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Rachel- Coconut coir is a readily renewable, pH-neutral, non-hydrophobic soil amendment that aerates, improves water retention, and is more environmentally friendly than peat moss.

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Yes! It has good fluids and natural plants inside it, and helps plants grow healthier and stronger. Also, it gives them a good boost or nitrogen. Just don't give plants too much, or else the overload of nitrogen can kill them. -Tali

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The No-dig method is better for the environment and planting because it keeps the carbon in the soil and keeps the unwanted plants to stop growing.

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Adding blood meal to garden soil will help raise the level of nitrogen and will help plants to grow more lush and green.

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Adding carbonated water helps plants because the water has nutrients that the plant can easily absorb in it's roots.

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Soil Enhancer. As urine isn’t merely rich in nitrogen, but also phosphorous and potassium, it replenishes soil that has had its minerals depleted by over-farming. The time the pee water should pour in the garden is later autumn, and by springtime, that soil will be loaded with nutrients that will plump up your parsnips and coddle your cabbages.

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Eggshells can benefit plants in the following ways: Eggshells lower soil acidity. Many types of plants prefer low acidity in the soil to absorb nutrients and ward off toxic elements like aluminum. The calcium carbonate in eggshells lowers soil pH levels, making the soil more alkaline than acidic.

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Plant the ceed outside then it will grow better.

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yago-Sweating in plants is caused by transpiration, which is the movement of water through the plant to the leaves. Plant sweat or guttation is the secretion of water droplets from the pores of the leaves and is used as a cooling mechanism. When the water evaporates from the leaves, heat is removed providing a cooling effect.

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Why Do Plants Sweat? Here’s why and what you can do

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The water drops on the plants leaves in the morning are not always dewdrops. Some water drops are the result of plant sweating. Similar to humans, plants also sweat for …

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making crops is a risky process, it can win or fail. If you notice your getting healthy, strong plants in one specific spot every time, then you'll want to keep using that one spot. This is called crop rotation, it requires much less soil based on the size of the area of the crop rotation soil section. Its a great way to save soil!

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yago-Essential oils can be used to help plants in several different ways. For example, certain oils and oil blends can be used as natural insecticides and pesticides, protecting the plants from harmful insects, snails, slugs, and other vermin that could wreak havoc on your plants, herbs, flowers, fruits and veggies, or garden patch.

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We probably don't need to remind you what a plant is, but just in case you need a refresher: Plants are living things that grow in the water or on land.

They can survive in nearly every type of climate here on Earth, from dry, arid deserts to tropical rainforests to bustling modern-day cities. There are over 300,000 different types of plant species around the world (with more likely to be discovered).

Plants can be divided into two general groups: flowering plants and non-flowering plants. Flowering plants include most types of trees and flowers like orchids and roses. Non-flowering plants include mosses and ferns.

All plants make their own food through a process called photosynthesis, where they take in the energy from the sunlight and convert it into their food source.
Houseplants are becoming increasingly more popular as people of all ages and backgrounds want to enjoy a sense of greenery in their homes, start a new hobby, learn to care for something outside of themselves, purify their home's air, and grow their own food.
However, some people (especially first-time plant owners) may need some guidance when learning to care for their plants. And in this post, we'll give you the ins-and-outs of using essential oils to care for your plants.

( Check out the health benefits of sourwood honey - in a new tab.)

Do Essential Oils Help Plants?

Given that essential oils have proven so beneficial to us as humans, you may be wondering if our fellow green friends can experience benefits from essential oils as well.
The good news is that, yes, essential oils can be used on plants, and they do have benefits.
What Essential Oils Do For Plants
Essential oils can be used to help plants in several different ways.
For example, certain oils and oil blends can be used as natural insecticides and pesticides, protecting the plants from harmful insects, snails, slugs, and other vermin that could wreak havoc on your plants, herbs, flowers, fruits and veggies, or garden patch.

What Essential Oils Don't Do For Plants
Though essential oils are incredibly helpful for naturally protecting your plants, they do not provide nutritional value to the plants in the same way that a plant food would.
Are Essential Oils Safe For Plants?

