Grow More In Less Space
If you use row planting in your raised garden bed, you’re missing out!You could be growing a lot more, without any extra effort, using square foot gardening.
Do not worry though, there’s a better way and we’re here to show you the plant spacing ‘light’.
To start, we’ll give you a quick tutorial on plant spacing needs for different vegetables. We’ll explain how plant spacing works best when growing in a raised garden bed, how you can effortlessly partition your garden into equal growing sections, and even give you our plant spacing chart you can share with friends, put it on your own website, or just use it for yourself so you can grow a garden so great, the Jones’s will have to keep up with you!
Already know how plant spacing works & just want to reference our plant spacing chart?
Tap Here For The Chart
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Need a planting spacing grid & garden watering system? Check out our Garden Grid™ watering system here.
Here’s what you should be doing: Plant by area, not by rows.
Row spacing is meant to giving you a walking path between plants, you shouldn’t be walking in a Raised Garden. When you grow a garden in a raised garden bed, the purpose of the bed is to condense your growing area to a point that you can reach all plants, without having to step into the growing area. That’s why great raised gardens always have one dimension of 4ft or less. (i.e. 4×8 raised garden, 3×6 raised garden). The reason for this dimension is that an average person’s arm can reach at least 2ft. So when you see a gardener with a raised bed that’s 4ft wide, you’ll know that savvy grower can always reach the middle of their growing area!
Since you don’t need to walk into your garden, your soil never gets compressed, your plants don’t get squished, and your favorite pair of sneakers stay nice and clean.
It’s a win, win … win!
So what do we mean by
‘plant by area’?
Planting by area means taking a square section of garden, and dividing the length and width of that section by the plant spacing needs.
If you look on the back of a seed packet you’ll see two types of measurement:
- Seed/Plant Spacing
- Row Spacing
Now, we normally do not condone being wasteful, but we want you to take that row spacing number, and throw it away! You won’t need it. What you will need is the seed spacing/plant spacing number. You willuse theseed spacing/plant spacing number to divide up planting sections to know how many seeds to sow.
Let’s get started: First you need to make planting sections
Typically about 1 square foot sections are preferred. We say “about 1 square foot” because the thickness of a garden bed board will make the growing area of your garden just under an increment of 1 foot; but not to worry, your plants will never know the difference.
To make plant spacing easier, many gardeners will make a plant spacing grid. This used to be done by measuring, cutting materials, and attaching them to your garden bed… we found this to be a hassle so we simplifed this for your and created The Garden Grid™ watering system. It’s a pre-assembled plant spacing grid AND a garden watering system that surround every square with adjustable streams over water. #nothirstyplants
You can find the Garden Grid™ here or by clicking on the perfectly placed image below.
Next, let’s figure out how many plants to plant
We have our simple plant spacing chartbelow if you want to jump ahead and beginplanting now, but if you want to know how we got the plant spacing measurements, stick right here!We’re going to do a little math.Don’t panic!We promise it’s really, really easy.
- Step 1:Locate the seedspacing number from the back of your seed packet. (We’ll use 3 inch seed spacing for this example)
- Step 2:Divide the width of your planting section (about 12 inches) by the 3 inch seed spacing.
- Answer: 12 inches across / 3 inch seed spacing = 4 plants across
- Step 3:Repeat step two but for the length of your planting section. (Also about 12 inches).
- Answer: 12 inches across / 3 inch seed spacing = 4 plants across
- Step 4:Multiply your two answers together
- Answer: 4 plants across X 4 plants across = 16 plants!
- Step 5: Start planting! With 3 inch seed/plant spacing needs, you can grow 16 plants in a 1 square foot area.
- Step 6:Keep planting! You now have the plant spacing formula for the rest of your garden!
For a little garden inspiration, try out thissalad garden layout we made based on our 4×4 Garden Grid™watering system.Tap here for our full salad garden,salsa garden,or stir-fry garden blog posts.
Now that you know exactly how Square Foot Gardening Plant Spacing Works…
Let’s Grow!
The Garden In Minutes® Plant Spacing Chart
Find what you can grow the most of, or find your favorite plants, but most importantly – get out & start growing!
(Scroll Below For A Saveable/Printable Version)
| Vegetable Type | Plant Spacing Per Square | Vegetable Type | Plant Spacing Per Square |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arugula | 4 | Oregano | 1 |
| Asian Greens | 4 | Parsley | 4 |
| Basil | 2-4 | Parsnips | 9 |
| Beans (bush) | 4-9 | Peanuts | 1 |
| Beets | 9 | Peas | 4-9 |
| Bok Choy (baby) | 9 | Peppers (Bell) | 1 |
| Broccoli | 1 | Peppers (All Others) | 1 |
| Brussel Sprout | 1 | Potatoes | 4 |
| Cabbage | 1 | Pumpkins | 2 squares per plant |
| Cantaloupe | 2 squares per plant | Quinoa | 4 |
| Carrots | 9-16 | Radicchio | 2 |
| Cauliflower | 1 | Radishes | 12-16 |
| Celery | 4 | Rhubarb | 1 |
| Celtuce | 2 | Romaine | 4 |
| Chives | 4 | Rosemary | 1 |
| Cilantro | 1-9 | Rutabagas | 4 |
| Collards | 1 | Sage | 1 |
| Corn | 4 | Scallions | 36 |
| Cucumbers | 2 | Shallots | 4 |
| Eggplant | 1 | Sorrel | 2 |
| Endive | 4 | Spinach | 9 |
| Fennel | 4 | Squash | 1 |
| French Sorrel | 4-9 | Strawberry | 1-4 |
| Garlic | 9 | Swiss Chard | 4 |
| Green Onions | 16 | Tarragon | 1 |
| Kale | 1 | Tomatoes | 1 |
| Kohlrabi | 4 | Turnips | 9 |
| Leeks | 9 | Thyme | 4 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | 6 | Wasabi | 1 |
| Lettuce (sm. head/bibb) | 3 | Watercress | 1 |
| Lettuce (head) | 2 | Watermelon | 2 squares per plant |
| Melons | 2 squares per plant | Yams | 4 |
| Mint | 1-4 | Yellow Onion (large) | 2-4 |
| Onions (bunching) | 9 | Zucchini | 1 |
So there you have it! Our all-in-one, everything you need to know, plant spacing chart and planting guide. Planting by area was inspired and made popular by the concept of square foot gardening, if you want to learn more about square foot gardening, check out our other article on just that! Also, if you’re still curious about setting up a planting guide with an integrated irrigation system, where you won’t need any tools, check out The Garden Grid™ on our How it Works page!
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Our plant spacing chart is always growing. Have something you want added? Let us know in the comments below!
