Successions

In cultivating and cropping of all gardens it is necessary to consider three important points. Firstly, a succession of crops must be secured so that a continuous yield of produce is obtained ; secondly, care must be taken so that the autumn and early winter operations of digging, manuring, and trenching, may be carried out; and, thirdly, provision must be made for a rotation of crops in successive years so that exhaustion of the soil is prevented. Little difficulty should be experienced in dealing correctly with each of these considerations. Here is a general guide to rotational cropping.

1. Beans and Peas should be followed by Potatoes, Turnips and Greens.

2. Potatoes, Turnips, and Greens should be followed by Onions, Parsnips, Beet, and Carrots.

3. Onions, Parsnips, Beet, and Carrots, may be followed by Beans and Peas.

This rotational arrangement may be followed out in a sectional scheme as shown in Fig. 10, or it may be worked out in the usual way by keeping a cropping plan each year, and planting crops the following season according to the table given.

For successions, viz., for the purpose of obtaining a continuous yield, the following points are useful :-

1. Peas and Beans may be followed by Lettuce or Turnips

2. Onions may be followed by Broccoli.

3. Spring Cabbage may be followed by Peas or Turnips.

4. Winter Lettuce may be followed by Cauliflower.

5. Peas or Onions may be followed by Spring Cabbage.

6. Early Potatoes may be followed by Brussels Sprouts or Peas.

The following table is a guide for planting the various crops demanded by the school plot. Local conditions will naturally affect the time of sowing ; the nature of the soil will slightly modify the depth of the drills, and all the influences of garden life will have something to do with the period that elapses before the plant arrives at maturity.

The following table indicates the crops that should be grown in each plot :-

1 These crops should be grown on a reserve plot where the gardens are very small.

2 On small plots these crops should be omitted, or in the case of Runner Beans, a few plants may be placed at the corners.

On the nursery plot the following may be grown :- Vegetable Marrow, Ridge Cucumber, Rhubarb, and all Winter Greens.