What is Succession Planting - and is it Right For Your Garden?
As gardeners, we know that growing our own food takes a lot of time and energy. For that reason, we employ every strategy in the playbook to make sure that our precious plants mature steadily and produce a healthy harvest. Succession planting is an example of one of those strategies that can help optimize your garden’s productivity and reap bigger yields than ever before.
Don’t overthink it. Succession planting sounds more complicated than it actually is. And chances are, you’ve already practiced a little bit of succession planting in your own garden without knowing it.
So if you have arrived at this article in preparation for the next growing season, and in search of the best possible ways to grow more food in the same amount of space and in less time, then don’t stop reading now.
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What is the Purpose of Succession Planting?
The benefits of succession planting are just too good to pass up. Successional cropping:
produces harvestable produce all season long, no matter how big or small your garden space is
extends your growing season into the late fall and early winter
leaves less time for weeds to take over the garden in between crops
is friendlier on the soil and depletes the nutrients less rapidly
avoids a singular rush of produce that can lead to a surplus of food and waste
adds security so that if something goes wrong with your first crop, your second and third plants can still thrive
Still curious? Here’s a video with more details on how it works:
What is Successional Cropping?
Successional cropping is a gardening strategy that allows you to get the most out of your garden and the crops you choose to grow. It requires a little extra strategizing, but the payoff is always worth the extra up-front planning.
Succession cropping is the practice of seeding crops at intervals of 7 to 21 days to maintain a steady flow of harvestable produce throughout the growing season. In other words, successional cropping is the practice of planting one crop immediately after another crop has finished in order to create a succession of harvests.
For example, if you only eat a handful of radishes per week, succession planting would dictate that you avoid planting all your radishes at once, and instead, plant portions of your radish seed or seedling stock each week so that they develop and can be harvested one after the other.
What Plants Should You Succession Plant?
Typically, successional planting is most important for determinate crops. Determinate crops are plants that produce all of their edible fruits (or plant material) at one time. Some determinate crops that are successful with successional planting include:
On the other hand, indeterminate crops are plants that continue to produce fruits or edible plant material on the same plant. Popular indeterminate crops are:
Cucumbers
Peppers
It is also important to note that some plants come in determinate and indeterminate varieties. Some tomato varieties, for example, will produce fruits all year long, while others produce all their edible fruits at once. In this case, a determinate tomato variety would be ideal for canning, while an indeterminate variety would be ideal for fresh tomatoes for your Caprese salads all summer.
Some crops are also semi-determinate, like peas, corn, and bush beans. Semi-determinate crops are plants that tend only to produce harvestable fruits or plant material one time but that can be coaxed into making fruits a second or even third time.
With beans, for example, you can incentivize a second and even third round of fruits by regularly harvesting the pods as soon as they are ripe.
How Do You Do Succession Planting?
Succession planting isn’t all that complicated once you get the hang of it. There are multiple different types of succession planting. One type of succession planting may be better for you, your plants, and your garden than the others, so it’s good to know the differences and how to do them.
Same Crop, Staggered Plantings
This method of successional cropping involves staggering the plantings of a particular crop throughout the growing season. Staggered plantings are optimal for plants with a large initial yield and then slow down production, bolt, or dieback.
By staggerings your plantings every few weeks, you can continue to benefit from large initial yields and not settle for less productive secondary yields. To do this, simply sow or transplant a portion of your garden bed while leaving a space empty. Then, as the season goes on, you can fill in the empty garden space with fresh transplants.
The length of time you allow between plantings will vary based on the plant. However, short-season plants, those that mature 60 days or less, such as lettuce and arugula, can be planted every few weeks.
Mid and long-season plants, those that mature after 60 days, like corn, beets, squash, and cucumbers, can also be staggered throughout the season. With slower-maturing plants, just pay attention to their timeline to avoid planting too late in the season and losing them to the first frost.
If all of this is beginning to feel daunting, no worries. Remember that the main premise of staggered planting is to pull out the harvested plants, compost them and plant something new.
Below are three other techniques for succession planting.
Companion Planting
Companion planting, also known as intercropping, is planting multiple species in the same space. Usually, companion planting is most successful with plants with different maturity timelines and plants with different spatial requirements.
For example, green onions, chard, and other leafy greens can easily be planted between slower-growing species because they are quick and do not take up too much space. Radishes and carrots are another excellent combination.
The ‘Three Sisters Method’ is an example of companion planting practiced by the Native Americans. This intercropping method relies on the symbiotic relationship between corn, beans, and squash. The beans input nitrogen into the soil, which corn requires in order to thrive. The cornstalks provide a trellis for the beans to crawl and climb. And the squash acts as mulch. The sprawling vines and foliage of the squash shade out weeds, protect the soil and retain moisture.
