber, spices.

Corn - peas, potatoes, cucumber, pumpkin, beans.

Onions and garlic - strawberries, carrots, chamomile drug, beets, celery, tomato, savory.

Raspberries - plum, apple, calendula.

Carrots - peas, onions, radishes, radish, rosemary, lettuce, tomato, sage. Nasturtium - most vegetables, phlox.

Cucumber - peas, corn, sunflower, radish, beans, tomato, cabbage. Parsley - asparagus, tomato.

Sunflower - cucumber. Radishes - peas, nasturtium, cucumber, salad.

Radish - beets, spinach, carrots, parsley, tomato, pumpkin, cucumber.

Turnip - peas. Salad - strawberries, carrots, cucumber, radishes.

Beets - kohlrabi, onions, radishes, cabbage, beans, beans, lettuce.

Celery - cabbage, onion, tomato, beans, cauliflower, leek.

Tomato - calendula, levkoy, onion, nasturtium, parsley, celery, asparagus. Pumpkin - corn.

Dill, spinach - radish, turnip, cabbage.

Beans - cabbage, potatoes, carrots, cucumber, savory and most garden crops, except beets.

Phlox - nasturtium.

Apple tree - spruce, calendula, raspberry, tansy, tomato, dill.

INCOMPATIBLE LANDINGS

Eggplant - other solanaceous crops.

Cherry - raspberry.

Peas - gladioli, potatoes, onions, garlic.

Strawberries - cabbage.

Cabbage - strawberries, tomatoes, beans.

Onions, garlic - peas, beans.

Carrots - dill, parsley, celery and other umbrella crops.

Cucumber - potatoes, zucchini, aromatic herbs.

Pepper - beets.

Sunflower - potatoes.

Beets - beans, spinach.

Tomato - other solanaceous crops, including potatoes, cabbage. Pumpkin - potatoes.

Beans - gladioli, onions, garlic, beets.

No plant tolerates the neighborhood of fennel and hyssop, so they should be planted in a separate corner of the garden. You can not plant strawberries after potatoes due to nematodes, as well as after tomatoes, cucumbers and cabbage. Do not leave a pine tree - this is the wintering place of many pests, in particular, carrot listoblushki, as well as the spores of columnar fungus. Remove the buckthorn from the site and mow the sedge - scatter rust rustling.

SEED TURN ON ONE FINE

If you have one or two vegetable beds, you should rotate on the same bed, populating it as a large communal apartment, taking care only that the neighbors do not quarrel with each other, but on the contrary, treat each other as friends. You can pick them up by carefully reading the list of compatible plants. For example, plant beets, compacting them with early radishes, planted in between rows of beets before planting. When the beet grows up and it takes a lot of space, the radish will be cleaned and will not interfere with the beet. Beetroot planted 1-2 m beds, and then we plant celery seedlings, just one row across the garden. Then you can plant several plants of any cabbage, compacting the planting of early planted spinach, then sowing carrots according to the scheme 5 × 5 cm just one meter, then we will plant onion meters on one meter, then you can plant lettuce and parsley. When the place from under the salad becomes free - we will plant a late radish. Next year we will move all the crops forward, and the beets will be at the end of the bed.

SEALING SEALS - IN CROWDED BUT NOT MAD

We plant corn in one row along the center of the bed, on both sides of it - beans, and along the edges - carrots. Or alternate rows of corn with rows of ground cucumbers. The direction of the beds, as always, is north - south. Do not be afraid that cucumbers or beans will curl corn - it does not suffer from this, and at the same time protects beans and cucumbers from the winds. A row of beans can divide the planting of strawberries, from such a neighborhood the taste of the berries improves, and the planting of a spinach plant among four lettuce plants improves the taste of the salad.

Nasturtiums and marigolds are friends of vegetables, disorienting the smell of insects that fly around with them, since they do not find their breadwinners among them.

Sow in the center of the beds early carrots. When the time comes, plant cabbage seedlings on both sides, alternating it with marigolds, and plant nettles along the ends of the beds. Or, plant a row of cabbage in the center of the bed, beetroot on the sides of it, and plant the nasturtium on the sides of the bed.

Or, plant celery on the edges of the garden, and a series of marigolds along the center, and cauliflower on the sides of them.

You can use a garden bed twice: sow spinach in the center of the garden as early as possible, and early turnips or radishes on either side of it. When you remove the spinach, sow winter radish in its place, and after harvesting the turnip or radish - late carrots.

Mixed scheme of planting vegetables is able to restore order in the garden, planting cultures so that they grow and develop harmoniously, without taking the necessary nutrients from their competitors. This method of planting allows you to use the area of ​​the garden, reserved for planting, the most rational. And plants, planted according to the rules of crop rotation, can even help each other in growth. Mixed planting vegetables, schemes which we will consider in this article, are often used by many

Mixed vegetable planting schemes

Planting vegetables mixed

What is the use of a mixed landing?  We can give an example: if you plant flowers, which bees like to visit, near the pollinated vegetables, the latter will undoubtedly be pollinated qualitatively. In addition, these insects are able to deter pests that can encroach on the foliage and fruits of vegetable crops. It is all about a particular ecosystem that includes a rich variety of insects, microorganisms, and mineral substances released by some plants and absorbed by others.

Sometimes such an influence is rather difficult to track down, for example, in the case when the grass growing near currant bushes attracts aphids, and with it ladybirds, thereby protecting the bush from extermination. And the flowers of aster or yarrow quite strongly attract such an insect as the golden-eyed, which have the unique property of exterminating the aphids and the larvae of the Colorado potato beetle.

Scientists, breeders who study the schemes and methods of planting different cultures, highlight the undoubted advantages of planting vegetables and other crops together:

• Reducing or completely reducing the need to use high-dose mineral and organic substances necessary for feeding crops.
• Absolute rejection of the use of insecticides used to combat insect pests.
• The increase in the quantitative composition of the crop, compared with planting only one vegetable in a certain part of the garden.
• Improving the taste of crops, which is achieved, for example, when planting beans next to radishes, and cabbage next to mint.

The plan of planting vegetables

Among the plants there are those that contribute to improving not only the quality of growth and development, but also the flavor component of crops, if planted next to each other. For example, peas are planted next to the melon crops. With legumes, it would be good to plant rosemary. Onions are best planted near the carrots. Next to the cabbage, be sure to plant oregano and marjoram, which will scare off pests. Peas should be planted near parsnip. Next to pepper you need peas. Near the pumpkin is not superfluous planting corn. Next to the radish you can plant leaf lettuce.

Part of the vegetable crops gives excellent yields when planted with many other plants, for example:

• Leek will give good harvestif there are carrots, sprouts, beets and celery.
• Cucumbers are sure to be delighted with the neighborhood with fennel, beet, spinach, garlic, radish or onions.
• Beetroot grows well near lettuce, cabbage and radish.
• Beans and spinach should be planted near the potato.

Mixed planting rules:

1. It is impossible to plant alongside crops that belong to the same family, in this case there is a high risk of developing common diseases.
2. Those plants that ripen quickly, need to be planted near crops ripening for a long time.
3. Be sure to pay attention to the fact that tall plants do not obstruct the access of sunlight to low bushes. The only exceptions are shade-loving cultures.

Mixed planting vegetables scheme  which we discussed in this article will help you get a good harvest, saving, at the same time, the territory of your summer cottage.

See also video:

I do EM technology or natural farming

Lot useful information  I scoop from books and videos of Galina Kizima, Boris Bublik, Natalia Zhirmunskaya. Now I study the combined landing. I did something intuitively before, sometimes I caught myself thinking that I didn’t want to remove any weeds. Later, Boris Bublika subtracted without which plants life and reproduction of beneficial insects are impossible.

I bring to your attention one of the interesting books on the topic of combined landings of Natalia Zhirmunskaya, Candidate of Biological Sciences.

Good and bad neighbors in a garden bed

Compiled by N. M. Zhirmunskaya, M .: Marketing Information Center, 1995. - 52 p., ISBN 5-86980-052-8

Introduction

Why is it more profitable to grow more than one type of vegetables on one bed? Why some vegetables can be planted nearby, while others can not? How to organize on the garden a green conveyor supplying you with fresh greenery from early spring to late autumn?

This is the first book in Russian, telling in detail about mixed landings  vegetable crops, which, according to materials of foreign literature, was made by N. M. Zhirmunskaya, Candidate of Biological Sciences.

What is mixed planting vegetables and what are their advantages

Gardeners and gardeners who have refused to use mineral fertilizers and toxic chemicals, argue that growing vegetables on organic fertilizers allows you to get the most delicious and nutritious fruits. Of course, the size of the crop also matters for them, but they focus on quality. Isn't this the most important thing for those who grow vegetables and fruits for their families?

In organic farming * there are many methods and techniques that allow you to do without mineral fertilizers and toxic chemicals and get a good harvest. One of them is described in this book. It is called the method of mixed or combined planting of vegetables. In pre-Columbian America, Indians planted together corn, pumpkin and beans. Pumpkin with its large leaves shaded the soil from the scorching rays of the sun and retarded the growth of weeds. Corn through the foliage protected the pumpkin from overheating, and the beans contributed to this community, enriching the soil with nitrogen.

__________
  * Here and hereinafter the term is used. "Organic farming"  This name refers to all farming systems that do not use artificial mineral fertilizers (this does not include lime, phosphorite, dolomite, ash) and pesticides.

In medieval Europe, hardworking monks, cultivating monastic gardens, have accumulated valuable information about the compatibility of various vegetable crops. In their beds, in addition to vegetables, grew a variety of flowers and aromatic herbs. The monks were well aware of the medicinal properties of herbs and their beneficial effects on neighboring vegetables.

What are the benefits of mixed landings?

First of all, more efficiently used the available garden area. The combination in the compacted plantings of vegetables of different speed of ripening and the requirements for the area of ​​food allows you to get high yields per unit area. Separate combinations of crops for the season (from April to October) yield 20 kg of vegetables per square meter.

SecondlyThanks to intelligent planning of mixed plantings, you can get a harvest of fresh vegetables throughout the season: from early spring to late autumn.

Thirdly, the combination and alternation of crops, which impose different nutritional requirements, makes it possible to avoid unilateral depletion of the soil with respect to any single nutrient.

Fourth, mixed plantings use the beneficial effects of different types of plants on each other, which improves the condition of the plants, the taste and nutritional value of their fruits.

In the mixed plantings, each culture has its own role.

In the literature on mixed plantings, there is such a term as "Plant-satellite"  or "Accompanying plant". It is understood that in the mixed plantings each culture has its own role. One culture is basic, another is accompanying, the purpose of which is to create a healthy environment for the main, to protect the soil from weeds and drying, playing the role of live mulch. As the accompanying plants most often use aromatic herbs, flowers, green fertilizer and sometimes other vegetable crops. Accompanying plants can also play the role of an additional vegetable crop, i.e., while the plants of the main, usually slow-ripening crop are small in size, the gaps between them are occupied by compact fast-ripening types of vegetables. When they mature and will be removed, the main culture will grow up and will get enough space for its development. In this case, it is important not to overshoot and not to plant a number of poorly combined plants.