Essential oils are completely safe for plants, people, and the environment alike.
Essential oils make a fantastic alternative to chemical-filled pesticides and insecticides on the market that are not only harmful to your health, but leech into the soil affecting the groundwater and have lasting environmental effects.

To prevent your plant leaves from burning (due to the interaction between the sun and the essential oil), do not spray in harsh, direct sunlight. For best results, spray in the early morning or evening.

Best Essential Oils For Indoor Plants

Indoor plants differ from garden plants in their environment and what they need. You can use essential oils for indoor plants to keep pests away and clean the plant's leaves.

Thieves essential oil is a popular blend of oils that plant owners use to clean the dust off their plants' leaves, protect against the development of mold, and keep pests away. This oil is a mixture of clove, lemon, cinnamon, eucalyptus, and rosemary.

It can be bought pre-made, or you can make your own by combining 40 drops of clove, 35 drops of lemon, 20 drops of cinnamon, 15 drops of eucalyptus, and ten drops of rosemary.

How to Use: Fill a small spray bottle with distilled water and add enough thieves oil to slightly color the water. Spray directly onto leaves and wipe clean with a microfiber towel.
Thyme essential oil is a wonderful insect repellent as it contains insect-fighting substances known as monoterpenes. These compounds make thyme an especially effective oil to use against house flies and insects.
How to Use: To create an insect-repelling thyme spray, mix 1 part thyme essential oil with ten parts witch hazel, and spray on plants or insects directly.
Rosemary essential oil is a great fly, flea, mosquito, and cat repellent that can be used both indoors and outdoors.
How to use: Dilute 20 drops of rosemary with every 100 milliliters of distilled water and spray directly on plants.

Best Essential Oils For Plant Pests

Perhaps the best use of essential oils for plants is their ability to deter insects, snails, slugs, and other vermin away from your plants.
The strong scent and compounds within essential oils work by interfering with the insect's neurotransmitters, so they stay far away. And larger critters really don't like the smells.

Citronella
Citronella is an oil that derives from the leaves and stems of lemongrass (thus, lemongrass is also an effective insect repellent).
It is the most popular and well-studied plant-based insect repellent that works by masking scents that are attractive to bugs.

How to Use: Combine equal parts distilled water and witch hazel.Dilute ten drops of citronella with every 100 milliliters of solution and spray directly on plants or nearby insects.

Eucalyptus
Like Citronella, Eucalyptus has a strong, disruptive scent that insects such as ticks, mosquitos, and midges stay away from.
How to Use: Combine equal parts distilled water and witch hazel.Dilute 20 drops of Eucalyptus with every 100 milliliters of solution and spray directly on plants or nearby insects.

Peppermint
The fresh menthol scent of peppermint keeps critters like spiders, fleas, flies, lice, and ants far away. Peppermint can also be used to keep vermin (aka rats, mice, and squirrels) away from your outdoor plants and garden. How to Use:

1. Combine equal parts distilled water and witch hazel.

2. Dilute 20 drops of peppermint with every 100 milliliters of solution and spray directly on plants or nearby insects.

3. For vermin control, place a few drops of undiluted peppermint oil on a cotton ball and place it near your plants or on the perimeter of your garden.

Pine is a great all-around oil for protecting your garden from fleas, ticks, slugs, and snails.
How to Use: Pine can be used on its own or combined with other oils like cedarwood, garlic, and hyssop to create a snail and slug repellent.

Dilute one teaspoon of pine essential oil (or essential oil blend) with 32 ounces of distilled water and spray directly on plants.

Lavender is known to repel moths, ants, and other soft-bellied insects due to its strong scent. Even in its natural state, insects don't like to hang around lavender.

How to Use: Combine equal parts distilled water and witch hazel.Dilute 20 drops of lavender with every 100 milliliters of solution and spray directly on plants or nearby insects. For indoor plants, lavender can also be diffused nearby.

Due to its strong scent and natural antibacterial properties, tea tree is a great preventative essential oil that can keep harmful, parasitic insects such as fleas and ticks away. Tea tree oil can also be used to keep annoying flies away.

