There may be some beneficial nutrients like TomatoTone that could help to add micro-organisms.

I'm sure the other posters will have some good ideas. But this is just me.

On good years weather wise, I seem to be able to grow good tomatos without trying all that hard, even with having to grow in the same spots. This, was NOT one of those years unfortunately, just so so.

Anyways, in spite of all the warnings about planting in the same location, etc, I've never had any serious disease issues.

I think with your passion and zeal for gardening, your tomatos will probably do just fine, as long as you don't plant too close.

We'll wait and see what the experts here have in the way of advice for you :)

Good luck!
Barbara

I don't do much crop rotation either. Instead, I just focus on adding all the compost and other organic matter I can to the soil every year. Crop rotation is recommended for several reasons, including to prevent the depletion of specific nutrients from the soil, to prevent the buildup of certain diseases and to reduce numbers of pests. In each case, though, you can prevent those issues in other ways.

You can add your compost and organic matter to the entire garden bed, which is what I do, or you can use the 'Earl's Hole' method of improving only your planting hole. (I'll link a thread below that describe's the 'Earl's Hole' method.) I prefer to improve the whole bed instead of just the planting hole, but I've done it both ways in various years with good results each year. The regular addition of organic matter addresses the issue of nutrient depletion in soil.

There are a few diseases that can survive in the soil and become an issue, but I haven't seen that happen here to the extent that it is an item of great conern. I am careful to remove all diseased plants and foliage from the garden beds on a regular basis all season long so diseases can't overwinter as easily and, beyond that, I just don't obsess over it. Some common diseases, like Septoria Leaf Spot and Early Blight, are very common and pop up everywhere, and rotation doesn't really prevent them since they can be carried and spread in air and water. For them, mulching and keeping foliage dry is the best preventive measure. If I have a wilt disease or something more serious, I just get that plant and its foliage out of the bed and on a more remote compost pile that I don't use for the veggie garden...only for the flower beds.

Some pests do overwinter in soil (including tomato hornworms) but I haven't found their numbers are larger if I don't rotate. The truth is, if you plant it, 'they' will come.

My dad grew his tomatoes in the same place his entire gardening life, didn't rotate and had a great garden, and he did it merely by adding compost and manure every year.

Dawn

George
Tahlequah, OK