Kitchen Garden Forum

Hello Lurganspade

I was brought up on the Norfolk Four Course and the advantages of a rotation are numerous but one has to be realistic or as Johnboy says ‘pragmatic’.

Naturally it is better to rotate than to grow the same crops in the same ground year upon year. However in the Jersey case a commercial decision has to be made and the topography, climate and soil favours the growing of early potatoes for the best prices on the south facing slopes and rotation is not carried out for the reasons previously written about in the earlier postings. Also in a small garden/allotment situation one can not always correctly rotate due to timings of sowings/harvestings and the small area of ground involved.

All one can do is try to rotate. I have often grown new potatoes on the same ground two years running with no ill effects but I try not to. In my view there are no hard and fast rules in gardening only what can be described as best practice and to rotate is best practice.

All the best

Barney

So Barney, we are not that different from our climate in Jersey, why in Somerset do we wait a month? My plot is fairly but has good southerly perspective, allowing the sun on it all day in most parts.. I might try a few international kidneys at the back of my large cold frame now, the back height is two foot, rocket did very well in there last year for those first few special early earlies..what do you thinnk? They are warmed by the gulf stream as in Cornwall me thinks might be one of the reasons??

Compo

Well Compo, I think Somerset is quite different to the Channel Islands regarding winter temperatures and the likelyhood of late frosts. Jersey is hundreds of miles south of us whilst you only have to drive up to the midlands to notice they are a couple of weeks behind us in the South West.

Still nothing ventured nothing gained, its not that your livelilhood depends on a few potato plants but personally I think it is far too early. I think that if it was dependable and productive then the local commercial growers would be doing it instead of the Jersey growers. I don't think the cornish growers would consider planting yet.

If you do plant, then best of luck and let us know how you get on.

Barney

Hmmmm well according to my calculations the isles are about a hundred miles south of here, reading some research on the web there is an average mean monthl temperature difference of about 1 - 1.5c between Jersey and the South west of UK (in favour of the CI's) mainly due to prevelance of the air and gulf stream warming the coast of the channel isles, I might give mine a go in the cold frame....

Compo