How to Use: Dilute 25 drops of rosemary with four ounces of distilled water and spray directly on plants.
While cinnamon essential oil may not be the best oil for deterring insects (though it is great for mosquitoes, mosquito eggs, and dust mites), it is fantastic at getting rid of weeds.
Research has shown cinnamon to have a high inhibition effect on seed germination of some of the most common weed species, such as pigweed and ryegrass.
How to Use:

1. Fill a small spray bottle with distilled white vinegar and a squirt of castile or natural dish soap.

2. Add 20 drops of cinnamon to the mixture.

3. Shake and then spray directly onto weeds.

Best Essential Oils For Plant Fungus

According to research conducted by Michigan State University, about 85% of all plant diseases are caused by fungal or fungal-like organisms.
Some symptoms of plant fungal disease can look like powdery mildew on the leaves, yellowing or rusting of the leaves, or certain brow spots on the leaves.

These fungal invasions can negatively affect the growth and lifespan of your plant, as the fungi can kill the plant cells, prohibit proper breathing, and steal nutrients from the plant.
Tea tree oil is one of the most widely used oils when it comes to treating fungal plant infections due to its antibacterial, antimicrobial, and antifungal properties.
How to Use: Combine 25 drops of tea tree oil with four ounces of distilled water. Spray directly onto plants and soil. Remember, leaves can be sensitive to this oil, so don't over apply and avoid spraying in direct sunlight.

Best Essential Oils For Plant Growth

While essential oils cannot substitute plant food for promoting growth, plants and essential oils can work cohesively together as garden companions.
These specific pairings aid in the plant's growth as the essential oils are often the extracted oils from the plant companions that like to grow near one another for nourishment and support.

Apples - Lavender

Asparagus - Basil

Grapes - Hyssop, Lavender

Green Beans - Basil, Lavender

Broccoli - Basil, Thyme, Rosemary

Cabbage - Clary Sage, Peppermint, Rosemary, Thyme

Carrots - Sage

Cauliflower - Rosemary, Sage

Cucumbers - Sage

Leeks - Celery, Hyssop

Lettuce - Carrot

Onion - Chamomile

Peas - Geranium

Peppers - Basil

Potatoes - Basil, Sage

Radishes - Radishes

Tomatoes - Basil

Best Essential Oils For Promoting Pollination

Essential oils can also be used to attract insects that help your plants and garden-think bees and butterflies-which will encourage and speed up pollination.
According to research, these oil compounds use chemical attractants to draw in specific pollinators.

Floral, herbal scents that are reminiscent of their original plant put off an attractive fragrance for pollinators. Some of these essential oils include:

How to Use: Combine 20 drops of one of these oils or a blend with four ounces of distilled water. Spray directly onto plants and soil.

Remember, leaves can be sensitive to too much oil, so don't over apply and avoid spraying in direct sunlight. You can also place a few drops of oil onto a cotton ball and place it near the plant to attract pollinators.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I Use Essential Oils on My Plants?

Yes. It is totally safe to use essential oils on your plants to protect them from mold, fungus, pests. Essential oils can also be diluted with water to clean dusty leaves.

Though your plants can benefit from essential oils, you should never use them neat as these highly concentrated compounds could cause damage if not properly diluted.

What Are The Best Essential Oils For Plants?

In general, the best essential oils for plants are those that keep pests away, such as tea tree, rosemary, peppermint, and thieves.

At the same time, other oils such as lavender and orange are excellent for attracting beneficial pollinators and deterring away other bugs.

Cinnamon and clove essential oil can also be used to repel harmful insects and prevent weeds from growing in and around your plants.

What Are The Best Essential Oils For Dying Plants?

While essential oils aren't proven to help bring dying plants back to life, a few can be beneficial to use in times of need.

A blend of lemongrass, geranium, and frankincense oil may assist with plant growth and rejuvenation, especially in earlier stages. While oils like tea tree and thieves can ward off damaging fungal infections.

Are Essential Oils Harmful To Plants?

These natural, plant-derived extracts will not cause harm to your plants (as long as they are diluted) and are a much safer alternative to pesticides. In fact, these compounds can keep harmful weeds and bugs away from your plants.