Reducing damage to vegetables by pests and diseases is the fifth advantage of the mixed planting method. Using it, a person wisely follows the laws of nature, in which you will never (with very rare exceptions) see a piece of land occupied by one type of plant. Plants always form communities whose species composition depends on soil and climatic conditions. In these communities, different types of plants and the aboveground and underground animals living in them, connected by hundreds of interconnections, form a stable whole, able to withstand adverse environmental conditions, mass distribution of pests and diseases. If on garden plot such a community is created correctly, it begins to live its own independent life, almost the same as it happens in the communities of wild plants, that is, when the laws of self-regulation come into play. This applies primarily to the regulation, the number of harmful insects, which in such a garden is maintained at an acceptable level. This means that the pests do not disappear at all, but they do not cause significant harm, since their distribution is restrained by natural enemies: insect predators, spiders, frogs, birds. Interspersing planting plants that repel pests also reduces plant losses. Of course, the person is not eliminated from the care of the garden. He closely watches everything that happens in him and, if necessary, takes the necessary measures, but only those that do not cause a significant disruption of the natural equilibrium between species. For example, in the case of the mass reproduction of a pest, it is not possible to use insecticides of a broad spectrum of activity, which will destroy equally harmful and beneficial insects. If predator insects disappear in your garden, the pests will begin to multiply uncontrollably, this will require the systematic use of pesticides. In organic farming, in such emergency cases, biological control methods, plant extracts, and rapidly-decomposing insecticides of plant origin, selectively acting mainly on this pest, are used.

In order for a garden to become a single living organism, it must combine as many different types of plants as possible.

And it should be not only vegetable and fruit crops, but also herbs, flowers and a certain amount of weeds. This means that when creating a garden, one must think not only about food for humans, but also about food and shelter for beneficial insects and small animals living in it. A plant that serves as food and shelter for beneficial insects is called a nanny plant. Mandatory accessory of the garden - hedges of shrubs. They attract birds and protect the garden from the drying out winds.

To attract beneficial insects to the garden, you need to have some idea of ​​their biology and lifestyle.

Predatory wasps and flies (hops, ktyrey) attract plants from the aster family - goldenrod, chamomile, daisies, as well as various types of mint - catnip, peppermint and cornflower. It can be noted that the tastes of humans and insects do not coincide: we like large beautiful flowers, and they are more attracted by small, imperceptible flowers of savory, chamomile, and especially plants from the celery family. Tumultor flies that kill aphids and soft-bodied insects prefer to extract nectar from flat open flowers such as daisies and marigolds.

From all this it follows that the more plants in the nursery garden, the less you will have problems with pests. These plants can be located at the edges of the garden or edged with them plots with vegetables. It is necessary to select such types of plants so that they bloom for a long time, replacing each other. For this are suitable marigolds, Allisum, tansy, chamomile, daisies. For a long time blooming savory, lavender, hyssop, basil, rosemary, oregano. They can be used as border plants. From mid to late summer, most celery plants bloom, and biennial parsley and carrot plants produce early spring flowers.

For insect pollinators, mainly bees, savory, catnip, lemon balm, marjoram, hyssop, basil, mint are especially attractive.

Here it is worth remembering about one more form. animals that are useful to the garden are earthworms, whose presence in the compost is very desirable. To attract them to the compost, valerian, chicory roots and onion leaves are added.

An interesting way to attract beneficial insects in the citrus orchard is described in Masanobu Fukuoka’s The Revolution of a Single Straw. He planted Morishim’s acacia in his garden - a tree growing all year round and all the time forming new buds. On these buds they feed and breed in large numbers of aphids. Ladybugs feed on aphids, and they also multiply rapidly. After destroying all the aphids on acacias, the ladybugs move to citrus trees and begin to eat their pests: ticks, scarab, cheeks. We do not grow Morishima acacia, but, obviously, we could apply a similar technique with some other favorite plant louse. Fukuoka believes that the main task of the grower is not to disturb the balance in the insect community with an ill-considered intervention. Here’s how he describes the balanced community he created in his paddy fields: “Walk slowly through these fields. Dragonflies and moths fly in the air. Bees fly from flower to flower. Spread the leaves and you will see insects, spiders, frogs, lizards and many other small animals scurrying around in the cool shade. Moles and earthworms dig under the surface of the soil. "

In English literature, we found similar ideas. Attempts were made to sow clover under it to protect the cabbage from pests. When the white clover was sown under Brussels sprouts, the number of adult caterpillars of the cabbage whitefish significantly decreased, although the number of eggs laid by the butterfly did not decrease. The reason is that the number of insect predators, ground beetles and spiders, which ate the caterpillars, increased 2-3 times. Root root damage has been reduced. Cabbage harvest has become higher. Seeding red clover under the cauliflower was less successful, although the number of cabbage aphids decreased several times and the root of a fly 1.5 times. But red clover grew faster and more actively than white, and had a depressing effect on cabbage due to simple competition.

Speaking about the fight against harmful insects, we must not forget about the birds, which in this matter play a very large role. In order to attract birds, it is necessary to create conditions for them to build nests. To do this, along the borders of the garden should be planted hedges of trees and shrubs. Especially suitable for this purpose. ornamental shrubs  with berries that birds love. The garden, surrounded by a ring of flowering and fragrant shrubs and grasses, where birds sing and buzz numerous insects - a gratifying spectacle, pleasing not only the eye, but also the soul.

The main types of plant interaction

We have already said that the problem of the interaction of plants in mixed plantings of vegetables is mainly engaged in gardeners and practitioners. Modern agricultural science, which serves mainly chemical farming, until recently paid little attention to this issue. Information about the interaction of plants were considered unreliable, unless they were scientifically verified. Finally, and science began to explore the relationship of plants, but garden crops remained without her attention.

The field of science that explores the influence of plants on each other is called allelopathy. Plants can influence each other directly or indirectly. Direct influence is carried out in the immediate vicinity of plants through the release of various substances by the roots and leaves. Leaves secrete compounds or volatile substances, such as strongly smelling aromatic herbs, or water-soluble, which, when watered or rained, are washed away and enter the soil. The roots excrete a large amount of water-soluble organic compounds into the soil, among them quite a few biologically active, stimulants or growth inhibitors. They are absorbed by the roots of nearby plants and have a certain effect on them.

Each type of plant has its own, special, peculiar only to this type of metabolism. A substance that is indifferent to one species and released into the environment can have a strong positive or negative effect on neighboring plants of another species. This direct effect on neighboring plants through the release of volatile substances into the air or water-soluble in the soil is called conditionally “chemical. It is also conditionally possible to call it “physical” influence through the creation of a certain microclimate, when higher plants create partial shading and increased humidity for plants of the lower tier. Such protection is needed, for example, spinach and lettuce, which do not like strong overheating in the sun. Another kind of direct interaction, the nature of which is unclear, could be described as “biological”. These are very thin and difficult to understand connections, only balanced plants that grow in close to natural conditions without the use of artificial mineral fertilizers and pesticides, which greatly alter the natural reactions of plants, react to them. The introduction of soluble mineral fertilizers can be considered as a forceful technique, forcing the plants, regardless of their need, to absorb a large amount of readily available substances and to grow intensively. Such a plant produces a large crop, but it is very sensitive to pests and diseases. Under natural conditions, the plant itself chooses what it needs, and although it does not yield the maximum yield, it is more resistant to diseases and pests, and its fruits have high nutritional value and good taste. In such conditions, the plant retains sensitivity to all weak effects, including the effects of surrounding plants. These are effects that are weak, but significantly affect health, energy growth and the taste of fruits.

Plants that have a favorable effect on the environment in biodynamic agriculture are called dynamic. These include nettle, chamomile, valerian, dandelion and yarrow.

The protective effect of neighboring plants on each other deserves special attention. In this case, the selection of the roots or leaves of a single plant species does not directly stimulate or inhibit neighbors, but protects them from the spread of pathogenic infections or scares off harmful insects with their strong, unpleasant smell for pests.

Indirect interaction of plants is carried out mainly through the soil. The effect of the preceding plants on the next ones is manifested through a change in the properties of the soil, its enrichment or depletion with organic or mineral substances, loosening or compaction.

Plant roots carry out varied and tireless work in the soil. They actively influence it, stimulating the life of the soil microflora, creating a lumpy structure. In the soil, changes that are not noticeable to the eye constantly occur, there is a constant exchange between plants and the soil due to the active forces of light, heat, moisture and much more. Scientists are only beginning to guess about many aspects of this subtle “dynamic” work.

Plant roots secrete a large amount of organic compounds into the soil. It has been established that their total weight is 5–10% by weight of the whole plant. The release of substances into the soil begins from the moment of germination of the seeds, reaches a maximum in many plant species during the flowering period and decreases by the time of fruiting. The chemical nature of these compounds is basically already deciphered. They consist of vitamins, sugars, organic acids, enzymes, hormones, phenolic. compounds. The composition of root exudates is not the same in different plant species. Phenolic compounds are the component that determines the toxicity of root excretions for other plants. In allelopathy, they are called colins, their action is specific and not the same for plants of different species. The accumulation of colins in the soil causes a phenomenon called soil entrapment. It occurs when the same type of plant is grown for a long time in the same place. It is noticed that in this case the plants become worse and worse every year and, finally, completely degenerate. Indirect interaction of plants through the soil determines the rules for the alternation of vegetable crops in crop rotation.

Good neighbors

Aromatic herbs, whose leaves emit a large amount of volatile substances, for many garden plants are good companions. Their volatile secretions have a positive effect on growing vegetables: they make them healthier, and in some cases, significantly affect the taste. For example, fragrant basil improves the taste of tomatoes, and dill - cabbage.

The well-known dandelion produces a large amount of ethylene gas, which accelerates the ripening of fruits. Therefore, its neighborhood is favorable for apple trees and many vegetable crops. Most of the aromatic herbs - lavender, borage, sage, hyssop, parsley, dill, savory, thyme, marjoram, chamomile, chervil - work well on almost all vegetables. Planted along the edges of the beds or plots of Yasnotk white (dead nettle), valerian, yarrow make vegetable plants more healthy and sustainable.

Table 1. Favorable interaction between herbs and garden crops

In some cases, nearby growing plants may have a beneficial effect on each other through their root secretions. The method of labeled atoms has been shown that plants can exchange different substances through the roots. This exchange explains the relationship of mutual assistance between plants. For example, mustard root excretions stimulate pea growth. Mixed crops of wiki and oats contribute to increasing the yield of both crops by 20-30% compared with their individual crops. Lupins and oats also have a positive effect on each other.

