I was wondering if Charles let his garden beds rest, and if not, how long they have consistently been in production? I just finished reading Steve Solomon’s book “Intelligent Gardener” where he recommends having 6 to 8 small plots. You dig one up each year and the others are all planted in grasses, herb, and legumes. So with 7 plots, each plot gets 6 years of rest. In his earlier book “Gardening When it Counts”, he talks about old-time farmers having livestock on the land for 5 years and then switching by growing veggies on same land for 5 years.
Steve Solomon claims that over the years, the nutrient values go down and you struggle more with pests and problems. Letting your land rest cures these problems he says.
Just wanting Charles’ 2 cents as I am a new gardener and still in planning stages.
Beth in Idaho