Are There Essential Oils You Should Avoid Using On Your Plants?

There are not any currently known essential oils that have proven to be harmful to plants and that you should avoid using. However, certain oils have more benefits than others when it comes to caring for your plants.

Is There Anything I Should Know Before Using Essential Oils on My Plants?

Before experimenting with essential oils on your plants, the most important thing to know is that you should never put essential oils directly onto your plants.

Using an essential oil undiluted and straight off the bottle can be extremely damaging to the plant.

Unless you are only placing the oil onto a cotton ball or piece of cloth surrounding your plants, you should always dilute the essential oil with water before using it.

What Essential Oils Kill Bugs on Plants?

There are several essential oils that act as powerful insecticides. Some of these essential oils include thyme, rosemary, clove, peppermint, lemongrass, pine, thieves, and more.

How Do I Use Essential Oils in My Garden?

There are several ways to use essential oils in your garden. Perhaps the easiest and most popular way is to create a homemade essential oil spray by diluting the oil or oils with water or other ingredients like witch hazel and castile soap.

You can then spray the mixture onto plants and soil. To keep pests away from plants, you can also add a few drops of essential oil onto a cotton ball and place it around the perimeter of your garden or onto the soil of your plants.

What Essential Oil Is Best For Insect Repellent?

There are several types of essential oils that, due to their strong scent and insect-repelling compounds, are great at keeping the bugs away. Oils such as tea tree, citronella, lemongrass, lavender, peppermint, and eucalyptus are just a few.

Does Lemon Scent Repel Bugs?

While lemon essential oil isn't known to be one of the best scents for repelling bugs, lemon eucalyptus oil has proven to be a highly effective mosquito repellent that can also repel bugs such as gnats, ants, moths, spiders, ticks, flies, fruit flies, and more.

Can Diffusing Essential Oils Kill Plants?

No, diffusing essential oils will not kill your plants as the diffusers do not put enough concentrated particles into the air to cause harm or affect your plants directly. Diffusing certain oils near your plants may actually be beneficial to them.

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11+ Essential Oils For Plants: Growth, Protection, Pests & More

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We probably don't need to remind you what a plant is, but just in case you need a refresher: Plants are living things that grow in the water or on land. They can survive in nearly every type of climate here on Earth, from dry, arid deserts to tropical rainforests to bustling modern-day cities.

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poor water on it every day;)

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yago-Fingernails are good for plants because they contain keratin which is a naturally occurring protein. They also contain small amounts of calcium and phosphorus beneficial to the plants.

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We all know that organic waste is good for plants. Nothing beats organic compost when it comes to improving soil quality and plant health. But that had me thinking. Are fingernails good for plants?
Fingernails are good for plants because they contain keratin which is a naturally occurring protein. They also contain small amounts of calcium and phosphorus beneficial to the plants. But they will take a very long time to decompose in the soil compared to other organic material.
I wanted to see how small forms of human waste would affect plants. I found out some surprising information during my research.

Check out the best pruners on Amazon.com that can help keep your plants in good shape.

Are Nail Clippings Good for Plants?

Fingernails can benefit your plants. However, it's not going to have a huge impact on them like other fertilizers will.

Like everything in the body, fingernails are biodegradable.

Nail clippings are keratin. Keratin is a fibrous protein that's also found in your hair and skin.

Because it's a naturally occurring protein, nail clippings will break down in the soil. Microorganisms can consume the nails and turn them into usable nutrients.

Nails in Compost

The best way to utilize nail clippings is in a compost pile.

In your compost pile, the nails will go through the decomposition process like other organic materials. Tiny microorganisms, bacteria, and other lifeforms will feed on the nails. When those lifeforms produce waste, your nails become carbon dioxide and ammonia.

As long as your nails are free of nail polish when you toss them in, they should break down all the same.

Nails as Fertilizer

In theory, nails could benefit the soil directly. They contain a slew of beneficial minerals and nutrients.

In addition to keratin, your nails have phosphorus. They also have small calcium deposits. Both of those nutrients are essential in fertilizers.

All that said, nail clippings only have trace amounts of those nutrients. They're not going to do much to amend your soil in any way.