Speaking about the relationship of mutual aid, it is impossible to bypass the special role of plants from the legume family. It is known that legumes are able to fix the air nitrogen with the help of nodule bacteria living on the roots. Therefore, they almost do not need nitrogen fertilizers, as they themselves supply themselves with nitrogen. They supply not only themselves, but also neighboring plants that grow nearby. Although most of the nitrogenous compounds remain closed in the nodules during the life of the plants and become available to other plants only after the roots die off, some of them, along with root secretions, still penetrate the soil during the life of the plants and may become available to the roots of the neighbors. For joint planting, most commonly used are string beans, less commonly - beans.

Stinging nettle improves the aromatic qualities of herbs, including yarrow. Nettle, growing next to mint, doubles the content of aromatic oil in it.

It is noticed that all vegetables of the celery family - carrots, parsnips, parsley, celery - combine well with the onion family: onions, garlic, leeks, and shallots. White and black radish have a good effect on other vegetables.

Long-term observations of German gardeners have shown that radishes grow very well between the rows of bush beans. It becomes very large, tasty and not wormy. In mixed crops, radishes are not affected by the cabbage fly, which brings great harm in pure crops. Sow radishes two weeks earlier than the beans, so that she does not have time to grow much and drown him.

In German gardeners, spinach is the favorite accompanying plant for many crops. Its root secretions contain saponins - substances that have surface-active properties and promote the absorption of nutrients from the soil. Saponins have a positive effect on the growth of all mixed cultures. Beetroot, potatoes, tomatoes, and beans are feeling good about spinach. In addition, large leaves of spinach cover the surface of the soil, preserving its moisture and friability, protecting it from compaction and crust formation, while the main crop plants are still small and have not developed a sufficiently large leaf surface.

It is worth mentioning the interaction between herbaceous plants  and shrubs. In organic farming, compulsory reception is the creation of hedges around the garden to protect against the wind. It is better to use abundantly for this purpose. flowering shrubs: dog rose, elder, privet, spirea. They are during flowering healthful effect on the whole garden.

Let us dwell on the interaction of vegetable crops with weeds. Masanobu Fukuoka, a Japanese farmer-scientist who initiated natural farming (one of the directions of organic farming), believes that we should change our attitude to weeds and abandon continuous weeding, and even more so from the use of herbicides. In his opinion, weeds play a role in creating soil fertility and a balanced biological community. It is necessary not to destroy, but to restrain their growth by timely mowing or mulching. Fukuoka recommends orchards  create permanent grass cover of weeds and seeded white clover. Under his influence in Japan, where it was previously impossible to find a blade of grass in the gardens, gardens without turf were rare. Depending on local conditions, lucerne, vetch or lupine can be used as a cover crop instead of clover. But we must bear in mind that continuous grass cover in the gardens is possible only with good moisture.

In Japan, with its humid climate, there is enough water for everyone, so vegetables grow in the garden of Mr. Fukuoka along with weeds and clover. Their seeds are scattered right on the surface of the soil and covered with mulch from mowed weeds. The first time weeds should be cut, but when vegetable plants gain strength, they successfully compete with them. In his garden, Fukuoka grows radish, turnips, various leafy vegetables and onions, garlic, cucumbers, beans. Vegetables grown in this way produce not very large yields, but are not damaged by pests and diseases, they have a unique taste. Eggplants can also be grown, but planted in the form of seedlings, since they are not strong enough at the seedling stage to compete with weeds. Seeds of slowly germinating plants, such as carrots, parsley, are soaked before sowing. Potatoes are a very strong plant, according to Fukuoka. If, during harvesting, to leave a certain number of tubers in the soil, it will resume in the same place and will never be crushed by weeds.

A similar technique, namely, seeding grass between the rows, is used in Moldavia in the vineyards. This reduces not only the flushing of the soil, but also the destruction of grapes by diseases and pests, in particular, phylloxera. It is recommended to sow both herbs and various cultivated plants in the interrow of vineyards. Moldavian scientist Yu.N. Novosadiuk did a very interesting experimental work, studying how joint plantings affect grapes. In his experiments, about 17 species of plants were investigated and on this basis cultures were selected that enhance the growth of stems, leaves and roots of grapes, and cultures that inhibit its growth. The scientist not only did not limit himself to observations of growth, but also tried to find out how the accompanying plants influence the grapes. It turned out that corn has a very strong positive effect on the grapes, mainly due to the volatile or water-soluble secretions of the aerial part. Barley produces toxic substances for grapes from the roots and inhibits it.

Plant Protectors

This category includes not only those satellite plants that scare away insects, but also those that, figuratively speaking, confuse them, confuse them. Many insects are looking for plants that are suitable for nutrition by smell. For example, by smell they find cabbage, earthen fleas and cabbage scoops. If you plant around strongly cabbage plants, for example, thyme or sage, or sprinkle it with an extract of these herbs, they will drown out the smell of cabbage and make it less attractive to pests. Aromatic herbs with their strong odor confuse pests and protect garden crops. Therefore, it is recommended to plant basil near the beans to protect against the bean weevil, garlic - about the roses to protect against aphids, parsley - about the asparagus. True, the effect of herbs does not always appear to the same extent.

Insect-repelling plants can be classified as repellent plants (repellent). They include nasturtium, which repels the whitefly, aphids, the Colorado potato beetle, cabbage caterpillars. Wormwood scares off ants, cabbage and carrot flies, codling moth, ground fleas, whitefly; peppermint - ants, aphids, ground fleas, cabbage caterpillars, whitefly. Aphids dislike the smell of most aromatic herbs, as well as chives, onions, garlic, marigolds, mustard, coriander, and fennel. Tansy reduces damage to vegetables earthen flecks and cabbage - cabbage caterpillars. Garlic frightens off the larvae of the cabbage fly and the apple moth; Colorado potato beetle scare catnip, coriander, nasturtium, tansy, marigold. Tobacco, mint, rue, tansy, wormwood therapeutic and bitter, catnip scare earth fleas; catnip, nasturtium - green peach aphid; marigolds are some species of nematode. Mulch from the leaves and bark of the oak repels slugs, caterpillars, gnawing shoots, and garden hrusche larvae. It is recommended to scatter such mulch on garden paths  and narrow stripes - on the beds. Cucumber grass, or borage, is recommended to sow between the rows of cabbage of all kinds. It reduces damage by caterpillars, and with its coarse hairy lower leaves it drives away slugs and snails. Seeding dill to cabbage does not protect it from whitefish and cabbage moth, but it significantly reduces the amount of cabbage aphid.

When using aromatic herbs for these purposes, we should not forget about the competition between plants. In order for the grasses not to grow and drown out the main crop, they should be sown with rare inclusions in its rows or along the edges of the beds in the form of a border.

Firstly, with mixed plantings, the mass distribution of pests is hampered by the diversity of plant species, since it is difficult for them to find the host plant. In the monoculture, this limiting factor is absent. There, the spread of pests or infections, is an avalanche from one plant to another. When mixed planting, rows of plants from different families create natural barriers to the spread of pests and diseases specific to each family. Secondly, mixed plantings suggest a more dense placement of plants, resulting in less soil surface remains open, which hinders the spread of those pests that lay eggs on the ground. Third, many vegetable crops themselves have a frightening odor. For example, if you alternate rows of celery and cabbage, then the latter will be protected from earthen flea and cabbage whitefish. Farmer Hubmann from Germany, on the basis of his 50-year experience, asserts; that radishes and kohlrabi, planted in rows of leaf or cabbage lettuce, are reliably protected from an earthen flea. In his conviction, with mixed plantings, the same crops can be grown in the same place for several years, which is impossible for a monoculture due to the accumulation of pests and pathogens in the soil. For example; He recommends mixed plantations of early potatoes as a main crop with accompanying radishes or cabbage, watercress and spinach. He considers the latter the best partner for potatoes and offers the following planting schemes. In the middle of the garden, 1 m wide, place two rows of early potatoes with a distance of 50 cm between them. Place a row of cauliflower or kohlrabi between rows, and 4-6 rows of spinach along the edges of the garden and between the rows of cabbage and potatoes. Spinach is a fast ripening crop. After it is harvested, space is made available for free growth of cabbage and potatoes. The second scheme: in the middle of the garden - two rows of potatoes, on the edges - radishes with watercress or between the rows of potatoes - a row of chervil or kohlrabi with a head of lettuce. All vegetables are well tolerated neighborhood with each other. Such combinations can exist in one place from three to ten years without a reduction in yield.

For table beets, which can grow in one place for a number of years only in a mixed planting, Hubmann recommends the following combination: in the middle of a 1 m wide bed there are three rows of beets interspersed with dill (in the two extreme rows of beets between two beet plants, one dill plant) on the edges of the garden - leaf lettuce with radish, between the salad and the beet - two rows of a head of kohlrabi.

It should be borne in mind that the result of the protective action of plants in mixed plantings will never be the complete disappearance of pests, we can only expect a reduction in their numbers. Rish and his staff conducted 150 experiments, studying the effect of joint crops of various crops on the number of pests. He came to the conclusion that 53% of the species of harmful insects are fewer in mixed plantings than in monoculture, 18% are larger, 9% are equally common. For 20% of the species of certain results is not received.

In tab. 2 collected information about the scaring effect of herbs and vegetable crops on various types of harmful insects.

In this section, we can also mention plants that repel insects harmful to humans and domestic animals. Walnut trees and especially walnutscare away domestic flies and pet flies. Therefore, walnut trees growing on pastures greatly facilitate the lives of horses and cattle. You can spray animals with decoction of nut leaves to scare away flies. Walnut trees growing near dung heaps or at the entrance to a stable or cowshed reduce the number of flies in these places.

Table 2.  Plants with a repellent effect

Placed on the porch or on the lawn in front of the house, the castor bead creates comfort for those who like to spend summer evenings outdoors - it scares mosquitoes. If you plant it near wetlands, mosquito breeding will slow down. Mosquitoes and flies are also deterred by tansy.

Ants do not like mint. If this grass is scattered around the place where food is stored, it will protect it from the invasion of ants. Dry leaves of wormwood, rosemary, sage, lavender and mint scare away the home moth, the plants of tomatoes and the extract from the leaves of wormwood - flies.

Plants that can not be planted next

Among garden plants  Mutual aid relationships are more common than hostility relationships. Poor compatibility of plants is most often explained by their root or leaf secretions, which can inhibit the growth of neighboring crops. Selection of some plants have a specific inhibitory effect only on any one or two other species. For example, sage does not get along with onions, turnips suffer from the neighborhood of a poultry and mountain bird (knotweed), marigolds badly affect the beans, bitter wormwood - on peas and beans, tansy - on leafy cabbage, quinoa - on potatoes.

