Do You Need to Rotate Cucumbers in a Garden?

Cool, crisp and green, cucumbers (Cucumis sativus) are a favorite for home gardeners. When grown in the right conditions, they can be prolific producers. Cucumbers are a warm weather crop and do best in U.S. Department of Agriculture hardiness zones 4 through 11. If cucumbers are a staple in our home garden, rotate the crops each year to preserve soil nutrients and to reduce the likelihood of infectious disease of insects eventually damaging your crop. When the same vegetable is grown in the same place year after year, the likelihood of disease and poor nutrition increases greatly.


Cucumbers and others belonging to the cucurbit family should not be planted in the same area more than once in every three years, according to Penn State University. Keep track of where different vegetables were each year of your garden to avoid making a mistake. Members of the cucurbit family include other gourds, such as melons, pumpkins and squash. Rotating your crops based on family is suggested because they are often susceptible to the same insects and infections.


If you have the same garden area each year, having a garden plan divided into sections can help you create a simple crop rotation plan. Companion planting the same plants alongside your cucumbers means you can rotate them together each year. Root vegetables such as onions, carrots and radishes grow well alongside cucumber plants.


If your growing season permits it, you can practice succession gardening rather than crop rotation. Succession gardening means you plant different vegetables in the same bed, area and soil during a single season. For example, planting cucumbers early on in the growing season means you can plant legumes such as beans in the same soil after the cucumber harvest has finished. If there is enough time, you could potentially replant cucumbers, followed by more beans.

Soil Care

When you rotate your plantings, do a soil test to ensure that the pH and nutrient levels are correct for planting cucumbers. For every 100 square feet of soil, mix in 25 to 50 pounds of compost, mixing in up to 6 inches deep. Cucumbers have deeper root structures, so they thrive with a minimum of 4 to 6 inches of nutrient-rich soil.