Planning a vegetable garden layout can be as simple or creative as one decides to make it. Believe it or not, garden planning software is available to help with this process. Before deciding on a garden layout, it is a good idea to consider the following:
- Available space
- Types of vegetables
- Level of concern for the garden’s visual appeal
- Sunlight distribution in the area
- Will crops be rotated season to season?
After coming to a decision about these things, attention can be turned to the layout of the vegetable garden. There are a variety of different ways that a garden can be designed, and the remainder of this article is dedicated to giving an overview of a few vegetable garden layouts for your consideration.
Traditional Rows
A traditional garden layout is characterized by single vegetables planted in rows parallel to each other. Typically, each row is dedicated to a single vegetable. For a visual image, envision a farm and the long rows of crops, but on a smaller scale. An advantage of this vegetable layout is that it is relatively inexpensive because the bulk of the labor and preparation is in tilling the land, as opposed to some of the fancier modifications that will be discussed later.
Raised Bed
A raised bed vegetable garden is one in which an above-ground enclosure is built (about 3-4 feet in length/width, and 8-12 inches in depth) to grow the crops in. To visualize this setup, imagine a sand box, but filled with dirt instead of sand. The advantages of this type of layout are superior drainage and earlier spring thaw as compared to ground-level gardens. These advantages are offset by the additional costs incurred for the construction of the side walls of the bed, and for the dirt needed to fill it.
Here is a great video on how to add your own raised bed garden:
Potager
The Potager style, also known as the French Kitchen garden, is one in which vegetables, fruits, trees, and herbs are intermingled together. These gardens are also traditionally set up with a repetition of triangular, square, or rectangular plots. Potager gardens usually have a significant amount of visual appeal, due to the cheery colors of the crops and flowers. An advantage of this style of garden is that coupling certain crops with flowers or other plats can be a natural repellant to insects. This practice is referred to as companion planting.
Flower Bed
Flower bed gardens work well in yards that don’t have much space. The concept is quite simple. Instead of having flowers there, vegetables will be planted in the flower bed. Aside from the efficient use of space, another advantage of the flower bed layout is that there is less work, since grass is not usually present.
Four Squares
The Four Squares garden layout is very symmetrical, as it looks like a square with a plus sign in it. The plus sign actually serves as a path that can be constructed out of the material of one’s preference. Some suggestions are gravel, stones, packed earth, or shaved wood.
While these are just a few of the possible vegetable garden layouts, don’t be afraid to take a chance and be creative. Once all of the seeds are planted and the buds begin to sprout, rest assured that a sense of accomplishment and gratification will be present no matter which layout is chosen. Happy vegetable gardening!
{ 18 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi,
Very good thorough post, I have been a gardener for 30+ years and that is one of the best articles I have read. You covered all the bases well, I look forward to reading your future posts.
I learned that rotating the crops is good for the crops also, I planted one variety in one spot too many years in a row and they did badly that year, I was younger and learned my lesson.
Good job, enjoyed the read.
Kevin@Tomato Heirloom Seeds´s last blog ..Do Follow Blog, Commentluv, Keywordluv
Thanks for the info, where I live (Far East) there is only about 2 inches of soil over solid rock making growing anything viable on the ground more or less impossible
lee johnson´s last blog ..Hello world!
Raised beds are great for those of us who no longer have the flexibility to bend and dig as we once could! Gardening of any kind is great exercise – mentally as well as physically – and anything that can help older people cope with access issues is great. I find vegetable gardening with pots can also have the same advantages as raised beds.
Dan@Petrol Hedge Cutter´s last blog ..Petrol Hedge Cutter
I use the flower garden style because it takes the least amount of planning and looks like an English cottage garden.
I’ve been considering what type of garden to put in this year. I am not known for having a green thumb and wonder if a raised bed garden may be the way to go. I think that irrigation would be a whole lot easier with a raised bed plot. I love the idea of the french kitchen garden! But this year I may just see if I can grow some tomatoes.
Bob@Shed Designs´s last blog ..My Quest For Quality Wooden Shed Plans
We used to plant everything in perfect rows, even using a string line to follow along with. It didn’t last very long, now we’re just planting most of our vegetables in patches with raised beds. It saves a heck of a lot of time and definitely has a more natural look, though it does make hoeing a bit more complicated. Six to one, half dozen to the other I guess.
I remember as a child that my parents and all our neighbors planted everything in nice neat uniform rows – no matter what they were planting. Everybody’s garden looked just like the next. Which was all very tidy – but also all so very boring.
These different layouts can add variety to a garden – even one which has been planted mainly with vegetables. I particularly like the raised bed vegetable garden.
Brian@Petrol Hedge Cutter´s last blog ..Titan Petrol Hedge Trimmer
Great article and love the information as it allows a gardener to be creative and to really design a garden rather than sticking to the traditional configurations. I also like the idea of raised planted boxes as they can bring the eye up and add interest to an otherwise flat garden structure.
Joseph@petrol hedge trimmers´s last blog ..Flymo XLH420 Petrol Hedge Trimmer
A great article on planting your garden with vegetables. I think you should put together a post about lawns. Something to do with lawncare and mowing would be a great compliment to this article.
You could perhaps write something about lawncare during each or the four seasons.
Mark McKnight´s last blog ..Bunton Lawn Mowers
My backyard consists mainly of homegrown vegetables. Planting & gardening helped me ease my stress plus I get plenty of food that’s clean & chemical free.
Hi, this is a great post and very thorough, covering everything for someone to get started. Going back to the part about raised beds you mentioned earlier, which are popular more than ever at the moment. Advice I give to my customers that have quite a few raised beds on the go, is to look at bulk buying the top soil as this can save them a lot of money. Look forward to more of your posts in the future.
My kids grew up with organic veggies growing all around the house. Many of those veggies never made it into the kitchen, because the kids would snatch them from the garden and eat them up before we could.
And those square foot raised garden beds are the way to go.
marc@New York stop smoking hypnosis´s last blog ..Stop Smoking Hypnosis In New York Video
Gardening is my hobby and in my life I have first read that what we do have name and category .We are only following “Traditional Rows” for our vegetable garden.
a good garden arrangement can never be more perfect if we put up proper care facilities like smart digital sprinkler timers and plus an additional pest fending motion detector sprinkler system that shoots water at intruders.
I’ve always preferred a raised bed garden. It’s a little more work and expense upfront, but I’ve always had better results with a raised bed garden.
KB @ Home Growing Tomatoes´s last blog ..home growing tomatoes
Thanks for all of this information. I have heard that you should never grow potatoes in the same plot 2 years on the run, is this right? Does it result in low crop or a poisoned potato of some sort? Thanks
Rich@Interior Designers Manchester´s last blog ..Companies In Manchester
A well laid out vegetable garden is easier to maintain, increases the yield and makes the best use of space.
Straight, long rows are boring for sure. Try to have shorter rows, and more of them but in defferent places in your garden. This way you can avoid loosing all the crop if some disease got into your veg patch, because you will have the same crop at different location. The problem is, that this method could be more time consuming than other ‘normal’ gardening. LOL just my 2c.