There are plant species that release substances that are poorly tolerated by most other species. An example is a black walnut, a juglone emitting substance that inhibits the growth of most vegetables, azaleas, rhododendrons, blackberries, peonies, and apple trees.

The close proximity of wormwood is also undesirable for most vegetables.

Among vegetable plants  there is also a quarrelsome, or, as they say, "asocial" species, which acts poorly on many cultivated plants. This is fennel. It damages tomatoes, bush beans, cumin, peas, beans and spinach.

Some weeds of field crops do not simply compete with them for water and nutrition, but also oppress them with their secretions. Wheat is depressed by a large number of poppy and chamomile plants, and rape - a walker and field mustard. Rye, on the contrary, itself slows the growth of weeds, and if it is sown two years in a row in one place, wheatgrass will disappear in this field. Other cultivated plants are also able to inhibit the growth of weeds. Of these, they are trying to isolate the substances responsible for this action in order to create environmentally friendly herbicides on their basis.

A striking example of negative interaction can serve as the relationship between clover and all plants of the ranunculus family. In their roots, the substance ranunculin forms, even at extremely low concentrations, inhibits the growth of nodule bacteria and therefore makes the soil unsuitable for clover. If a buttercup appeared on a field of perennial grasses, the clover will soon disappear completely here. The American biologist R. B. Gregg in his book on herbs gives such a scathing characteristic of the buttercup family. “Delphinium, peony, aconite and some other garden flowers belong to the ranunculus family, very strong and viable, but living only for themselves. They require a large amount of organic fertilizers, and after them leave lifeless humus. Neighboring plants will not grow well without a large amount of compost. ” In the kingdom of trees, according to the same author, the spruce tree is distinguished by its aggressive nature. It is hostile to all other trees, the adverse effect of spruce manifests itself in the soil for 15 years after its cutting.

There are many examples of such relationships, in which in large quantities plants act on a culture in a depressing manner, and in small quantities they are favorable for its growth. Such plants are recommended to be planted at the edges of the beds with vegetable crops, but only in small quantities. This refers to the white ash (deaf nettle), sainfoin, valerian, yarrow. Chamomile in large quantities is harmful to wheat, and in a ratio of 1: 100 contributes to better grain performance.

In tab. 3 is a list of herbs that have a negative impact on individual vegetables. For its compilation, knowledge gained by gardeners over the centuries has been used; however, they cannot be considered absolutely reliable and applicable to all conditions.

Table 3.  Bad neighbors

The negative effect on plants of wormwood is most accurately proven. It contains toxic substances.

Strong wheat grass, white horse sorrel have a strong negative effect on cultivated plants. Wheatgrass excretions especially strongly inhibit maize.

Plants-enemies are among vegetable crops. But in this matter the opinions of different authors differ significantly. For example, German gardeners, who with their inherent scrupulousness and meticulousness for more than one decade checking the compatibility of different vegetable crops on their beds, did not reach a common opinion about the compatibility of tomatoes and cucumbers, potatoes and peas, potatoes and cabbage. Some came to the conclusion that these cultures positively influence each other and that there is a relationship of mutual aid between them, others argue that these are completely impossible combinations. This disagreement can be partly explained by the difference in conditions and growing technique. For example, it has been established that when grown on the same bed in the adjacent rows, chives (fennel) and bush beans, fennel and bush beans, onions and cabbage negatively influence each other. But if you grow these plants on nearby narrow beds, then these combinations give a positive result. Obviously, with ordinary sowing, the negative effect of root secretions affects, and when sowing on individual beds, the positive influence of volatile leaf secretions prevails.

Crop rotation in the garden

The need to introduce crop rotation in the garden is also a consequence of the interaction of plants, but not direct, but mediated through the soil. First of all, the gardener should know how many years it is possible to grow the same crop in one place. This is determined, firstly, by its sensitivity to its own root exudates, which accumulate in the soil. There are plants that emit toxic substances - Colin, which inhibit the growth of plants of the same species. Very sensitive to their own secretions of beets, spinach. To a lesser extent - plants from the pumpkin family, cabbage, radishes, radish, parsley, celery, peas, carrots. Well tolerate their own root secretions and can grow for a long time in one place rye, corn, beans, leeks. Beet-type self-poisoning plants can grow for three years on one bed in a mixed planting, which is impossible in a monoculture. This is explained by the fact that plants of other species absorb and process the roots of root beet secretions, preventing them from accumulating in the soil.

Falling leaves and dying off parts of plants are an essential source of colins. Of the post-harvest residues of cultivated plants, stalks of cucumbers, tops of tomatoes and peppers, leaves of cabbage, carrots, horseradish, and sunflower are particularly rich in colinas (according to A.M. Grodzinsky) [1]. Many of them are also in the remains of weeds, and in the aerial part much more than in the roots. All this is related to soil fatigue and crop alternation, and is especially important for those species whose decomposition products of plant residues cause self-poisoning. This phenomenon is a problem for orchards. Apple trees and most fruit trees belong to such self-poisoners. Therefore, a young garden is not recommended to lay in the place of the uprooted old. It is also impossible to plant young fruit trees  between the old ones.

Colin accumulation is only one cause of soil fatigue. Another, no less important, is the accumulation in the soil of pathogens and pests specific to the type of vegetables that has been growing in one place for several years in a row.

Experiments of the Institute of Vegetable in Vaihenstefen showed that when growing a head of lettuce in one place its harvest decreased from year to year. At the 18th year, it was only 46% of the original. The reason was the massive development of rot. The same applies to root celery. The cauliflower in these experiments grew beautifully in one place for 46 years, but this became possible only when the reaction of the soil was close to alkaline (pH 7.2). Such a reaction is not favorable for germination of spores of the causative agent of cabbage keels. In other conditions, the spread of this disease would be a disaster for cauliflower.

In the first years of the permanent cultivation of cucumbers, cabbage, celery, tomatoes, beans, lettuce, pathogens of bacterial and fungal diseases accumulate in the soil. Root and leaf nematodes characteristic of each type of vegetables become their scourge with constant cultivation in one place. Of the number of pests, cabbage, carrot and onion flies are widely distributed. You can fight them only by alternating cultures.

To prevent soil fatigue, it is necessary to alternate vegetable crops belonging to different botanical families. As a rule, vegetables from the same family have the same set of pests and diseases that damage vegetables of this particular family and do not pose a great danger to other families. Below is given for reference table. 4, which indicates the affiliation of the most common vegetable crops to certain botanical families. Looking at this table, you will know that the garden where the cabbage grew last year should not be planted with radish and turnip. When keels appear, cabbage cannot be returned to its former place earlier than after six years.

Table 4.  Affiliation of vegetable crops to botanical families

Another important factor determining the alternation of vegetable crops is their influence on soil fertility. This aspect is particularly important for those who refuse to use artificial mineral fertilizers. In organic farming, the supply of nutrients in the soil is replenished mainly due to properly prepared compost and crop alternation. And in this case, it is important to know the condition in which each type of vegetable leaves the soil.

An important characteristic of each culture is the amount of nutrients it takes out of the soil, going through the full cycle of development. It depends on how depleted the supply of nutrients and how much it requires replenishment after harvesting. In accordance with this, vegetable crops are divided into very demanding to nutrition, less demanding and improving fertility. All kinds of cabbage and celery are very demanding. Vegetables from the pumpkin families (cucumbers, zucchini, pumpkin), nightshade (tomatoes, potatoes, peppers), all types of onions, all types of lettuce, spinach, and corn occupy an intermediate place between the very and the less demanding. Most root crops from the celery families (carrots, parsnips, root parsley), cabbage (turnips, radishes, radishes), red beet are unanimously classified as less demanding. Vegetables of the same family are very close to each other in terms of nutritional requirements, and if they are planted one after another in one place, this will lead to one-sided depletion of the soil, since it is depleted mainly by the same nutrients that members of this particular family prefer. The third group of crops acting as soil improvers are legumes: beans, peas, beans, clover, alfalfa, and sainfoin. Due to the presence on the roots of nodule bacteria that absorb nitrogen from the air, these plants are able to enrich the soil. In addition, perennial legumes (especially alfalfa), which have a deep root system, absorb mineral nutrients (potassium, phosphorus, calcium) from deep soil layers and enrich the upper arable layer, where they develop root system  vegetable plants To this it should be added that perennial legumes perfectly improve the structure of the soil. Thanks to the properties described above, legumes are an excellent precursor for most vegetable crops. The ability of legumes to accumulate nitrogen in the soil is widely used in organic farming, since mineral nitrogen fertilizers here prefer not to use.

In order to avoid depletion of the soil, crop rotation must necessarily be established in organic farming so that all three groups of crops change at each site for three years. The following sequence is most favorable: in the first year, demanding crops are planted, in the second - legumes, which restore nitrogen reserves and improve the structure, in the third - less demanding ones. Then everything repeats.

Gertrude Frank, who has been testing mixed vegetable crops on her site for 50 years, recommends the following method of enriching the soil with legumes. Early in the spring, she sows beans in the rows where later food-demanding vegetables such as cucumbers, cabbage, celery, and tomatoes will be planted. Beans stand frost down to -2 ° C. This technique gives a positive result only if in your climatic conditions the beans have time to bloom before the time comes to plant the seedlings of a more thermophilic culture in their place. During flowering on the roots of the beans nodules are formed, and they can perform the role of soil enrichment. At the beginning of flowering, the bean plants are cut off, the leaves and stems are left on the soil surface as mulch, and the roots, rotting away, give up the nitrogen accumulated in the nodules. Since beans are not brought to harvest, but are used as green fertilizer, varieties that are not necessarily fruitful, but are characterized by rapid initial growth, are suitable for this purpose.

Soil properties are improved not only by legumes, but also by many plants of other families with a strong and deep root system. Positively affect the heavy clay soils, loosening and improving the structure, cumin, buckwheat, flax, canola, soy.

In order to maintain soil fertility at a constant level, crop rotation and application of organic fertilizers, mainly composts, are necessary. All the necessary nutrients (nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, calcium, etc.) are introduced into the soil in the form of organic substances along with compost. Therefore, it is important that it contains all these substances in sufficient quantity. To do this, you should add those plants that accumulate in their bodies any element and enrich the compost with this element. For example, buckwheat accumulates calcium, the dope leaves are very rich in phosphorus, the stems and leaves of tobacco are potassium, the melon leaves are calcium, and the dioecious nettle has iron. In addition, it is recommended to add chamomile, valerian, dandelion, yarrow, oak bark to the compost in small quantities. They stimulate composting and improve compost quality. Compost from birch leaves or hawthorn leaves is recommended to be applied on depleted soils.

It is advisable to sow a mixture of mustard and rapeseed to improve the soil that has degraded due to the introduction of large doses of mineral fertilizers. Birch and elder can be planted next to compost heaps. They not only protect them with their shadow from drying out and overheating in the sun, but also accelerate the maturation of the compost with its roots.