Different Plants, Same Space
Planting different crops one after the other in the same space is another method of succession planting. By removing and composting crops that have passed their prime and replanting with something different, you can keep a garden bed active for the entire growing season.
The classic way to do this is to plant a quick maturing variety of crop. When you’ve harvested that plant, you can then immediately replace it with a slower-growing summer crop and possibly again with a late fall crop.
A classic example of the different place, same space technique for successional planting is planting early season salad greens, then following that with beans. Then, when the summer comes to an end, you can plant cool-season greens like kale before the winter comes.
Same Crop, Different Maturity Timelines
Another way to practice successional cropping is to plant multiple varieties of the same crop. All of which will have different maturity timelines. For example, if you love potatoes, you can plant early, mid and late-season varieties. The potatoes will mature one by one and allow you to harvest all season long.
Planting different varieties of the same crop is a super-effective way of adding security to your garden. You can choose types that have different frost tolerance, disease resistance, and growth patterns. By doing this, you can reduce the risk of the entirety of the crop being destroyed by a single factor, such as weather, plant pests, or disease. It’s like an insurance plan for your garden.
More Tips and Tricks for a Successful Harvest
Succession planting is one of the most productive ways to optimize your garden space. But there are tons of other tips and tricks you can practice to bring about a successful harvest.
Come Up With a Plan
Design a plan ahead of time: How long is my season?
What crops do I want to grow? When do I want to harvest vegetables, fruits, and other plants?
Do I want to grow spring crops or cool season crops? What is my frost date? How many days to maturity for each plant? Do I want multiple harvests of the same plant?
How much space do they require? How much time does each crop need to mature?
As you can see, careful planning is essential when you are doing succession plantings or staggering plantings. Pay attention to maturity dates and other planting instructions on the seed packets so that you enjoy a continuous harvest in all seasons.
Need help planning out your garden this year? Be sure to check out this helpful garden planning chart so you can keep detailed records - and get a jump start on your growing season.
Add Organic Matter
Add organic material like compost or mulch to your garden beds in between harvests to help replenish the soil with valuable nutrients.
Leave Fields Fallow
Occasionally leave a garden bed fallow and seed with cover crops to avoid soil depletion. Cover crops will provide essential nutrients and allow the soil to recharge in between plantings.
Plant a New Crop in Each Area Each year
Avoid planting the same crop in areas that are experiencing plant diseases or pests. You can avoid spreading the disease and catastrophic infestation by resting the area.
Compost
For successful succession planting, compost in place to recycle nutrients back into the soil. For example, we recommend you try leaving the greens from your beets in the garden to decompose. Remember to only compost in place with healthy and disease-free plant material.
Choose Quick Maturing Spring and Fall Crops
Always select quick maturing varieties of your favorite crops to keep things moving rapidly. This tip is especially recommended for early-season crops so that you can plant slower-growing varieties of plants next.
Transplant Seeds
Transplanting seedlings is much faster than sowing new seeds. Start transplants in seedling flats or pots so they can be ready to move into the garden after a certain crop has been harvested. This will also let you get a jump on the last frost date.
You can also start seedlings indoors during the winter in order to jump-start your growing season once the weather warms up.
Give Square Foot Gardening a Try
Try out square foot gardening to maximize space– simply divide your garden beds into sections and sow different plants in each one. Once you’ve harvested, you can reseed or transplant the next crop seamlessly.
Group Two or More Crops Together
Group similar crops together in the same garden area to save time on watering, fertilizing, and harvesting. Just keep an eye out for signs and symptoms of pests and diseases that may quickly spread.
Provide Shade for a More Productive Summer Harvest
In the summer heat, try out providing shade covers for some sun-sensitive varieties of plants like kale and other brassicas. You may also consider planting taller crops around shorter ones so that the shorter plants may benefit from the added shade.
Keep Things Going for a New Crop
Keep a compost pile going so that when you are finished with a particular crop, you can compost the remaining plant material to make your nutrient-dense compost. It’s the gift that keeps on giving!
Succession Planting - Grow More in Less Time
Succession planting is by and large one of the most effective ways to grow more food in less time. No, you cannot just fill up your garden space mindlessly. And yes, it takes some additional planning ahead of time. But the payoff is worth it. Plus, it’s not just one payoff. It’s a series of payoffs in the form of delicious, homegrown food one harvest after the next, all season long.
So for the upcoming growing season, try out one of the methods for succession planting from above and see how it goes. We know you can pull it off!
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