Gardeners and farmers know that for a good harvest it is important not only to follow the rules of planting and caring for each crop, but also to alternate planting them on the site. What should you plant after carrots to make the result pleasing?
The scientific name for the competent circulation of crops on earth is called crop rotation in a garden or field. There are several of its principles, the simplest of which is to alternate root crops with “top” crops, with representatives of other families. When answering the question of what can be planted in the place that belonged to carrots, you need to be guided by this very principle. There are compatible crops that leave each other soil enriched with the necessary fertilizers, and there are “warring” plants or plants that leave each other a legacy of parasites. So, when planting, you should not alternate carrots and garlic.
Following simple rules when choosing what to plant in the coming year helps to avoid soil fatigue (after all, if the plant is the same from year to year, very soon it will take all the nutrients from the depth it needs). This is also important for reasonable soil fertilization, because different plants need different microelements from each other.
Why is it important to follow the rules of crop rotation?
If you neglect crop rotation, you can lose a significant part of the harvest. Planting vegetables according to his rules is necessary for the following reasons :
- When growing one type of crop, the same pathogens and pests accumulate in the soil, which requires additional treatment of the plants.
- The same vegetable crops absorb certain nutrients from the soil. Sucking out the same microelements greatly depletes the earth. The problem is solved by applying mineral and organic fertilizers, which will require material costs.
- If crop rotation rules are not followed, toxic substances (viburnum) accumulate in the soil and are released by plant roots. And if vegetables are grown in the same place for several years in a row, then the concentration of harmful compounds will be exceeded and will have a depressing effect on the planted crops.
In addition, following the rules of alternating vegetables will reduce the number of weeds and prevent soil depletion .
Crop rotation of carrots in greenhouses and open ground
In greenhouses, maintaining crop rotation rules is difficult due to the savings in usable space and energy costs. Carrots get along well with tomatoes, garlic, cucumbers and onions. In greenhouses it is used as the main crop, and onions as an additional one.
Carrots are most often grown in open ground. This vegetable is highly susceptible to its own toxins released during growth . It is recommended to re-grow it on the site only after 4-5 years.
Green manure is used to improve soil health . The pattern of alternating vegetables after carrots is as follows: in the first year - sowing green manure crops, in the second year - cabbage or cucumbers, in the third - green manure again, in the fourth - onions.
The note! Green manures include mustard, legumes, vetch, rapeseed, alfalfa, clover, lupine, oats, buckwheat, and radish. They contain large quantities of microelements important for plants (nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus), as well as proteins, sugars, and starch. When grown, their root system normalizes the soil structure.
What is best to plant after carrots next year?
Carrots greatly deplete the soil . It takes a lot of potassium and phosphorus from the ground: 4 times more than tomatoes, and 3 times more than cucumbers. Planting these vegetables with the addition of organic and mineral fertilizers will restore the balance of nutrients in the soil.
These plants also include:
- various varieties of pepper;
- cabbage, early radish, lettuce and mustard;
- legumes (beans, peas, beans);
- nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, physalis, sweet potatoes);
- artichokes ensuring good drainage.
It is advisable to plant vegetable crops that have a shallow root system and an “above-ground” yield.
What should not be planted?
Of course, you can’t plant carrots themselves.
They won't grow well:
- beet;
- melons (watermelons, pumpkins, squash, melons, zucchini);
- greens and herbs;
- celery, chard and spinach;
- onion and garlic.
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Is it possible to plant garlic and onions after carrots for the winter?
It is not advisable to sow onions and garlic after harvesting carrots . Root crops deplete the soil and the soil needs to be allowed to rest. The best option is green manure plants.
What is the best way to grow carrots?
Carrots are sensitive to soil components and fertilizers contained in it . It’s good if its predecessors are cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, and potatoes. Alternating with these vegetables helps preserve the quality of the soil and the necessary components for nutrition.
