One of the primary benefits of any cover crop is its contribution to the organic matter in the soil as well as any additional nutrients it might contribute. To take proper advantage of this, the crop must be tilled in or at least cut and left in place to compost - if you remove it, you are removing both the organic matter as well as the nutrients, i.e., the nitrogen fixing root nodules. Alfalfa is often recommended to be planted to help loosen heavy soils because of its deep root penetration. Be sure to select an annual variety if used as a cover crop. Attra has an excellent discussion of various cover crops, their contribution to the soil and appropriateness in various areas. Here is a link that might be useful: Attra - cover crops

It's true that soil can harbor pathogens. It's also true that you can go for years without having a problem. I think the key is to rotate when you can, but aside from that just be observant and don't obsess about it. If you're amending with compost and mulching properly, then your plants will probably be strong enough to resist whatever disease may be lurking in the soil. The truth is, there are bacteria, fungal spores, viruses etc. on virtually every square inch of planet Earth anyway, so if you think you're going to avoid them by moving your vegetables a few feet away, well.... you won't. In most cases, your best bet is to make sure your plants have all they need so that they can grow strong and fend for themselves. The whole issue of rotation IS a big deal for farmers, particularly when they practice monoculture, which really invites pests and disease. Unfortunately, instead of rotating their crops, most farmers these days just counter pests and disease with lots of toxic and expensive chemicals. How nice it is to be us! We operate on a smaller scale, largely free of such concerns. That said, a bit of common sense comes in handy too. If you planted your tomatoes over HERE last year and they got late blight or something, and if it's not a big deal to move them over THERE instead this year, well then you should probably do it. No sense tempting fate. Regarding planting cover crops if you've added compost in the spring... sure, go ahead. The only thing is... who has time for a cover crop? Your best bet is to keep your potager planted all season long. As soon as one crop is done, stick another in the same spot. If you've done it right, there won't be any time/space for a cover crop and you'll be getting tons of veggies from your potager from spring well into the fall. -Diggity

I concur with jbann, with the exception of the leaves. No real reason , I get lots of browns with the straw I use as mulch. Since one horrible year after I had rototilled as deep as I could I will never EVER deeply rototill again. Be sure any diseased foliage pruned during the season makes it out of the garden and not into the compost pile! At the end of the season I turn the soil and straw over about a shovel length deep is all. I suppose if you can control the depth of the rototiller it would save the back but no deeper than the raised amount of compost I grow in. Then I sow winter rye (sure it will grow there) and let it grow until a nice winter day in mid Feb. then turn it in. It will add copious amounts of great nitrogen in addition to structure. Come March or April I add another yard of compost and turn it in with a broadcast of 10-10-10 fertilizer.... smooth and level the soil. I cover it with tarp then and wait for the trees to do their seed bit so I don't have a garden full of sprouted trees. Been growing in the same spot for years. Good Luck' Tom

Its not going to multiply them, or make them extend their range. Plus, they already know where your garden is so about the only problem is that they might eat most of it and kill it off. A bottom growing plant like winter rye might do better with the grazing pressure. We have nearly tame deer here, in the yard every day like clock work, Fawns sleep under the tree etc. but simple loose fencing keeps them away from the vegetables. I put in a couple of tomato plants at the edge of the yard and they have slowly nibbled them to stumps over the season, but left exposed plants closer to the house alone. This is a switch from previous years so I'll probably keep doing it.