Crop rotation is falling out of fashion – and I’m glad for it, it used to be a stuffy, over complicated thing. However, don’t lets throw the baby out with the bathwater! I love the moving about and mixing of crops, and so does your soil – it brings huge bonuses.
Rotation is simply moving crops about and mixing them up. And it makes a strong bid for soil balance because each crop draws on different nutrients and encourages different types of soil biology.
And it keeps good health by providing a break in disease cycles. There are only 3 vegie fam’s with potential for soil borne disease:
Move other crops for sure, but pay extra attention to these guys and create as long a space as you can before growing them on the same spot again. And in that space, grow as big a variety of crops as poss. That’s it! Don’t get hung on the details, just mix and move. Keep a notebook to jog your memory.
As a passionate gardener I know how rewarding it is to harvest a bumper crop of beans. Whether you grew bush beans pole beans, or any other legume, watching those pods fill out over the summer is so satisfying. But then comes the question – what should you plant after beans?
Proper crop rotation is crucial for a healthy garden. By rotating vegetable families each year, you prevent pest and disease issues from building up in the soil. You also ensure the soil gets replenished with the nutrients each plant needs. So the crop you choose after beans is an important decision.
In this article, I’ll explain why crop rotation matters and walk through the best vegetables to plant after beans. I’ll also share tips on using cover crops in your rotation and how to track your rotation plan. Let’s dive in!
Why Crop Rotation Matters
Crop rotation refers to planting different vegetable families in the same spot in successive years. It brings two major benefits for your garden soil and plants:
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Pest/disease control – Many pests and diseases attack specific crops year after year. Rotating families starves them out.
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Improved soil nutrition – Different plants leach or deposit different nutrients. Rotation prevents nutrient depletion and imbalance.
Rotating crops has been a farming practice for centuries and remains critical today. Without rotation, gardens often become less productive over time.
Ideal Crops to Follow Beans
As legumes, beans enrich soil with nitrogen through a process called nitrogen fixation. This makes them an excellent precursor for heavy feeding crops with high nitrogen needs.
Some great options include:
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Tomatoes – One of the most popular crops for succession planting after beans are tomatoes. As fruiting vegetables, tomatoes thrive with the nitrogen boost provided by beans. Wait at least 3 years before planting tomatoes or other nightshades like peppers or eggplant in the same spot.
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Sweet Corn – Another heavy feeding crop, corn can soak up leftover bean nitrogen efficiently. For best results, choose a quick maturing super-sweet corn variety. Look to harvest before summer heat peaks.
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Cucumbers – Cucumbers make a refreshing successor to beans in the garden. They ramble aggressively, so be sure to provide strong trellising or cages for support. Plant cukes from seed or seedlings 4-6 weeks after your final bean harvest.
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Summer & Winter Squash – All types of squash are nitrogen loving plants. They perform exceptionally well when rotated into former bean beds. Consider interplanting quick-growing summer squash with slower winter varieties.
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Cabbage Family (Broccoli, Cauliflower, Brussels Sprouts, etc) – Cole crops thrive when rotated into bean beds. The extra nitrogen fuels rapid growth of broccoli heads, cauliflower curds, and brussels sprouts. Just be sure soil phosphorus levels are also sufficient.
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Onions and Garlic – Onions, garlic, and other alliums appreciate both the nutrient recharge and pest break they get from following beans. For best yields, plant allium bulbs in the fall after clearing spent bean plants.
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Flowers like Zinnias, Marigolds, and Cosmos – Blooming annual flowers make great interim plantings after finishing your bean harvest. They prevent soil nutrient depletion and break pest cycles while adding color.
Using Cover Crops in Rotation with Beans
Cover crops are plants grown solely to enrich and protect soil between cash crops like beans. They provide living roots in the garden year-round, which brings many benefits:
- Prevent erosion
- Suppress weeds
- Fix nitrogen (legumes)
- Accumulate nutrients from lower soil depths
- Improve soil structure and water retention
Common cover crop options include cereals (rye, wheat), legumes (clover, vetch), and broadleaves (buckwheat, mustard). Mixes combine several varieties to maximize advantages.
After cutting down spent bean plants, sow cover crops to occupy the space until your next planting. Once they reach maturity, mow or till them into the soil about 2-3 weeks before planting your next vegetable crop. This gives time for decomposition so nutrients are available.
Cover crops are a simple way to keep your bean beds nourished and productive. No need to leave plots fallow!
Keeping Track of Your Crop Rotation Schedule
With all these options for crop succession after beans, how do you remember your plan from year to year?
A crop rotation planner is essential. This can be as simple as a notebook listing what you grew in each bed over the past 3-5 years. Sketch out a map of your vegetable garden beds and jot down notes.