Suitable predecessors:
- nightshades (potatoes, tomatoes and physalis);
- pumpkin, cucumbers, zucchini, watermelons;
- cabbage, onion and garlic;
- spicy herbs (basil, tarragon);
- green herbs (spinach, chard);
- legumes (peas, beans, beans).
Bad predecessors for carrots
Undesirable plants include parsley, caraway, dill and celery. They have a lot in common: diseases, pests and nutrients consumed. It is not recommended to sow after sunflowers and eggplants.
After which it is not advisable to plant garlic
Carrots are one of the worst predecessors not only for winter garlic, but also for other crops, because the soil after it is greatly depleted. After this vegetable, it is better to give the soil a rest.
Garlic is also not planted after any type of onion, because they have common pests and diseases. In addition, onions consume potassium, and garlic also needs large amounts of this trace element. Other unsuitable antecedents:
- potato;
- salad;
- radish;
- beet;
- radish;
- turnip;
- swede.
What to plant nearby
When planning plantings in the garden, pay attention to the compatibility of different plants . They can either support each other or oppress each other.
An example of beneficial coexistence is carrots and onions. Both plants are often affected by onion and carrot flies, respectively. The carrot fly cannot tolerate the smell of onions, and the onion fly cannot tolerate the smell of carrots. Therefore, by planting vegetables in one bed, you can grow an excellent harvest of both. Instead of onions, you can plant garlic.
Important! Be sure to grow onions and carrots side by side.
They get along well with carrots:
- legumes (peas, beans) make the soil loose and enrich it with nitrogen;
- lettuce – it helps retain moisture;
- spinach, tomatoes, radishes, cabbage, radishes, beets;
- various herbs.
Unfavorable neighborhood
You cannot grow cabbage, cucumbers and fennel nearby, as well as dill, celery and other umbelliferous plants - they attract common pests.
Important! Carrots don't like being around weeds. Plant in a weed-free area.
Is it possible to plant carrots with garlic?
The experience of gardeners who regularly plant carrots and garlic next to each other proves that this is a very successful “neighborhood”. They form a kind of “symbiosis”.
Many pests cannot tolerate the specific garlic “aroma”. This category also includes the carrot fly, which is the most dangerous for carrots, “responsible” for rotting root crops from the inside and the appearance of a bitter taste. If you plant cloves and “bulbs” nearby, its attacks on carrot beds are excluded.
Important! Also, garlic, which is planted “neighborhood” with carrots, effectively protects it from attacks by aphids and psyllids.
The harvest volume of both crops, if planted side by side, increases noticeably, the quality of the heads and roots improves
The risk of developing fungal diseases is also minimized. Gardeners note that root crops next to which garlic is planted are extremely rarely infected with late blight. And this fungus is very dangerous for agricultural crops. The disease develops extremely quickly, making it almost impossible to fight the pathogen.
Carrots, which are planted next to garlic, also have a positive effect on it:
- larger heads with very juicy cloves are formed;
- its taste improves;
- the heads are stored longer without losing their “presentation” and consumer qualities;
- the leaves do not wither or turn yellow and retain their juiciness.
If the gardener does not plant garlic next to carrots, he can use an infusion of its “arrow” to protect the root crops during the season. They are usually plucked anyway so that they do not take away nutrients from the ripening heads.
Approximately 200 g of finely chopped greens are poured with a liter of boiling water and left for 2-3 days. Before use, filter the liquid, add clean water, and bring the total volume to 5 liters. During the active growing season, the beds are sprayed every 7-12 days (the frequency of treatments depends on the frequency and intensity of precipitation).
By cutting off the shoots of garlic, the gardener “redirects” nutrients to the heads
Advice from experienced gardeners
Based on classical techniques, many experienced gardeners give useful recommendations :
- In the beds after the carrots, it is good to plant strawberry and wild strawberry bushes.
- To protect against carrot flies, it is advisable to plant calendula or marigolds along the perimeter of the bed, and use alternating rows of onions and carrots.
- Experienced vegetable growers advise planting carrots after beans.
- It is recommended to exclude salad as a precursor due to the same diseases.
- A good neighbor is the leek.