Large amounts of nails could improve soil tilth. Mixing the nails up with soil can improve overall aeration and drainage. But, nails won't make any noticeable differences to soil quality. They're better off in the compost bin!

How Much Time Do Nail Clippings Take to Decompose in Soil?

Did you know that the part of the nail you see is already dead? Fingernails and toenails start underneath the skin. As new cells develop, they push dead cells up.

They're already starting to decompose before you even clip them!

That's a good thing because nails can take a very long time to decompose fully.

Most don't realize it, but human nails can remain intact for decades. Nails are often the last to go when a human body decomposes. They're part of the last stage of decomposition, called the dry stage.

If protected from the elements, nails have the potential to stay intact for thousands of years! Interestingly enough, DNA stays on the nails for several years after clipping.

When put in soil, nails will decompose faster. But, it still takes time.

In total, it usually takes about 40 years. That said, the process could happen faster in the right conditions. Even if the nails survive the appetite of microorganisms, it'll likely break apart into smaller pieces. You may not even be able to identify it after a few months! In a conducive environment, about 35 to 40 percent of the nitrogen in nails converts to nitrates in only 120 days.

It all depends on the decomposition environment.

Is Human Hair Good for Plants?

Human hair is another waste product that many of us just toss in the garbage bin. Instead of throwing your hair out, you can use it to benefit your plants!

Like fingernail clippings, hair consists of the tough protein keratin. Hair strands will feed microorganisms and decompose in the soil just the same.

While fingernail clippings offer very minute benefits, hair might have a bigger impact on your plants. Not only does hair take up more space, but it also has more beneficial minerals.

Hair in Compost

In the compost pile, hair is a rich source of nitrogen. It also has a high level of sulfur.

Both sulfur and nitrogen are important for plants. Nitrogen encourages growth. When hair strands break down in your compost pile, you can create a nitrogen-rich mix your plants will love.

Sulfur does a couple of things. First, it forms enzymes that are responsible for building plant proteins. Secondly, it can help lower the overall pH level of the soil.

Using compost with hair can amend a wide range of soil issues and create a better growing environment for plants.

Hair as Fertilizer

If you want to skip to compost, you can add human hair to the soil directly. It has a much bigger effect than nail clippings.

In the long-run, the hair will work to improve soil quality. In addition to sulfur and nitrogen, human hair is a great source of magnesium. Magnesium plays an important part in photosynthesis, so that added boost from hair will do your plant good.

Human hair can also change the physical properties of the soil. Mixing it into the soil before adding your plant will offer a few benefits. It acts as a slow-release fertilizer to provide those essential nutrients over time.

Plus, the individual strands can support growing root systems. It will make way for delicate roots to flourish and spread. The hair can even break up clumps and avoid soil compaction.

How Much Time Does Hair Take to Decompose in Soil?

While fingernail clippings sometimes take decades to fully decompose, that's not the case with hair.

Human hair takes, on average, about two years to break down.

This is still much longer than soft tissues and other organic materials. Human hair is capable of lasting a long time. The reason for this is because it resists Proteolysis. This is the process in which enzymes turn proteins into amino acids.

Hard keratins, such as those found in hair and nails, naturally resist the process to stay intact.

However, exposure to moist soil will speed things up a bit. You can also promote decomposition by increasing humidity and temperature.

If you add hair to your compost pile, spread it out thinly. Avoid tossing the hair in as clumps. Then, cover it with a tarp to build up heat.

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We all know that organic waste is good for plants. Nothing beats organic compost when it comes to improving soil quality and plant health. But that had me thinking. Are fingernails good for plants? Fingernails are good for plants because they contain keratin which is a naturally occurring protein.

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Adding organic matter really helps soil that is high in clay or sand.

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-Yongjin Cover crops contribute indirectly to overall soil fertility and health by catching nutrients before they can leach out of the soil profile or, in the case of legumes, by adding nitrogen to the soil. Their roots can even help unlock some nutrients in the soil, converting them to more available forms.