Alternatively, create a garden planning spreadsheet with a tab for each bed. Log crop, variety, date planted, date harvested, yield, and any other notes. This gives you data to pick ideal timing and varieties the following year.
Tracking crop rotation diligently prevents nasty surprises like soil-borne disease outbreaks. Refer to your records when deciding what to plant after beans and you’ll maintain healthy, productive soil for seasons to come.
Putting It All Together – Sample 3 Year Rotation Plan
To summarize, here is an example three-year rotation schedule for a vegetable garden following a bean harvest:
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Year 1 – Beans – Pole beans, bush beans, soybeans – any type!
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Year 2 – Heavy Feeders – Tomatoes, peppers, corn, squash, or cole crops. Must be different plant family than beans.
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Year 3 – Onions/Garlic + Cover Crop – Plant fall allium sets or bulbs. Sow cover crop like cereal rye after garlic harvest.
Then repeat the cycle again! Adapt plan based on your local growing conditions and garden layout.
Planning crop rotation for after clearing spent bean plants is an essential garden chore. With smart succession planting, you can take full advantage of the soil-enhancing properties of bean nitrogen fixation.
Follow beans with heavy feeding nightshades, vines, brassicas, alliums, and cover crops. Avoid planting the same families repeatedly. Track your rotation to prevent pest and nutrition issues.
With a thoughtful crop plan after beans, your vegetable garden will continue producing bountiful harvests for seasons to come. Happy planting!
FAQ
What is best to plant after beans?
Nitrogen promotes leaf development, so leafy crops like lettuce and cabbage should be planted in the same bed after beans. On the other hand, crops in the Gourd or Nightshade family, such as tomatoes and cucumbers, should not be planted after beans, because the nitrogen in the soil will produce leafy plants with less fruit.
What grows well after green beans?
After beans, you can plant staple crops such as cabbage, pumpkin or nightshade plants. As beans bind nitrogen in the soil, these crops then benefit from the better nutrient supply in the soil.
Can I plant beans in the same place each year?
Planting the same crop year after year in the same location is not so good for several reasons and it is better to rotate crops.
What order to plant a vegetable garden?
Add your plants from tallest to shortest. As a general rule, put tall veggies toward the back of the bed, mid-sized ones in the middle, and smaller plants in the front or as a border. Consider adding pollinator plants to attract beneficial insects that can help you get a better harvest, and will also prey on garden pests.
Can you plant a vegetable garden after beans?
Yes, many vegetable crops thrive when planted after beans, as they benefit from the nitrogen fixed in the soil by the beans. Some top choices include tomatoes, corn, squash, cole crops like cabbage, and alliums like onions and garlic. Cover crops are also great to plant after beans to maintain soil health. Just be sure to rotate plant families each year.
How do you care for a bean plant?
Beans have shallow roots, so mulch keeps them cool. Water regularly, about 2 inches per square foot per week. If you do not keep beans well watered, they will stop flowering. Water on sunny days so foliage will not remain soaked, which could encourage disease. Fertilize after heavy bloom and pod set, if needed.
When should you plant beans?
Plant beans early enough so you can harvest before summer heat peaks. In some areas, you may get a second crop by timing new plantings for when summer heat declines. Beans don’t like cold, moist soil, so plant after your last spring frost date when soil warms to at least 55°F.
Can you plant beans outside?
Yes, beans grow best when direct-seeded outdoors. Before planting pole beans, set up supports. Sow seeds any time after your last spring frost when soil reaches 55°F. Don’t plant too early or cold soil could cause seeds to rot.
My crop rotation pattern
This rotation is my simplified version of one I learned many years ago from Kay Baxter. I love it for its flexibility and ease.
GREENCROP ⮕ COMPOST ⮕ HEAVY FEEDER ⮕ LIGHT FEEDER ⮕ START AGAIN
1. Start with a mixed greencrop: Sow a mix of seasonally appropriate greencrop seed. Be sure to include a nitrogen fixer.
2. Follow with a heavy feeder: We’ve primed the soil, so lets use it!
Either plant amongst the standing greencrop. Seedlings respond to this nurtured environment by growing with alacrity – it is in my imagining, because their little roots plug right into the fungi and all those adult roots. This works well for:
Or clear the greencrop, spread compost over the bed and plant. This works well for
- Alliums: onions, leeks, garlic, who prefer clear space.
3. Follow with a light feeder: In good soil you don’t need to add anything before sowing or planting light feeders. (You’ll know it’s good because your DIY test + your crops tell you so.) However, not so great soil like sand or heavy clay soil may need something more. Options are to aerate clay soil first. Then in both scenarios, add a fine layer of compost and/or vermicastings before sowing or planting.
Should you run out of space and need to follow a heavy feeder with a heavy feeder, no worries, just compensate by adding compost, and/or by sowing a nitrogen fixing greencrop alongside the crop.