- You can’t sow the root crop after sweet pepper; the taste may change.
- You can grow beets next to carrots; they protect against diseases.
- Carrot beds should not be placed next to an apple tree; the taste of both plants will deteriorate.
- The root crop does not grow well in soil saturated with manure; it is better to plant potatoes, cabbage, and cucumbers in such beds. And next year - carrots.
- If parsley grew on the site, then it is strictly forbidden to plant carrots in this place. When there is no other area, dig up the soil and treat it with potassium permanganate.
- Perennial berry bushes can be planted in carrot beds.
Good and bad neighbors for garlic
It is important not only to choose suitable predecessors, but also good neighbors in the bed, next to which the spice plant will grow comfortably.
It is recommended to plant garlic next to the following plants: strawberries, beets, tomatoes, carrots, cucumbers . It has a beneficial effect on these crops, because it repels aphids , carrot flies , and mole crickets . In addition, proximity to calendula, chicory, and horseradish is beneficial .
Despite the fact that garlic is a very good and useful neighbor in the garden, not all vegetables and plants will like its company. The proximity of garlic to the following crops is undesirable: parsnips, peas, beans, lentils.
Note! If you are interested in other useful and detailed information about this spicy plant, then you can read it in the following articles: planting winter garlic in the fall , features of feeding and fertilizing , spring planting , harvest dates , as well as features and methods of storage in winter .
Maintaining crop rotation in your garden or summer cottage is not a difficult task. If you have a large plot and it is difficult to remember the location of different crops, you can take notes on paper or electronic media. Thanks to a completely justified rotation of crops, you will be able to maintain optimal soil condition and grow all the necessary vegetables, including winter garlic.
Correct crop rotation
Different types of plants are planted on the same land, alternating them every three to four years. Each crop creates the most convenient conditions for the one that will be planted behind it. Two seasons in a row are not sown on one plot:
- closely related crops, varieties of the same species, and also belonging to the same family of crops;
- plants that suffer from similar diseases and are also affected by the same pests;
- garden crops that require the creation of special conditions significantly different from those created for the previous species.
Using these recommendations correctly is very simple. True, you will have to remember a little about school botany or turn to reference books.
Carrots belong to the family of umbelliferous plants and belong to the order Umbellaceae. Thus, it is impossible to sow in one place from year to year those plants that bloom with umbrellas. This means that, in addition to carrots, it is not allowed to plant coriander, anise, caraway, celery, fennel, parsnips and similar plants before or after them.
It is also undesirable to plant after the carrots the next year those plants that need the same nutrients that the carrots absorbed. For example, winter garlic will not grow well enough after the carrot harvest obtained in this place.
When planting carrots on a plot, following the rules of crop rotation, they can be sown after onions, as they repel many pests and do not deplete the soil.
After what crops, besides onions, can carrots be sown:
- after cruciferous vegetables (for example, after cabbage);
- after green cucumbers (not related to umbelliferous ones);
- after nightshades (tomatoes, eggplants, potatoes); after beets;
- and finally, after legumes (they enrich the soil with nitrogen).
The ideal crop rotation, in which carrots will feel in their place, lasts 5 years and is called five-field.
Potatoes are planted in one bed, cabbage in the next; let the third bed be given to onions, garlic, tomatoes or melons; the fourth will contain carrots, beets and parsley, and the fifth will contain legumes. Then these plants move in a circle: the second bed will be the first, and the first will be the last. Thus they move from year to year in a circle. You should avoid planting cucumbers and potatoes, pumpkins and tomatoes, cabbage and tomatoes, legumes and onions next to each other, as they inhibit each other.
What to plant after carrots?
Root crops noticeably deplete the soil. Therefore, next year, after carrots, it is best to plant crops that do not really need fertile soil or those whose roots lie shallow. Suitable for planting in one bed (or several, depending on the size of the plot) are “lovers” of a substantial amount of organic fertilizers.