Agrotechnics mixed plantings, crop turnover in the garden

It is not necessary to think that mixed plantings represent only a combination on one bed of different cultures. One of the purposes of mixed plantings - getting fresh vegetables evenly throughout the season, and not immediately in large quantities, but little by little, just as much as is required for the table. And this is achieved using crops with different periods of not only ripening, but also sowing, or, as they are called, successive crops. In the same bed for one season, a small crop rotation is introduced, which includes the previous crop, the main one and the next one. The most favorable conditions for small crop rotation in areas with a warm climate and a long growing season, presumably from March to November. But even in colder climates, this technique can be used if the main crop or the subsequent one is first grown in a nursery or grown in the form of seedlings, thus reducing the length of its stay in the garden. There is another way. In the inter-row spacing of the previous crop, the next seedling is sown or seedlings are planted. Her young plants do not require much space and can grow for some time under the cover of a previous crop before harvesting it. When the bed is released, the plants of the main crop will have time to take root and will quickly grow.

Basic rules for the sequence of placement of crops

1. The main crop, which requires a lot of time to ripen, can return to one bed not earlier than in three years. For carrots, beets, peas, cucumbers and parsley, this period is extended, as they react badly to their own root secretions.

2. The main crop can be returned to its former bed earlier, if after it grains (wheat, rye, oats) or green fertilizer are sown.

3. Previous and subsequent crops with a short ripening period should not follow each other.

4. Vegetables of the same family should not follow each other in the same garden either in a small (during the season) or in a large crop rotation. Especially strictly this rule should be observed in relation to the vegetables from the family of mariyevy, since they are very sensitive to their own root secretions.

5. If the bed is well-fertilized with compost or rotted manure, then it is advisable to grow all types of cabbage, celery, leeks, cucumbers and tomatoes on it, and less demanding crops: roots, onions, legumes on the beds not fertilized.

The sequence of crop placement should also take into account their impact on the soil. Some species loosen its roots, enrich with organic matter and nitrogen, others condense and deplete. In tab. 5 shows the classification of vegetable crops in terms of their impact on the soil.

Table 5.  Characteristics of vegetable crops as predecessors

It is important to know how much time each culture should take its place and what requirements it has for space, light, food. different periods  growth.

Crop Combining Rules

When plants are combined, even with excellent biological compatibility, competition for water, light, food inevitably arises between them. To keep this competition to a minimum, it is necessary to strictly follow the principle of additionality. This means that on the same bed should be adjacent plants with different requirements for light, nutrition, a place for full development.

The first rule is to combine species with high and low nutritional needs (the classification according to this attribute has already been discussed in the section on predecessors). The main culture usually refers to the demanding and it should be located in the middle of the garden, where it has the best conditions for food. Accompanying culture is less demanding, it takes the edge of the beds or aisle.

For the same purpose, have a number of plants with deep. And shallow root system. They absorb food from different layers of the soil. In tab. 6 shows the classification of crops according to the depth of the root system.

Table 6.  Depth distribution of the roots of the main vegetable crops

To reduce competition for light by combining plants of different shapes and the need for space. Large spreading plants of the main crop are combined with smaller compact plants of additional culture, which is usually located in the main rows between the rows. Tab. 7 gives an idea of ​​the plant forms of vegetable crops.

Table 7. Forms of plants of vegetable crops

The principle of additionality should be observed also when selecting plants for height. Usually they try to combine high and low, but they have their own difficulties. There are plant species that react very badly to the wind. Their condition will improve significantly if they are protected from the wind by rows of tall plants (for example, beans, corn).

• Very sensitive to wind  cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, beans, tomatoes;
• Medium sensitive  - head cabbage, lettuce, spinach;
• Insensitive  - All types of onions, root vegetables.

Another task of tall plants is to slightly shade vegetables that are sensitive to overheating and direct sunlight. Salad, spinach need shading. Corn is a good companion for cucumbers and pumpkins, it retains the wind and improves the microclimate for plants growing in the lower tier.

An exception to the rule of additionality is the combination of plants for water and heat needs. It is recommended to combine on the same bed the same plants for irrigation requirements. All kinds of cabbage and vegetables from the pumpkin family are the most demanding of water; less demanding - lettuce, spinach, roots, tomatoes; undemanding - all types of onions, beans, peas. The combination of plants with different needs for water can have unpleasant consequences. This, for example, explains the frequent failure of the combination of cucumbers and tomatoes. Cucumbers grow well at high humidity of soil and air, and tomatoes in such conditions are susceptible to fungal infection. The same applies to the need for heat. In early and late crops of previous and subsequent cultures use combinations of cold-resistant types of vegetables. These are leaf valerian, leaf mustard, spinach, chard, broccoli, watercress, beans, lettuce, peas, kohlrabi, radishes, parsley, carrots, endive. Of the green vegetables, valerian is not the most fastidious and frost-resistant culture, very rich in vitamin C. To produce autumn greens, it is sown in the middle of summer. In late August, podzimny sowing of the most frost-resistant varieties is carried out. It is best to place it between young strawberry plants of the first year, on which it works well. You can even collect the valerian leaves from under the snow.

After harvesting the previous culture, the beds are occupied by the main, more demanding to heat. These are cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, beans, tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, potatoes, corn. The cold resistance of many types of vegetables is largely dependent on the variety.

The combination of plants for ripening speed allows you to get something like a green conveyor during the season. Some vegetables, such as cabbage, corn, pumpkin, tomatoes, have early and late varieties. The ripening time of different varieties of cabbage is from 55 to 105 days. There are early-ripening crops, the time from sowing to harvesting which does not exceed 60 days, it is lettuce, spinach, radish, turnip, leaf mustard, sweet corn, vegetable beans, green onions, watercress, kohlrabi. Carrots and beets can also be counted among such crops, which are used for summer feeding to achieve full size.

The use of vegetables with different ripening periods presents various possibilities for maneuver. Early in spring, you can sow any cold-resistant, ripening culture such as spinach, lettuce, radish, early carrots. After it is harvested, the bed is occupied by a thermophilic and slow-ripening crop such as tomatoes and cucumbers. Then follow the wintering of valerian, parsnip, chicory. Another option is possible. To accelerate the return of products, the second culture should be sown when the first has not yet been removed. For planting choose plants that in the early periods of growth do not require much space. Partial shading and moisture created by the leaves of the first crop are favorable for germinating seeds and sprout growth. By the time the sub-culture requires more light and space, the previous one should be removed.

Compact fast-ripening vegetables (lettuce, radish) can be used not only as previous and subsequent cultures, but also as intermediate ones. They are sown in the aisle of the main crop, until it has reached full growth and takes up little space. After harvesting the intermediate culture, the core remains in favorable conditions for growth and development.

Hubmann gives characteristic examples of mixed plantings of vegetables with different ripening terms. Here is one of them. On a bed 1 m wide, rows of vegetables are placed in the following order from left to right: leaf lettuce interspersed with radish every 10 cm, watercress, kohlrabi with cabbage lettuce (one plant of lettuce for one kohlrabi plant), three rows of spinach, a number of early potatoes, two rows of spinach These cultures are in harmony with each other. Both types of lettuce protect radishes and kohlrabi from earthen flea. First, 6-7 weeks after sowing, spinach ripens. Its leaves are cut, and the roots rot in the ground and enrich the soil. At the same time ready to use watercress. It is also cut, freeing up another row. Then comes the turn of the radish. Leaf lettuce, which the Germans call a chives salad, is gradually pruned and thinned, so that the remaining plants in the row can grow freely. Schnitt salad has the advantage over the head, that it grows back after pruning and constantly gives fresh tasty leaves. It takes up little space and is therefore convenient as an additional culture. After harvesting a kohlrabi head of lettuce gets a lot of free space and grows rapidly. The fact that this method of cultivation is favorable for kohlrabi is indicated by its rather large average weight - 555 g. The latter are harvested potatoes. Since different types of vegetables are harvested at different times, then for later ripening crops there is still more room for good development. In this example, 31 kg of vegetables were collected from 1 m2 of bed.

Hubmann gives another example, when in one season 20 kg of vegetables were obtained from 1 m2 of bed. In this case, spend two consecutive seeding. The first is three rows of kohlrabi interspersed with a head of lettuce, the distance between them is 33 cm. In the intervals between the rows of kohlrabi there are two rows of spinach, along the edges of the bed there is a chives salad interspersed with radishes. The order of cleaning is the same as described in the previous example. The total yield of vegetables is 8.88 kg / m2. After harvesting the last crop at the end of June - beginning of July, the surface of the beds is covered with a layer of compost and lightly buried with a rake, then a second combination of crops is sown: three rows of radish with a 33 cm row spacing, between them two rows of a head lettuce, on the edges of the bed - salad with radish The second crop gives a total of 11 kg / m2 of vegetables.

Tillage and fertilizer

Mixed cultures intensively use the nutrient reserves of the soil. In order for all plant species to be well supplied with them, special tillage methods are required, and not just fertilization. Anna Carr recommends in the organic gardening guide for American amateur gardeners the “method of compacted planting in deep beds”. Intensive culture requires, firstly, the upper fertile layer to a depth of not less than 30 cm, and secondly, loose subsoil - to a depth of not less than 60 cm. Usually they pay attention only to the upper layer, fertilizing and loosening it annually. With this method of processing under the upper loose horizon at a depth of 30 cm, a compacted layer of subsoil is formed, which does not allow water or air to pass through and prevents the growth of roots. The roots concentrate only in the upper layer. Like houseplantsgrowing in too tight pots, vegetable on compacted soils slows growth, their productivity decreases.

The formation of the underground compacted layer contribute to walking on the ground and especially the transport of weights. This must be remembered if you decide to change the layout of the garden and dig up the tracks. At the site of the former tracks, vegetables will always grow worse. To avoid subsurface compaction, it is recommended to make permanent beds and between them permanent tracks. The width of the beds should be no more than 1.5 m, so that it can reach the middle of the track and all work (loosening, planting, weeding, etc.) can be performed without stepping on it. The width of the tracks is at least 30 cm.

Preparing the soil for the beds is as follows. First, make a planning of the site, in the corners of the future beds, hammer in the pegs and stretch the twine between them to designate the borders of the beds. If you start work on virgin soil, first remove the sod. Use a shovel to trim a 2-3 cm thick layer of sod and remove it from the entire surface of the bed. Chop the sod and add it to the compost pile, you can dig it deeper into the soil, before grinding it. This is usually done in the fall, then by spring the turf will mainly decompose.