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By not planting the exact same vegetables in the exact same spot every year, you can avoid having pests and diseases continuously build up in the soil. If you move the crop, the pest or disease has no host on which to live. Ideally, rotate a vegetable (or vegetable family) so that it grows in a particular place once out of every 3 to 4 years.

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If you grow tomatoes or other crops in the same garden bed year after year, you're likely to notice an increase in pests and diseases. Break the cycle! Take a moment to learn about the basics of crop rotation. Your plants will thank you with a bigger, healthier harvest.

In the mad rush to get the garden planted in the spring, we forget all about something as important as crop rotation, which helps to slow the spread of garden pests and plant diseases. In the example of tomatoes, simply moving the tomato plants across the garden to where the squashes grew last year is enough to throw off those hornworms!

What Is Crop Rotation?

The concept of crop rotation is simple: It's the practice of not planting the same crops in the same place in back-to-back years. By not planting the exact same vegetables in the exact same spot every year, you can avoid having pests and diseases continuously build up in the soil. If you move the crop, the pest or disease has no host on which to live. Ideally, rotate a vegetable (or vegetable family) so that it grows in a particular place once out of every 3 to 4 years.

For example, if you planted tomatoes in the same garden bed year after year, they're more likely to be hit by the same pests or diseases that affected your tomato crop last year. So you'd want to plant them in a different bed in the following year. Then, in that first bed, you'd plant a different sort of crop such as carrots, broccoli, or chard. Finally, in the third year, you could plant tomatoes in their original spot again.

The purpose of crop rotation is not only to avoid pest problems, but to also consider the soil health and the nutrients that different plants need from the soil.

Photo by John Braid/Shutterstock

Crop Rotation Families

The key to successful crop rotation is "all in the family." Even though tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and potatoes look nothing alike, they are kissing cousins in the same botanical family, the nightshades (Solanaceae).

Here are the major family groupings:

1. Alliums: Onions, shallots, leeks, and garlic.

2. Legumes: Green beans, green peas, southern peas, peanuts, soybeans. All legumes are soil "fixers" and share the benefit of adding nitrogen back to the soil.

3. Brassicas: Broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, Brussels sprouts, turnip greens, radishes, collards, Chinese cabbage, mustard greens, and collards. Share pest issues and often need to be netted to block cabbage moths. Need nitrogen-rich soil. Plant after the legume (bean) family.

4. Nightshades: Tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, and potatoes. All heavy feeders which need rich soil. Affected by the same diseases. Never follow tomatoes after potatoes.

5. Umbellifers: Carrots, parsnips, fennel, parsley, and dill.

6. Cucurbits: Zucchini and summer quash, cukes, pumpkins and winter squash, melons (watermelon, cantaloupe), and gourds. All heavy feeders that grow best in rich soil.

There are many more families, but some have only one member that we would grow in a home vegetable garden, like corn, okra, or sweet potatoes. In a small garden, you can group some families together, like putting brassicas with legumes and lettuce to make rotations easier.

There are exceptions to crop rotation; perennial vegetables and herbs shouldn't be moved each year, since they stay in the ground year-round. For example, mint spreads easily and is often best contained to one bed, and asparagus needs to settle into a spot for several years before it's ready to be harvested.
Lessen Disease and Insect Problems
Members of each family often suffer from the same pests and diseases, so planting a variety of crops from different families is a good way to lessen (or slow down) pest and disease damage.

For example, soil-borne diseases can build up after years of growing the same plants in the same place. Crop rotation might not cure all of your disease problems, but it can make a dent. As for insects, moving crops around can make it harder for overwintering pests to find their first meal come springtime.
Get to the Root of Crop Rotation
Crop rotation also benefits the health of soil, structurally speaking. Plants with different root lengths benefit the soil by aerating it in different ways. Deeply rooted crops such as tomatoes, carrots, or beets break up the soil, creating channels for air and water as they seek out minerals in the subsoil, bringing them up closer to the surface where other plants can use them next year.
Alternate Heavy and Light Feeders
Another aspect of crop rotation is alternating "heavy" feeders (plants that use a lot of nutrients) with "light" feeders (plants that use less nutrients) in order to reduce nutrient demands on your soil.