Carrots are a good precursor for:
- all representatives of the nightshade family - potatoes (sweet potatoes grow especially well), tomatoes, a variety of peppers, eggplants;
- cabbage, mustard salad, which will help the soil to rest;
- all kinds of legumes - different varieties of beans, beans, peas;
- Despite the root-bearing nature, it is possible to grow radishes that do not have time to deplete the soil in the short period of their ripening.
In areas where carrots grew, you can plant a perennial berry garden; strawberries and wild strawberries do well here.
An excellent option for restoring land after carrots is sowing green manure. Mustard, rye, oats or phacelia structure the soil, disinfect, and suppress the development of weeds.
What can't be planted after carrots?
The list of crops is not very large, but it is worth taking into account. The idea of planting:
- Melon crops - squash, pumpkin, zucchini.
- Umbrella greens - cumin, dill, parsley, celery, etc.
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Planting garlic and onions is possible, but not advisable. If the soil is infested with pests, they can disinfect it. But then they are planted not in anticipation of a good harvest, but precisely for the purpose of disinfection.
In addition to rotating different crops, regular application of fertilizers is also necessary to avoid depletion of soil resources. By adhering to these simple rules, you can collect excellent harvests from your plot every year.
Even novice gardeners know that a good harvest is ensured not only by following the rules of planting and caring for the crop, but also by reasonable alternation of planting plants on the site.
After what crops should garlic not be planted?
Make a schedule for planting vegetables in the fall in advance so that the plants listed below do not grow in the beds in front of the garlic.
Bad predecessors are greens (for example, parsley, celery), parsnips, carrots, radishes.
Do not plant garlic cloves in the fall where herbs were grown.
IMPORTANT! To protect plants from nematodes, do not plant cloves after potatoes, sugar beets and rapeseed.
Experienced summer residents have noticed that representatives of the bulbous family grow very poorly in one area. Therefore, do not plant where different varieties of onions were sitting (shallots, chives, leeks, batun, etc.).
Of the flowering plants, bad predecessors for planting in autumn are narcissus and carnation.
A few words about crop rotation
Alternating plants in the beds is crop rotation. It is valuable because
- reduces soil contamination by weeds, diseases and pests;
- improves soil structure;
- provides subsequent crops with the necessary nutrients.
The main conditions for proper crop rotation are annuality and alternation of crops from different families. This means that one crop is not planted in the same place for two or more years in a row, and the selection of subsequent plants for planting is made taking into account the following features:
- after growing plants with deep roots, crops with a shallow root system are planted;
- take into account the susceptibility to diseases and pests. After plants susceptible to certain infections and insects, you should always plant vegetables that are resistant to their influence;
- nutrient requirements of predecessors and successors.
Correct rotation of crops in the garden is one of the conditions for a rich and healthy harvest.
What crops can be planted with?
Let's take a look at the compatibility of garlic with other vegetable crops in the garden. Thanks to the significant concentration of biologically active elements, garlic plays the role of a natural fungicide in the garden, successfully coping with various fungal infections. In addition, the phytoncides secreted by the plant are ready to inhibit the growth of pathogenic microorganisms. These outstanding qualities have a great influence on garlic’s neighbors, helping them to be strong and strong.
For example, planting potatoes surrounded by garlic shoots suffers less from late blight.
A few garlic cloves, which are planted between the strawberry bushes in the fall, can repel insect pests from the future fragrant harvest.
A bed of garlic next to carrots will help rid the latter of the invasion of carrot flies and psyllids.
Garlic is also a good companion for other vegetables and herbs: onions, cucumbers, tomatoes, parsley and all types of salads. Its cloves are planted directly between the plants.
Berries and flowers also adore garlic as a protector and helper. More grateful “partners” will be raspberries and currants, as well as roses, gladioli and tulips.
Expert opinion
Filatov Ivan Yurievich, private farmer for more than 30 years
What can you plant after garlic next year?
- Instead of winter crops, you can plant spinach, dill, lettuce, and arugula. It is a good idea to sow with green manure for a while to ensure good soil for the next sowing.
