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Point Reyes

Hi,

I'm a newish grower and have a relatively constrained growing area. How critical is it to give the soil some rest? I get mixed feedback.

And if I can't rotate, how would I best prep the soil to reuse the same spot?

1/16/2022 10:15:55 PM

Syracuse, NY

Mind if I tag along? Whoops - too late, lol;
I know that I have had the same need for many (10+) years but never have, and this past year it was clear that I need to grow in the more-recent and less-used of my 5 differently-sized patches and amend/cover crop/enrich all of them as they have been probably a haven for soil-borne illnesses and such. Sorry for the hijack, but I hope the replies go on for a lonnnng time - eg

1/17/2022 1:05:32 AM

Grittyville, WA

I bet you could get a nice thick stand of mustard where you are. It has been used successfully as a biofumigant against certain pests. I dont know for sure what would work best for your area. I wonder if Eucalyptus mulch would have any benefits? Just a crazy idea. It will probably be difficult to grow successfully year after year... It shouldnt be impossible to grow year after year but it may reduce the weight you can achieve. With diseases or pests, your weights wont be quite as good, but even so, I think you could still grow a 500 lb pumpkin.
How much square footage do you have exactly? Without really good control of diseases and pests, I think 1600+ would be a struggle. But I dont really know, my personal best is just half that.

1/17/2022 1:31:52 AM

Springfield, VT

You can rotate the stump in the patch by swapping ends. It does allow for a short rest until roots hit the old area. Also it is possible to solarize that end until the plan reaches it. Don't forget that there are biological treatments like root shield and actinovate. There are also many fungicides to help. The biggest thing to do is remove all dead vines at the end of the season from the patch.

If you do have a chance mustard is good option if you can do it.

1/17/2022 8:45:06 AM

Deer Park, WI

Absolutely essential from the perspective of an agronomist with 20 years of giant pumpkin growing experience.

Now, before the litany of examples of 2000lb fruit grown in the same space with no rotation whatsoever pour in, please consider this perspective. One can indeed grow in the same space repetitively with success if, and only if, no pathogens/pests/soil nutrient balances and other threats are brought into the environment.

This perspective is based on risk mitigation capabilities. Confident that you can control for all these variables? Then monocrop the site to your hearts content. Unsure what is already there for disease pressure and/or your ability to screen all your inputs (manures, composts, etc) for root pathogens? Then rotation is key.

It is key here to understand the function rotation serves. Primarily, it is depriving size-robbing and plant-health destorying opportunists (insects, bacteria, fungi) of a home to recreate in. Take away their host, they cannot multiply. This lowers the total number of nasties for the next cycle. If you have literally zero nasties, rotation offers little benefit. If you have any number greater than zero, rotation is the best method for getting that number as close to zero as you possibly can. A goal we should all be striving for in a perfect world.

1/17/2022 8:46:42 AM

Deer Park, WI

With that in mind, I frequently hear folks discuss "resting" the soil. A point of clarity here. Soils do not "tire out", energetically, in the same way that a long distance runner loses speed and subsequently requires rest and recovery to recharge endurance. Perhaps more accurately, "resting" a soil does not recharge its proverbial batteries. Recharging a soil's capability to produce exceptional yield (pumpkin size) is a function of two properties: reducing plant stressors (bugs & pathogens) and balancing/optimizing nutrients and biology for success. The passive part of this process is rotation, through the nasties depopulating due to absence of a host (pumpkin plant). The active part of this process is what you as the gardener due to address the nutrient/biology aspect.

As for what to do with a rotated patch "on rest", that is purely a function of what identified issues you have and/or additional fertility goals you have. One absolutely must test soils to know if there's a root pathogen holding you back. Then a rotational strategy best suited to make life more miserable for that pathogen can be developed (as implied above with the mustard cover crop suggestion, aimed towards decreasing bugs like pythium).

On the fertility side, here again soil testing is a must. Willy-nilly addition of nutrients in the absence of a guidepost might make you feel good cause you did something. But without know exactly what to add, you might be creating more problems than what you are solving. Organic matter is an important factor to manage for, especially in off-season patches. Folks can really move the needle here with sound management practices. As I've written about in the Soil Fertility guide, 5-6% OM is the undisputed sweet spot to target for organic matter. Goldilocks porridge...too little and you cant hold nutrients. Too much and you create the perfect enviro for harboring nasties. Just right? you get your cake

1/17/2022 8:54:05 AM

Deer Park, WI

...and eat it too. In summary, rotation is a combination of risk mitigation and likely free upside. In the investing world, this is known as "asymmetric opportunity". In the corn/soybean production world, rotating crops has been proven to offer 10-15% productivity gains, sometimes more, for the exact same reasons described above. If production agriculture has recognized the value of this practice, it is not a stretch for us to apply and take advantage of this in the giant pumpkin patch too. And for all those with the "yea but we've gotten 2000+ on the same dirt years and years..", my question back to you is "How do you know you couldn't have gotten even larger outcomes if you had rotated?"

Last point before i jump off the soapbox and watch the replies pour in. Like Eric above, I too crave for a robust ongoing dialog here. How many times have you heard of a grower on virgin growing throwing an uncanny whopper? Happens a lot, imo. Why? I think we know why. Virgin dirt has not built up the stress load, likely due to pathogens, that mono-cropped dirt has. In an unencumbered environment, these plants can do amazing things. As such, I use rotation to get as close to virgin dirt as I can.

1/17/2022 9:01:48 AM

South Dakota

I too have only one patch to grow in. I grew AG two years in a row and ended up with root problems the second year which was extremely wet and the whole patch was under water at least twice. Did not get to the scales the second year. That second year was scrapped mid season and I planted Mighty Mustard and field radishes and worked it all in early fall. The next year I grew my PB with nary a problem. Now I rotate AG every other year, and planted giant watermelon, giant cantaloupe, and giant tomatos on the off year. Next year I will go back to an AG.

1/17/2022 9:01:59 AM

Bethlehem CT

I have always done best on new soil. I think you have a couple years to hit it out of the park on new soil, after that the "beginners" luck will come to an end.
If you can't rotate plots I know it can be done and has been done by many excellent growers on this site. A grower that doesn't rotate must try to manage disease through cultural practices. I think soil texture plays a big factor, in a sandy well drained soil you may have a better chance of fending off some of those nasty soil borne diseases especially with the use of biologicals like Actinovate or rootshield.
I found this scientific study to have some helpful information.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42729-021-00451-x#Fig3

1/17/2022 1:58:49 PM

Bethlehem CT

The disease triangle is a very simple concept. It will help you to understand and manage for disease in a patch that can't be rotated.
https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=28785

1/17/2022 2:02:42 PM

Eugene,OR

Two of the best growers in North America always rest their ground between plantings. Ever heard of Ron Wallace or Steve Daletas? I think that one piece of their success can be attributed to the fact that they rest their soil.

1/17/2022 7:58:28 PM