By removing the sod, you can dig up the beds. Starting from the end, dig it across successively, one after another, of a trench about 50 cm wide and about the depth of a spade bayonet. Take the land removed from the first trench on the trolley to the side and put it in a pile. The depth of the removed layer should be equal to the depth of the fertile layer, the underlying barren rock should not be affected. Naked underlayment follows, without moving or turning anywhere, loosen it well. To do this, stick the shovel or pitchfork as deep as possible into the bottom of the excavated trench and swing the handle back and forth. It is desirable that the depth of the loosened layer was at least 30 cm. When the bottom of the trench is well loosened, fill it with topsoil from the next trench 50 cm wide, making sure that the upper and lower layers are not mixed. Loosen the bottom of the new trench and fill it with soil from the next trench.

Thus gradually stripes dig the whole bed. Cover the last strip with heap from the first trench. You will get a loose layer with a depth of about 60 cm. On the garden bed you can’t become feet. In the spring, in the spring, dig up the top layer, make compost and other additives (bone meal, wood ash, etc.). For ridges, the dose of fertilizer should not be higher than with the usual method of cultivation. Excess fertilizer is undesirable. If the soil is not very fertile, the top layer can be mixed with organic fertilizer or sand or sprinkled with good soil, but the subsoil layer must be loosened to ensure good drainage.

Of course, this is a rather laborious work, especially on virgin soil, but the more the soil is cultivated, the easier it is. Deep loosening is desirable to repeat every 2-3 years. This is done even if the poured layer is 60-90 cm. If the ground water is close or the soil is underlain by rock, the bulk beds, bounded by walls, are made.

On the rich soils of the deep beds of the plant can be planted more closely. They create a kind of live mulch, dense leaf cover across the bed, which inhibits the growth of weeds and retains moisture. The most common scheme for planting in beds is a series of closely spaced rows. This scheme is suitable for beds occupied by the same crop, and for mixed plantings. Since the aisles are not needed and the soil is very fertile, the rows are much closer than in the ordinary garden.

To increase the productivity of the garden, you can use a consolidated planting of vegetable crops. In this case, the distances between plants are reduced, planted not in rows, but in a staggered manner, the gaps between large plants are filled with more complete ones. This makes it possible to increase the harvest of vegetables per unit area by a factor of 2-3. With compacted plantings, the average yield of carrots from 1 m2 is 7.2 kg, onions - 9.6, tomatoes - 9.4, lettuce - 7.2 kg.

In the case of planting on the bed of a single crop, the distance between plants in rows can be the same as between rows. Plants are planted in squares. Some crops can be planted even more closely if zigzag rows are made, so that each plant in one row is opposite the empty gap of the next. Then the centers of all plants will be at an equal distance from each other and form not a square, but a concentric figure. Rows with this method can be positioned closer by 2-7 cm. On a farm scale, this method of sowing, for example, soybeans, gave an increase in yield up to 25%. This is explained by the fact that plants are better illuminated by the sun, and their roots overlap less.

In tab. 8 shows the minimum distances between plants, but they can only be kept on a sufficiently rich and moist soil. Such compacted crops work best with compact plants of green crops, small species of cabbage, root crops, peppers, and spray beans.

Table 8. Distances between plants in a row with a compacted planting in deep beds

If more than one crop is grown on a garden bed, determine the distance between rows somewhat. more difficult. To determine at what distance to place the rows and plants, set the average distance for each plant. For example, for alternating rows of beans and carrots, fold 10 cm (for beans) and 5 cm (for carrots) and divide by two. You will get a distance between rows of 7.5 cm. If you use a zigzag method of placement in rows, they should be closer - after 5-6 cm. By keeping the distance between the plants, you can add various herbs between rows, which, although they remain in the ground all season, but occupy little space, using all the gaps between large plants.

Instead of having rows along the entire length of the bed, you can divide its area into blocks and arrange rows along or across them or simply scatter the seeds. This is especially convenient for consecutive sowing of fast-growing crops, because before the next sowing you remove the previous culture from the whole area of ​​the block. Green vegetables, salad vegetables, as well as long-growing compact crops or roots grow well with dense random sowing.

In the book of Dr. M. Haase "Mixed cultures" describes the method of growing vegetables on a raised garden bed. Externally, it looks like an earthen mound, the middle part of which is about 80 cm high, and towards the edges its height gradually fades away. Inside, the bed has a rather complex structure. Do it as follows. Measure the area 1.8 m wide and the desired length, remove the sod and fold to the side. A 25-cm-deep trench is dug in the measured area; its bottom is lined with a thin wire mesh to protect it from mice and moles. Along the midline of the trench, they make a mound 60 wide and 40–50 cm high. The material for it is various wood waste, trimming boards, twigs, brushwood, coarse thick stems of dead plants such as sunflower or corn. Only absolutely healthy plants can be used. Between the embankment and the end of the trench there is a distance of 60 cm, and between the embankment and the long side of the trench - 70 cm. It constitutes, as it were, the bed kernel, which is then laid down with grass and straw, weeds, or both together. The total thickness of this layer will be 15 cm. The next layer, 20 cm thick, consists of densely compacted woody foliage. It is better to use the leaves of linden, birch, chestnut, ash, and in no case - the leaves of trees growing on the streets of cities or along roads with heavy traffic, as they accumulate a large amount of harmful substances from the exhaust gases. Next comes a layer of coarse compost or rotted manure, 15 cm thick. From above, all this is covered with a mixture of garden soil with a thin compost layer of 15 cm. All layers should be moderately, but not excessively, moistened. The required degree of moistening is checked as follows: if you take a handful of wet earth or other material that makes up the bed in your hand and squeeze strongly, water will not leak and drip through your fingers. The whole bed is a sort of compost pile, in which gradual rotting occurs and the constituent organic components turn into humus.

Raised beds have their advantages. Loose wood core provides good ventilation of the lower layers of the bed. This is beneficial for the growth of roots and the development of soil life, on which the rate of decomposition of organic matter depends. Due to intensive decomposition processes, the temperature of the soil in the garden in the first year of its laying is 5 - 8 ° C higher than the surrounding soil. This allows you to sow thermophilic vegetables on it in early spring. On the gently sloping sides of the garden beds, plants shade each other less than on a flat surface. And therefore on the raised beds you can make a more dense landing. If you position the bed from north to south, the plants on both its slopes will be uniformly illuminated by the sun. In the case of heavy rains, water does not stagnate on the surface of the bed, but leaks and accumulates in the inner layers, from which the plant roots then extract it. But the main advantage of a raised bed is that it contains a large supply of nutrients, which are enclosed in the plant residues that make up it, and which are gradually released when they rot, turning into a form accessible to plants. Therefore, a raised bed can withstand the continuous cultivation of vegetable crops from early spring to late autumn with a compacted planting and provide nutrition to even the most demanding crops, such as cabbage, tomatoes, etc. The life of the bed is 5-6 years. During this time, the foliage layer and the tree core rot. The bed settles and in its place a layer of fertile soil 35 cm thick is enriched with humus.

The raised bed is laid in the fall so that it settles over the winter. In early spring, when there is still snow, it is covered with a film for faster warming and thawing of the topsoil. In winter, the bed is covered with a thick layer of mulch.

So, the bed is ready, and it will serve you for 6 years. For which crops is it better to use? First of all, it should be noted that the selection and placement of crops varies from year to year depending on the “age” of the bed. Next we list the recommendations made by the German author. They mention the favorite German gardeners types of vegetables. Perhaps the tastes of our gardeners do not always coincide with German tastes, besides, the climate and soils are different. The recommendations given below by M. Haase should not be taken literally as a guide to action, but as one of the possible options for using a raised bed. You can replace the crops they offer with others that you prefer, but you need to make sure that fast-ripening crops are replaced only by fast-ripening, species with high nutritional requirements - vegetables with the same requirements, vegetables from the cabbage family - with vegetables of the same family.

This is what M. Haase advises. Since organic substances can decompose very quickly, and a large amount of nitrates accumulate in the soil, in the first year it is not recommended to sow vegetables known as collectors of nitrates: leaf and cabbage lettuce, spinach, chard, radish. In early spring, the beds are occupied by some fast-ripening crops, for example, watercress or early carrots (they eat it young, without bringing it to full ripeness). After they are harvested, seedlings of vegetables from the pumpkin family are planted in one row along the middle line along the middle line: cucumbers, pumpkins, zucchini, etc. Along the edges of the beds have one row of corn. After they are harvested, the garden is occupied by vegetables that go before winter and give greens to the very cold, for example, valerian, winter chive, winter purslane. In the second year, overwintering vegetables are removed in the early spring and three rows of kohlrabi are planted in the middle of the garden, and sprouted tubers of early potatoes are planted along the edges. To protect against frost beds are covered with a film. Kohlrabi is a fast-ripening crop. After harvesting, the middle row is occupied by tomato seedlings, and cauliflower seedlings are planted in place of potatoes. On the very edge of the beds you can place Chinese kale. Having removed all crops, sow green fertilizer or cover a bed of mulch. In the second and third years, the soil in the garden is the most fertile; therefore, it is occupied by crops that are demanding to nutrition. In the third year, in the middle of the bed, three rows of early cabbage seedlings are planted in early spring, and late carrots, which remain here until the end of the season, are planted at the edges. After harvesting the cabbage, seedlings of root celery or pepper, or eggplant are planted in the middle of the garden, green fertilizer is sown for the winter or covered with mulch. In the fourth year, it is possible, without fear of nitrates, to sow lettuce and green crops: lettuce, spinach, radishes, parsley. The middle row is set aside for cucumbers, pumpkins, and zucchini. After the fourth year, when the supply of nutrients begins to dwindle, the bed is covered in spring with a layer of compost 2-3 cm thick. Fifth and sixth year, legumes (beans, beans, peas) will not grow. In six years, this bed will serve its time and you need to make a new bed in another place.

Intensive vegetable culture requires intensive fertilizer. In organic farming, mainly compost is used as a fertilizer. If it is properly prepared, well perepere (ripe) and enriched with essential mineral elements, then this is an excellent fertilizer that ensures good growth and fruiting of all vegetable crops. It is recommended to distribute the compost evenly over the surface of the bed and slightly mix it with the rake with the top layer of soil. Putting it into the soil is considered a gross mistake. All summer compost should remain on the surface of the soil: it gives it looseness and prevents the formation of a crust. But we must remember that one of the rules of organic farming, which is carried out using mixed crops, is that the soil surface should never remain open, it should always be protected by vegetation or mulch to prevent drying of the top layer. Hence, the compost under the cover of leaves of vegetables always remains wet. It has a high moisture capacity and long retains moisture from irrigation and rain. In order for the compost to fulfill its purpose, it is introduced in rather large quantities - four buckets per 1 m2.

After harvesting, the soil is loosened with a chopper or a rake, but not dug up so as not to damage the upper fertile layer, which is gradually formed as a result of the activity of the roots and microorganisms. If the soil is compacted, it is loosened with a pitchfork, sticking into the ground to a depth of about 20 cm and swaying back and forth. Then the surface of the soil is raked.

Examples of mixed landings

Graduated German gardener Hubmann studied the compatibility of garden crops for several decades and as a result developed 50 combinations. Here we describe some of them (with the width of the beds 1 m).