- In place of the spring crop : cucumbers, tomatoes, beets and potatoes, as well as everyone’s favorite beetroot and no less beloved legumes.
What to plant after carrots
Carrots have a taproot, deep root system. The vegetable gives an excellent harvest if planted after zucchini, potatoes, cabbage and cucumbers. Carrots require a lot of nutrients, so the soil after the red root crop is noticeably depleted. Taking these features into account, for planting next year it is best to choose crops with ground fruits, a shallow root system, that do not particularly need fertile soil, or that respond favorably to thorough fertilizing.
They feel good in the beds after growing carrots
- representatives of the nightshade family - potatoes, including sweet potatoes, tomatoes, various peppers and eggplants, physalis;
- cruciferous crops - cabbage, mustard, lettuce, quickly ripening radishes;
- various varieties of beans, beans, peas;
- dessert vegetables - artichokes and cardoons;
- perennial berries, such as garden strawberries and wild strawberries.
You can restore the soil after harvesting carrots, disinfect it and suppress the development of weeds by sowing green manure: mustard, rye, oats.
Photo gallery: healthy green manure
What you shouldn't plant in place of carrots
The list of crops for which carrots are an undesirable precursor is small, but you should know them so as not to be disappointed in the harvest. Carrots will create unfavorable conditions and will not leave the necessary nutrients in the soil for:
- melons - squash, zucchini, pumpkin;
- umbrella greens - parsley, celery, caraway, dill;
- cucumbers
Onions and garlic are good neighbors for carrots, they disinfect the soil and protect each other from pests, but you most likely will not get a good onion and garlic harvest in the garden after carrots
Experienced gardeners advise making it a rule to draw up and save annual planting plans for your plot. This will allow you to trace what grew where several years ago and plan the planting of favorable crops.
Planting carrots and garlic in the same bed
You can plant carrots very close to garlic, in the same bed. This not only allows you to “compact” the crops, saving space in the garden, but is also beneficial for them. They do not “compete” with each other: the first “pulls” nutrients from the surface layers of the soil, the second – from the deep layers.
Carrots and garlic are planted in one bed either in separate rows, alternating them, or in a “mixed” way, using the cloves as “markers” to mark the location of the rows of seeds. You can also create a “protective barrier” if you “surround” the bed with root vegetables around the perimeter.
Joint planting is not only a space saver, but in many cases “mutual benefit” for crops
It is relatively rare for gardeners to plant crops together before winter. However, this method allows you to harvest a large harvest of both roots and heads.
The bed is pre-prepared by clearing plant debris, digging and fertilizing. The rate of humus and complex “autumn” mineral or organomineral fertilizer, containing mainly phosphorus and potassium with a minimum of nitrogen, is increased by 1.5 times compared to spring preparation.
Seeds and cloves or “bulbs” are planted during the last ten days of September and the first half of October. The specific period is determined based on the characteristics of the local climate. It is necessary that over the next 3-4 weeks the night temperature does not fall below 5-7 °C.
With this method, they are planted, alternating crops, maintaining a row spacing of 15-20 cm. About 20 cm is left between adjacent cloves to subsequently avoid shading and “crowding” in the garden bed.
Garlic sprouts much earlier than carrots, almost immediately after the snow melts. As soon as greenery appears, the bed is covered with plastic film or black covering material until the beginning of May. After waiting for the carrots to sprout, they remove it.
During the season, to “synchronize” crop growth, garlic leaves are periodically trimmed, shortening them by about a third. This procedure is also useful because it promotes the release of essential oils and phytoncides, which repel harmful insects and are destructive to pathogenic microflora.
The carrots and garlic, which are planted before winter in this way, are harvested at the same time, in the first half of September. Periodic pruning of leaves allows you to “delay” the ripening of winter heads, which are usually dug up already in July.
In winter garlic, if planted in the fall together with carrots, the heads noticeably increase in size and their keeping quality improves
Important! About the same effect as garlic, but much less pronounced, is provided by onions, which are planted next to carrots. It is also useful for him.