Heavy feeders, including corn, lettuce, broccoli, tomatoes, and cukes, require a lot of nitrogen to produce their flowers, fruit, and leaves. Give their beds a rest by planting carrots, potatoes, beets, or onions, which don't need as much.

To add nitrogen naturally, plant legumes such as peas or beans, as they accumulate nitrogen-fixing bacteria on their roots. In the fall, don't pull these plants up; clip them off and let the roots decay in the soil. They will leave behind nitrogen that is accessible to next year's plants.

See our video demonstrating how to rotate your vegetables.

Planning Crop Rotation in Your Garden

Depending on the size of your garden, you can plan rotations that cover 3, 4, 5, 6 or more years, with 3 years being the minimum recommended.

As noted above, the best way to rotate annual vegetables is to group them by their plant family, since they are susceptible to the same pests and diseases and also have similar maintenance requirements. For instance, all plants in the cabbage family are best grown together, as this makes it easier to net them against cabbage moths and birds-and there's no risk of accidentally passing on crop-specific soil-dwelling pests and diseases to the next crop.

A handy way to set crop order is to give each plant family a shade relating to the colors of the rainbow, as shown below. Using this order of rotation is optional, but it helps to make sure that the soil is in the correct condition for the following crop. The numbers listed in the diagram tell you

Working from the inside of the rainbow out, you can see which plants belong together and which should come next in each bed. The rotation starts with lilacs and blues-onion family plants and peas/beans-which are commonly grown together as they both like soil enriched with compost and take up little space. Once you've harvested your onions and leeks from your first bed, the next crop in that spot would be cabbages, cauliflower and broccoli and so on, for the first seven categories.

Plants in the Miscellaneous (grey) category are useful for plugging gaps in your beds, as they don't tend to suffer badly from particular soil-borne pests and diseases, and can be fit in anywhere you have room, although it's still a good idea to move them around from year to year as much as possible (particularly sweet corn, which can suffer from rootworm).

Rotating small gardens can be more challenging, given lack of space, but it's still important. See our Four-Bed Crop Rotation Plan for Small Gardens.

Keeping a Record

Crop rotation is not as complicated as it sounds, but it can be hard to keep track of. Don't rely on memory alone, particularly if you are growing different amounts of a variety of crops!

Just roughly sketch your garden and write down what you have planted where and by plant family. (It can also be helpful to keep a list of the variety names.)

Even Easier: Online Tool!

This is where the online Garden Planner really shows its usefulness. Rather than having to remember a complete planning history of which vegetables were grown where over the past 3 to 5 years, and which family each vegetable belongs to, the tool just takes care of that for you.

Each plant icon is color-coded similar to the chart above so that you can quickly see at a glance which family it belongs to. When you plan a new season, it remembers what you have planted before and shows a red warning signal if you should avoid planting a vegetable in the area.

Try out the Vegetable Garden Planner (for PC & Mac). It's free for 7 days so you can understand its amazing benefits.

Bottom-line: The simplest rule is to grow your crops in different areas. Crop rotation is the best preventative medicine you can give to your garden!

A simple garden plan will be your best friend next year when it comes time to decide where those tomatoes should go.

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Crop Rotation 101: Tips for Vegetable Gardens

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If you grow tomatoes or other crops in the same garden bed year after year, you're likely to notice an increase in pests and diseases. Break the cycle! Take a moment to learn about the basics of crop rotation. Your plants will thank you with a bigger, healthier harvest.

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Adding coffee grounds to the soil can put those morning beans to good use! Coffee grounds add nutrients to the soil such as nitrogen!

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Organic mulches are made from dead plant material such as compost, leaves, bark or grass clippings. Inorganic mulches include rocks or gravel but they can also include plastic sheeting, landscape fabric and ‘rubber mulch’. Unlike organic mulches, inorganic mulches do not break down.

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Organic mulches are made from dead plant material such as compost, leaves, bark or grass clippings. Inorganic mulches include rocks or gravel but they can also include plastic sheeting, landscape fabric and ‘rubber mulch’. Unlike organic mulches, inorganic mulches do not break down.

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Find out about mulches and how to mulch, in our expert guide.