Crop Rotation Planner
3 or 4-year rotation schedule for vegetable garden beds. Assign families per bed, the planner shifts each family forward one bed per year and flags bed-cycle fit, family uniqueness, and heavy-feeder load.
Pair with the Seed Starting Calendar for indoor-start timing, the Vegetable Garden Area Planner for total bed sizing, and the Raised Bed Soil Calculator for fill estimates.
Build your rotation schedule
Enter the number of garden beds, assign a crop family to each, and choose your rotation cycle length.
Crop family guide
- Brassicas (Crucifers): Cabbage, broccoli, kale, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, radish, turnip. Heavy nitrogen users; prone to clubroot and cabbage worms.
- Solanums (Nightshades): Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, potatoes. Susceptible to blight, verticillium wilt, and nematodes, never follow each other.
- Legumes: Beans, peas, lentils. Fix atmospheric nitrogen into the soil, excellent precursor for heavy feeders like brassicas.
- Alliums: Onions, garlic, leeks, shallots. Repel many pests; do not follow each other due to white rot risk.
- Cucurbits: Cucumbers, squash, zucchini, melons, pumpkins. Heavy feeders; follow legumes for best results.
- Root vegetables: Carrots, beets, parsnips, celery. Light feeders; break up compaction and improve soil structure.
How to use this planner
Set the number of beds or zones in your garden, then assign a crop family to each bed for Year 1 (this year). The planner will automatically generate the full rotation schedule, shifting each family forward one bed each year. If you have more beds than crop families, the remaining beds are suggested as cover crops or rest beds.
Classic 4-year rotation order
- Year 1, Legumes: Fix nitrogen, improve soil structure
- Year 2, Brassicas: Use the nitrogen fixed by legumes
- Year 3, Root vegetables: Light feeders, break up soil
- Year 4, Solanums / Cucurbits: Heavy feeders benefit from rested, amended soil
FAQ
Why is crop rotation important?
Planting the same crop family in the same bed year after year allows soil-borne diseases and pests specific to that plant family to build up to damaging levels. Rotation breaks this cycle. It also prevents nutrient depletion, heavy-feeding crops exhaust specific nutrients, while legumes replenish nitrogen. Even a simple 3-year rotation dramatically reduces common problems like tomato blight, clubroot in brassicas, and allium white rot.
What if I don't have enough beds for a full rotation?
You can do a 3-year rotation with just 3 beds, or combine smaller beds into zones. The key rule is: never plant the same family in the same spot two years in a row. Even a 2-bed rotation (alternating legumes with everything else) provides some benefit over no rotation at all.
Do I need to rotate annual herbs too?
Most culinary herbs (basil, parsley, dill, cilantro) are annuals and benefit from rotation, particularly if you've had fungal issues. Perennial herbs (rosemary, thyme, oregano, mint) stay in one place by nature and are excluded from standard rotation planning.
Can I rotate crops within a raised bed?
Yes, divide raised beds into sections and rotate within sections if you only have 1–2 beds total. This isn't as effective as moving to completely separate soil, but it's better than nothing. In very small gardens, focusing on disease-resistant varieties and adding fresh compost annually compensates somewhat for limited rotation options.
What should I plant in a rest/cover crop bed?
Cover crops like winter rye, buckwheat, crimson clover, or Austrian winter peas are excellent for rest beds. They prevent erosion, suppress weeds, and add organic matter when tilled in. Clover and vetch fix nitrogen. In small gardens, a simple mulched rest bed (straw or wood chips) still improves soil structure and suppresses weeds without planting anything.