Combination 1: three rows of carrots, four - chives, four - spinach. The rows are placed in a sequence: chives, spinach, carrots, chives, spinach, carrots, etc. In the middle row of carrots, several tomato plants can be planted (there are four plants per 3 m). Spinach can be replaced with watercress or chives. First remove the spinach. A chive from a sevag rides in the middle of summer, and carrots remain on the garden, its leaves grow magnificently and cover the entire surface of the garden. This combination combines cultures with different growth rates, which are harvested at different times, thereby reducing competition between them to a minimum. Each crop develops well and produces high yields: 1.5 kg of spinach, 2.5 kg of onions and 4 kg of carrots are harvested from 1 m2.

Combination 2: four rows of chives, three - spinach, two - watercress, one - chervillo, three - parsley. Cultures are arranged in sequence: onions, cress, parsley, spinach, onions, chervil, parsley, spinach, onions, cress, parsley, spinach, onions. First, watercress is harvested, then spinach, in the middle of summer - onions. On the garden there is parsley, which grows and gives a lot of leaves.

Combinations 3 and 4: two rows of young strawberries, which are planted in August in the middle of the garden; three rows of leaf parsley between them and along the edges of the beds are sown in the spring of the following year: it drives away slugs from strawberries. Before sowing parsley, earth is loosened, strawberry whiskers are removed, and compost is added. Parsley likes light fertile soils with a high humus content. After collecting the strawberries, the plants are removed, and the parsley remains for the winter.

For comparison, here we give an example of another combination with strawberries. In August, it is planted, in early September, the rows are sown with valerian or spinach. The next year, Kohlrabi or beans are planted between the rows of strawberries. After harvesting, strawberries are removed and green fertilizer is sown. German gardeners believe that the most rational use of strawberries is only the first year of fruiting. This greatly facilitates the care of her.

Combination 5: in the middle of the garden - one row of a head of lettuce, on both sides of it - two rows of spinach, behind it - two rows of cauliflower (distance in a row of 50 cm), along the edges of the garden are two rows of chives salad with a sprinkle of radish. In a row of head of lettuce, one tomato plant is planted every meter. Harvesting sequence: spinach, radish, chives, cauliflower, cabbage lettuce. When there are only tomatoes left on the garden, you can add compost and carry out a second crop: three rows of black radish, two - heads of lettuce, and along the edges - again schnittsalat with radishes. Radish moderately inhibits the development of tomatoes, so their harvest is slightly reduced. But in mixed crops, the goal is to obtain a high total yield of vegetables per unit area, rather than each individual crop.

Table 9. A few more Hubmann combinations

Swiss gardener M. Howard recommends his combination for mild climate conditions and a long growing season. In March, as soon as the earth thaws, sow three rows of fodder beans with a row spacing of 20 cm on a 1.2-meter wide bed; in late March-early April, two rows of a mixture of cabbage lettuce and kohlrabi are sown between rows of beans. In mid-May, the beans will grow and begin to shade the lettuce and kohlrabi, then you need to cut them, chop the stalks and mulch them between rows. In mid-June, instead of the first row of beans, plant seedlings white cabbage  and celery interspersed with dill (distance in the row of 50 cm), instead of the second - cauliflower and celery interspersed with borage, instead of the third - red cabbage, celery and dill. Mulch from the stalks of beans serves as a green fertilizer and protects the soil from drying out. Cucumber grass should not grow much so that it does not interfere with the cabbage, so at the beginning of flowering it is cut. Crop cabbage harvested in October.

And now we describe an exemplary garden in which crop rotation is established. Here the influence of American and English traditions is felt, therefore the nature of the combination of cultures is somewhat different: more attention is paid to herbs.

Example 1

The garden is divided into four equal areas. At first, the main crop is potatoes. Ten rows are occupied by early potatoes, they alternate with rows of leeks; ten - late, alternating with the string beans. On the same site from the edge - two rows of young, not yet fruiting strawberries. The second site - the place of legumes. Rows of peas, beans, and beans are interspersed with rows of cabbage seedlings, Brussels sprouts, broccoli (we are talking about a two-year culture of winter cabbage). At the end of the plot - two rows of strawberries of the first year of fruiting. The third section is occupied by cabbage, sown in the previous season. After harvesting the cabbage, tomato seedlings, turnips, lettuce and radish are planted. Two rows of strawberries of the second year of fruiting close the plot. The fourth section - the roots (carrots, beets, radishes, turnips), onions, lettuce, pumpkin, kohlrabi. Here are two rows of strawberries last year. Green crops and herbs grow on each plot as collateral crops. The alternation of the main crops: potatoes, legumes, cabbage, and root vegetables. Strawberries are in one place for four years, of which two years is maximum productivity. After four years, strawberries are moved to the other end of the plot. Berry bushes and fruit trees are located at the end of the garden.

Example 2

The site is divided by a path into approximately two equal parts, left and right. In the upper right side there are compost heaps. Immediately behind them is a bed of tomatoes, bordered with parsley on one side and chives with onions on the other. This is followed by the first sowing of carrots with radishes, rarely sown for marking rows. Behind them - the first sowing of peas. Between its rows, when the weather is warm enough, sweet peppers are planted. By the time the pepper grows and requires more sunlight, the peas are ripe and cleaned. Behind the rows of peas is the second sowing of carrots, and behind it - the second sowing of peas. Chicory is planted between the rows of peas. Then comes a block of sweet corn — four rows interspersed with two pumpkin holes — this is the first corn planting. The right side closes the row of marjoram.

The left side of the garden begins with two rows of cucumbers, which are surrounded by borage and dill. This is followed by five rows of spray beans, interspersed with rows of spinach. Behind them are placed consecutive crops of leaf lettuce and a head of lettuce nursery. From here, take his seedlings and planted among other cultures. Next are the rows of the second sowing of maize, alternating with the rows of the third sowing of peas. Here, among the corn, four more wells with pumpkin are placed. Still further, a mixture of wax beans and a head of lettuce. For the beans is beets, marked with radishes. Then - three rows of broccoli interspersed with oregano.

