DOUBLE your harvest with our Succession Planting Kit and be harvesting garden goodies late into the Fall!

SUCCESSION PLANTING KIT INCLUDES

2x bags of Worm Casting Seedling Mix (9litres each)
1x bag of Pure Worm Castings (4litres)
1x bag of 2-8-4 Rooted Food (750g)

HOW TO DIRECT SOW A SUCCESSION CROP

For crops that you will be direct sowing (seed starting) in your garden bed, follow these simple steps:

Add Worm Casting Seedling Mix: Work 2litres of the worm casting seedling mix into the top 1" of soil that you'll be starting seeds in.
Spacing: Make 1cm divets at the correct spacing intervals for the type of plant that you are starting (i.e. 8 per square foot for Beets, 4 per square foot for Arugula - more details below).
Add Seeds: Place 3 seeds into each divet
Add Worm Castings: Cover each divet with 1cm of worm castings to help with germination. Water thoroughly to begin the germination process.
Thinning & Fertilizing: After 14 days, thin the seedlings to one per divet by pinching the main stem of any extra seedlings. Once thinned, apply 2x tablespoons per square foot of the 2-8-4 Rooted Food.

HOW TO TRANSPLANT A SUCCESSION CROP

Fill Seed Cell with Worm Casting Seedling Mix: Use 3" Seed Cells and fill them to the top with worm casting seedling mix. Tap the bottom of the seed cell on the ground to gently compact the seedling mix, creating about 1cm of space from the top of the seedling mix and the top of the seed cell.
Add seeds & water: Place 5 seeds on the top of the seedling mix in each seed cell (i.e. 5 beet seeds per seed cell). Once the seeds are placed, add 2x turkey basters of water to create a moist environment for the seeds to germinate.
Cover with Worm Casting Seedling Mix: Cover the seeds with about 1cm of worm castings seedling mix so that it is in line with the top of the seed cell. Add a third turkey baste of water to begin the germination process.
Water Every 2-3 days: Place the back of your hand on the top of the seedling mix every 1-2 days. If you don't feel any moisture, add the next 1x turkey baste of water to ensure the seeds are always in a moist and warm (+70F/21C) environment for germination.
Transplant: 14-21 days after starting the seeds, transplant the seedlings into your garden. Refer to our Garden Planning Guide for spacing and then dig your transplant holes accordingly. Add 1 handful of worm castings and 1 tablespoon of 2-6-4 Rooted Food to the transplant hole. Transplant the seedling into the transplant hole. Backfill with the surrounding soil. Add an additional 1-2 handfuls of worm castings and 1-2 tablespoons of 2-8-4 Rooted Food per square foot as a top dressing to the garden space you just planted into.

SUCCESSION PLANTING FAQs

What is succession planting?

Succession planting is the practice of planting a new crop in the same space where a previous crop was harvested. This allows for a continuous harvest of fresh produce throughout the growing season and well into the Fall. The key to success with succession planting is to carefully plan your succession crop timing. You'll need to make sure that you're starting new seeds so that they mature just as the old plants are starting to decline. But with a little bit of planning, succession planting can help you enjoy a never-ending supply of fresh produce.

What are the benefits of succession planting?

While some of the benefits of succession planting are obvious, there are a few additional benefits that might come as a surprise:

Increased Yield: If you want to maximize your harvests, try succession planting. By planting new crops in the same space as soon as your previous crop is harvested, you can more than double your garden harvest and yield!
Extending the gardening season: As Spring and Summer crops get harvested in June and July, new garden space opens up. Rather than leaving it empty, either direct sow or transplant a succession crop. It will mature into the Fall giving you a much longer growing season and more garden goodies to enjoy!
Improved Flavour: There are many vegetables - such as Kale, Beets, and Carrots, that taste even better in the Fall when the temperatures cool. The reason for this is because they turn starches into sugars as a natural anti-freeze to protect them from the cold weather. This sugar creates a richer and deeper tasting vegetable - so don't be afraid to let them grow past the first frost!
Less Bolting: Some crops, such as Broccoli, Spinach, and Arugula are prone to bolting (prematurely going to flower and seed) when grown in the middle of summer as they struggle with the hot temperatures. However, they thrive when planted as a succession crop and reach maturity as the temperatures simultaneously cool!
Second chance: And best of all, it gives you a window to take a second attempt at any crops that didn't thrive in your first attempt. This extra gardening time will allow you to experiment with other methods and will yield learnings to apply into subsequent seasons.

How to do succession planting

First, you'll need to select the right crops for succession planting. Some crops are better suited to this method than others (more on this in the next section).

For example, fast-growing crops like lettuce and radishes can be planted successively every few weeks to be enjoying an on-going harvest all season.

However, slower-growing crops like broccoli and potatoes need to be started early enough so that they can reach maturity before the fall frosts set in. To ensure these slower-growing crops mature and can be harvested, determine your first frost date and work backwards to determine the ideal starting date based on how many days they take to mature.

For instance, if you want to grow broccoli and it takes 120 days from seed starting to harvest, then we need to work backwards to ensure we start it in time. If the first frost is typically October 15th, then 120 days before this would be June 17th. Therefore, you would want to start your broccoli seeds around June 17th!

What are the best crops for succession planting?

Succession Planting crops can be broken down into two categories: fast-growing crops and slow-growing crops. Here are a few of the best crops for each:

Best Fast-Harvest Crops: Arugula, Beans, Beets, Bok Choy, Kale, Lettuce, Peas, Radishes, Spinach, Zucchini
Best Slow-Harvest Crops: Carrots, Fennel, Onions, Swiss Chard, Turnips, Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Potatoes, Winter squash

Succession Planting Chart and Guide

Fill out this form to download our succession planting guide:

Succession Planting for Adventurous Gardeners

If you're feeling adventurous, try your hand at a few of the slow-harvest crops. The fast-harvest crops are fairly safe bets as they will reach their harvest dates within 30-60 days. However, the slow-harvest crops require a more methodical approach to ensure they have been given a long enough window to reach maturity before the Fall frosts arrive!

INGREDIENTS

Bone meal, mineralized phosphate, fishbone meal, rock phosphate, mined potassium sulphate, glacial rock dust, insect frass, feather meal, basalt rock dust, kelp meal, humic acid, gypsum, greensand, blood meal.

100% money back guarantee, refund must be requested within 60 days of purchase.

Mindful Gardening Club - Monthly