• Eggplant. It is recommended to plant among the spray bean that frightens the Colorado potato beetle. Thyme has a beneficial effect on eggplant.
• Beans. The most favorable relationships that can be described as mutual assistance exist between beans and cucumbers. Therefore, it is recommended to plant beans around the beds with cucumbers. They go well with sweetcorn, potatoes, radishes. radish, spinach, mustard. Interspersing the beans in planting these crops improves their nitrogen supply. Fragrant basil, planted next to the beans, reduces damage to their bean weevil. Other useful herbs for beans: borage, lavender, oregano, rosemary, yarrow. It is not recommended to plant beans with onions, leeks, chives and garlic. The beans are badly affected by the neighborhood of marigolds and wormwood.
• Grapes. In Moldova, as mentioned earlier, a large number of cultivated plants were studied for their compatibility with grapes. Corn, beans, rye, potatoes, radishes, and oil radish have a stimulating effect on the growth of grapes. Negative effects were observed when planted with onions, barley, soybeans, cabbage. The incompatibility of grapes and cabbage has been known for a long time. Already in ancient Greece they knew that cabbage is the enemy of the vine. This may seem surprising, because other plants of the cabbage family are not so hostile to grapes, and radishes and oilseed radishes, on the contrary, have a beneficial effect on them.
• Peas. Relations of mutual aid are noted at peas with carrots, turnip, cucumbers. It grows well between the rows of these crops, helping them in turn by the fact that, like all legumes, enriches the soil with nitrogen Peas can be combined on the same bed with radishes, radishes, lettuce, kohlrabi, parsley. Unfavorable combination of peas with onions, garlic, tomatoes. Of the herbs on the pea is badly affected by bitter wormwood. There are conflicting opinions about the relationship between peas and potatoes and cabbage: some authors consider these combinations to be quite possible, others treat them negatively.
• Cabbage. For different types of cabbage is characterized by fairly similar preferences for accompanying plants. The relationship of mutual aid is noted in cabbage with bush beans and celery. These species act favorably on each other, and celery, in addition, protects the cabbage from earthen fleas. Dill, planted between the rows of cabbage, improves its taste and repels caterpillars, aphids. For cabbage, the neighborhood of borage is also favorable, it has a good effect on cabbage and drives off snails with its hard hairy leaves. Very good accompanying culture for cabbage - all kinds of lettuce. They also protect it from the earthen flea. Cabbage also needs protection from a variety of cabbage butterflies laying eggs on leaves. This role can fulfill aromatic herbs, their strong smell masking the smell of cabbage. Therefore, it is recommended to plant thyme, sage, rosemary, mint, hyssop, wormwood, chamomile around the cabbage plantings. Leek scares caterpillars scoops. Cabbage can be combined on the same bed with cucumbers, tomatoes, spinach, beets, chard, potatoes, chicory. There is no consensus about its compatibility with strawberries and onions. Of all the types of cabbage, kohlrabi is the most suitable partner for beetroot and a bad neighbor for tomatoes. Cabbage does not fit well with parsley and suffers from closely growing grapes. Tansy does not work well on kale.
• Potatoes. Favorable cultivation of potatoes in a mixed culture. He is less sick and can grow longer in one place without a decrease in yield. The best partners for potatoes are spinach, string beans and beans. Beans planted between the rows, enriches the soil with nitrogen and repels the Colorado potato beetle. Potatoes go well with cabbage, especially cauliflower and kohlrabi, types of lettuce, corn, radish. Many authors note that a small amount of horseradish plants planted in the corners of a potato plot has a favorable effect on potatoes. Colorado potato beetle scare catnip, coriander, nasturtium, tansy, marigold. It is not recommended to plant potatoes with celery, sunflower and quinoa have a depressing effect on potatoes. On the relationship of potatoes with tomatoes, beets and peas, there are opposing views.
• Strawberry. Strawberries are favorably influenced by bush beans, spinach, parsley. Parsley is recommended to plant strawberries in between rows to scare slugs. Strawberries can be combined with garlic, cabbage, lettuce, onions, radishes, radishes, beets. Of the herbs, borage (borage) and sage work well on it. Mulching the soil with spruce and pine needles contributes to a significant improvement in the taste of strawberries.
• Corn. It refers to plants that are very demanding to nutrition, therefore it is advised to alternate blocks of corn with blocks of bush beans; she benefits from the neighborhood of this legume plant, a soil improver. Corn is combined with cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, beans, early potatoes. These cultures stimulate its growth. Cucumbers are recommended to be planted around corn plots. In terms of allelopathy, corn is a very friendly plant for many crops. It has a positive effect on sunflower, potatoes, grapes. For her, bad neighbors are celery and beetroot.
• Bow. The classic combination is onions and carrots. These two cultures protect each other from pests: carrots drive away an onion fly, and onions drive away a carrot fly. Due to its compact form, onions are used as an additional crop, which is located in the rows of the main crop. It is combined with beets, lettuce, cucumbers, strawberries, spinach, radishes, and watercress. On the combination of onions and cabbage there is no consensus. Some authors believe that onions are good for cabbage and repels pests. The edging of the savory is favorable for the growth of onions, chamomile also has a good effect on it, but in small quantities: approximately one plant per 1 st. m beds. Onions are not combined with beans, peas, beans. For him unfavorable neighborhood sage.
• Leek.  Companion plants for leeks - celery, bush beans, lettuce, carrots, beets. Leek and celery are connected by mutual aid, therefore it is recommended to plant them in alternating rows.
• Perennial onions (chives). It goes well with tomatoes, celery, lettuce, cabbage, carrots, strawberries, endive, it is not recommended to plant next to peas, beans, beets.
• Carrot. Well makes the neighborhood of many crops, grows well next to onions and spinach, and also goes well with tomatoes, radishes, radishes, chard, onions, garlic, lettuce. But the closest plant for carrots, with which it has a relationship of mutual aid, is pea. Carrots are recommended to be surrounded by the following crops to scare away carrot flies: rosemary, sage, tobacco, onions. Hostile herbs - dill, anise.
• Cucumbers. For cucumbers, satellite plants are bush and curly beans, celery, beets, lettuce, cabbage, garlic, onions, chives, radishes, spinach, and fennel. The most favorable impact on cucumbers have beans, so they advise planting beans around a plot with cucumbers. The cucumbers themselves are planted around corn, which greatly benefits from such a neighborhood. Herbs favorable for cucumbers are chamomile, dill, and cucumber herb. The question of the compatibility of cucumbers with tomatoes is not clear. Different authors express opposite opinions on this score: some consider that this is a good combination, others - that this is an absolutely impossible combination. So every gardener will have to find out this question in the most experienced way.
• Parsley. It is a plant companion for many crops: asparagus, roses, celery, leek, peas, tomatoes, radishes, strawberries, lettuce. It is recommended to plant on the edges of the beds with tomatoes. Planted next to the roses, it reduces the number of aphids; planted in the aisles of strawberries - drives away slugs.
• Pepper. The satellite plant is basil, the hostile plant is fennel.
• Radish. It tolerates mixed plantings with tomatoes, spinach, parsley, chard, onions, garlic, cabbage, strawberries, peas, especially suitable for radish. Combined with leaf and head lettuce, which protect it from earthen flea. Radish, planted between the spray beans, has a particularly delicate taste and large root vegetables. Beans also protect the radish from pests. Since radish seeds germinate quickly, it is recommended to sow them along with slowly germinating crops (beets, spinach, carrots, parsnips) for marking rows. Radish does not like strong heat, so it is often sown in alternating rows with Chervil, which shade it a little and prevents overheating. Nasturtium and watercress, bordering the beds with radish, improve the taste of radish, giving a sharp, and under the influence of leaf lettuce, it becomes more delicate flavor. Unfavorable to radish neighborhood of hyssop. Some gardeners believe that cucumbers are a bad neighbor for him.
• Turnip. Satellite plant - pea. The turnip, mustard and mountaineer (knotweed) are not favorable for turnips.
• Salad. Cabbage and leaf lettuce (chives) goes well with most garden crops. It is a good companion for tomatoes, cucumbers, curling beans and bush, chives, spinach, strawberries, peas. Its neighborhood is particularly favorable for cruciferous vegetables - all types of cabbage, radish, radish, as it scares the earthen flea. And for him, the neighborhood of a bow repellent for aphids is helpful. The lettuce does not like overheating and needs partial shading, but only partially, so close proximity of plants with dense foliage, such as carrots, beets, is unfavorable for the lettuce. Lettuce bushes can be placed in different parts of the garden, where it will grow under the cover of taller plants. Especially favorable for him is the neighborhood of chrysanthemums.
• Beet table. Hubmann, who has been testing the compatibility of table beet with other vegetables for many years, claims that five types of vegetables — potatoes, tomatoes, spray beans, beets and spinach — stimulate each other. According to his observations, beets. It also has a very good effect on cabbage of all kinds, lettuce, radish and radish; for beets, the neighborhood of onions, kohlrabi, spinach, lettuce is especially favorable; in addition, it tolerates joint plantings with garlic, cucumbers, strawberries, root celery. Concerning the incompatibility of beets with other cultures there is no consensus. Some gardeners claim that it grows poorly in the neighborhood of chives, corn and potatoes. Regarding chard, which belongs to the same botanical family as beets, there are also differences. One author argues that he favorably affects the beets, the other - that the vegetables of this family do not tolerate root secretions of each other and therefore they can not be planted next to. There are suggestions that the root selection of beets have antibiotic properties and, therefore, replanting it to some crops, in particular to carrots, may have a healing effect on them. But at the same time, one should not forget about keeping a sufficient distance between plants, as the powerful beet leaves shade the neighboring crops.
• Celery. In celery and cabbage, mutual aid relations are noted: cabbage stimulates celery growth, while celery drives cabbage butterflies away from cabbage. Celery goes well with tomatoes, spinach, cucumbers, lettuce, beetroot. Schnitt onions and bush beans are especially beneficial to it. It is not recommended to plant celery next to corn, potatoes, parsley, carrots.
• Tomatoes. Some consider tomatoes to be “selfish” plants that love to grow on their own, separate from other crops. But the experience of German and Swiss gardeners says that tomatoes tolerate a good neighborhood of other vegetables and are quite suitable for mixed plantings. They go well with celery, endive, radish, radish, corn, lettuce, cabbage, garlic, carrots, beetroot. Mutual auspicious action was noted with chives, spinach, bush beans, parsley, which is often planted as edging of tomato beds. Tomatoes have a hostile relationship with kohlrabi, fennel and dill. As for the relationship of tomatoes with potatoes and cucumbers, opinions differ, perhaps it depends on the method of planting. Tomatoes are favorable for the neighborhood of the following herbs that improve their taste and condition: basil, lemon balm, borage, chives, marigold, mint, sage, savory. Dioecious nettle growing next to tomatoes improves the quality of tomato juice and prolongs the shelf life of fruits.
• Pumpkin. Pumpkin wells are recommended to be placed between the corn plants. Corn shadows the pumpkin in hot weather and saves it from overheating.
• Beans. Spray beans - the most friendly plant of leguminous vegetables. Relations of mutual aid and mutual stimulation are marked for beans and radish, all types of cabbage, corn, celery, cucumbers, potatoes, tomatoes, beets, spinach. The root secretions are rich in nitrogen, the beans help other vegetables growing next to it. In addition, it is compatible with chard, lettuce, strawberries, leek. Beans do not tolerate the neighborhood of onions, garlic, fennel, peas. Herbs for beans recommended savory, which protects it from black aphids.
• Garlic. Apparently, in Western Europe, he is not very popular, so it is rarely used in mixed plantings. It is known that garlic goes well with tomatoes, beetroot, carrots, cucumbers, strawberries and badly affects beans, peas, cabbage.
• Spinach. Spinach is a favorite member of the vegetable community in Germany and Switzerland. He is credited with many positive qualities, including cold resistance, a short period of ripening, compact form. All this makes it a very convenient culture for consistent and combined plantings. In addition, spinach roots have a positive effect on soil properties, and saponin, which is part of its root secretions, stimulates the absorption of nutrients by the roots of vegetables growing next to it. The relationship of mutual beneficial effects is marked for spinach and potatoes, tomatoes, beans, and beets. The most common combinations are spinach with kohlrabi, radish, lettuce. It also goes well with carrots, onions, parsley, watercress, celery, cabbage, strawberries. Spinach has no hostile relations with any plant species.

All the above tips regarding the methods of growing vegetables should be taken as recommendations, and not as absolutely firm rules. Each gardener should check them in his plot with the varieties at his disposal in relation to local conditions.

The methods described provide for the effective use of the entire area of ​​the garden during the entire summer season. With this method of cultivation, a plot of 100 m2 can feed a family of four.

It is necessary to mention another important council of experienced gardeners. This applies to the compilation of the annual landing plan. It is necessary in order, first, to observe the correct rotation of crops by year in accordance with the rotation rules described above, and second, to plan the subsowing and replanting of some crops to others at the beginning of the year. All this is difficult to remember and keep in mind, especially with a large variety of crops, so a garden plan is absolutely necessary.

Vegetable Compatibility Chart

Compatibility of vegetable crops (the numbers are the same as vertical)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

1 Eggplant +
  2 Beans * * - - - + * - *
  3 Grapes - + + - + +
  4 Peas? ? - - - + + * * + * - -
  5 Cabbage - *? ? *? * - + * + * * + *
  6 Potatoes +? * * * *? -? + +
  7 Strawberries * * * + * * * + * +
  8 Kukuryza + + + - - + * +
  9 Onions - -? * + * * * * - *
  10 Leek * * * + *
  11 Perennial onions - * * * * - * * -
  12 Carrots + + * * * * - * +
  13 Cucumbers + * * * * * * * *? + * * *
  14 Parsley * * * * * * +
  15 Radishes / Radish * * * * * * *? * + * * + * *
  16 Turnip *
  17 Salad * + * * * * + * * * *
  18 Beets *? *? +? * * * + + + * +
  19 Celery + - - + - - * * * + *
  20 Tomatoes *? * * *? + * * * * * * *
21 Pumpkin *
  22 Dill * - +
  23 Beans - + + * + - * + + + + + + - +
  24 Garlic - - * * * * * -
  25 Spinach * + * * * * * * + * + +

__________________
  * good compatibility
  + very good compatibility
  - poor compatibility
  ? conflicting opinions about compatibility

Herbs (decoding numbers see below)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21
  1 Eggplant! * $
  2 Beans * * * * * * -
  3 Grapes * *
  4 peas
  5 Cabbage * * * - *
  6 Potatoes * *
  7 Strawberries * *
  8 Kukuryza
  9 Bow *
  10 Leek
  11 perennial onions
  12 Carrots - * *
  13 Cucumbers *
  14 Parsley
  15 Radishes / radish - * *
  16 Turnip -
  17 Salad
  18 Beets
  19 Celery
  20 Tomatoes * * * * * - * *
  21 pumpkin
  22 Dill
  23 Beans
  24 Garlic - *
  25 Spinach -
  ____________ Grass (to table)
  1 Anis
  2 Basil
  3 Marigolds
  4 Borage
  5 mustard
  6 Oregano
  7 Issop
  8 Chervil
  9 Nettle
  10 Lavender
  11 mint
  12 Nasturtium
  13 Wormwood bitter (!)
  14 rosemary
  15 Daisy
  16 Ruta
  17 Yarrow
  18 Fennel
  19 Savory
  20 Salvia
  21 Tarragon ($)
  (!) - on most vegetables - negative effect ($) - on most vegetables - positive effect