You’re excited to grow a vegetable garden. You’ve built your raised bed in a space that gets at least six to eight hours of sunlight a day, and filled it with soil. How do you figure out how much to grow? I thought I would put together a 4×8 raised bed vegetable garden layout to show how much can be planted in a raised bed. I ended up creating a couple because I had fun planting all those virtual veggies!
Deciding what to plant in a small vegetable garden layout
I like to recommend starting with your grocery list. What items show up week after week? For me, that means lettuce and other greens, like spinach, Swiss chard, kale, and baby bok choy, cucumbers, onions, a variety of herbs, peppers (I usually plant at least one hot pepper to make habanero jelly, and a variety of other sweet peppers), the odd root veggie, like beets and carrots. One thing that doesn’t show up often on my grocery list are tomatoes. But that’s not because I don’t like them. They just can’t compare to the ones you grow yourself (or get at the farmers’ market in the summer). So tomatoes are always on my list to plant. And I often grow way more than I need—any extras get frozen for winter meals.
I also recommend planting at least one new-to-you veggie. It’s fun to watch it grow and then give it a taste test at the end of the season. While it’s easy to get carried away and want to grow all the things, you only have room for so much. I always seem to end up with more seedlings and seeds than I have space for. That’s why my raised bed collection and assortment of pots has increased over the years. What to do with any extra seedlings you have? Don’t let them go to waste! Tuck them into a perennial garden or a pot.
Figuring out spacing in a raised bed
Read your seed packets (or plant tags) carefully. They should provide the height and width of mature plants, as well as spacing recommendations. Keep in mind one of the benefits of raised garden beds is you can plant veggies more closely together (this is called intensive planting or gardening), rather than in rows, like a traditional in-ground garden. This also helps keep the weeds down and can reduce the need to water as often. You do want to keep an eye on your garden and thin plants as they grow to maintain air circulation, which helps prevent diseases.
Many gardeners find Mel Bartholomew’s square foot gardening method helpful. In your raised bed, you divide the space into a grid of 1- x 1-foot squares. Then you follow his plan for how many plants or seeds should be added to each square. The density is based on the plant size. So that might mean one tomato or several carrots. It’s a helpful way for beginners to get organized.
Tips for your vegetable garden plan
*Assess which direction the sun comes from and make sure that you don’t plant tall crops in front of shorter ones. I learned this lesson the hard (funny?) way years ago. A packet of Pastel Dreams zinnias seemed like the perfect flowers to plant them along the front of my one raised bed. For some reason I didn’t read how tall they would get. Well the answer is three to four feet tall! Which means they cast a bit of shade on the veggies behind them at certain points throughout the day. I’m very careful about planting shorter varieties now.
*I always plant columnar basil near some of my tomatoes (I included it in my grocery list plan). It grows to be nice and high, doesn’t get lost in the shade of the tomatoes, and makes a LOT of pesto! Of course there are lots of great varieties of basil to discover.
*Choose compact varieties of plants that sprawl. They may have been bred with containers in mind, but they’re also perfect options for raised beds. If you plant, say a winter squash in your raised bed, it could easily take up the entire garden! However, a compact variety won’t be as much of a hog, and if you strategically plant it, it will cascade over the side. You could also plant your squash in front of the peas… once they’re done, the same trellis can be used to train the squash.
*Use tomato cages around bush varieties of cucumbers that will use the structure to climb.
Sneak in some flowers to attract pollinators and combat plant pests. Some of my faves include alyssum, marigolds, and nasturtiums.
Plan for succession planting
A lot of new green thumbs don’t realize that the veggie planting season doesn’t end when you plant your heat lovers, like tomatoes, cucumbers, and melons. Spaces created in a garden from peas, for example, can be used later in the summer to plant root crops or greens, like Swiss chard and kale, for fall harvests. This is called succession planting.
Also, when you’ve removed, say, your spent pea plants or garlic in the summer, and are getting ready to plant something else, add some compost to the raised bed. This will add some nutrients back into the soil. And now you’re ready to plant more!
I like to plant garlic in one of my raised beds in the fall, but keep in mind you won’t be able to plant in that garlic space until about July, after the garlic is harvested. Thankfully, there are plenty of options you can plant in a new raised bed garden after garlic is pulled, including bush beans, kale, Swiss chard, carrots, and more.
A 4×8 raised bed vegetable garden layout of my grocery list faves
Okay, let’s get to the layout. There are eight rows in this raised bed. For the rows of onions, greens, and root veggies, the photos don’t represent the exact amount planted. They’re just a placeholder to indicate where they go. Based on my grocery list, I would plant two rows of onions; one row with two tomato plants and a columnar basil;one row with three pepper plants (one hot, one snack, one bell—or all the same); a row of kale, spinach or Swiss chard (from seed); a row with two cucumber plants (patio varieties); and a couple of rows of root veggies (from seed). In the diagram, I included beets and carrots, but you could add turnips or radishes. I also snuck in a couple of herbs a curly parsley and a flat-leaf parsley.
A 4×8 raised bed vegetable garden layout for a family
Here’s another layout idea for a family plot. Sow a double row/band of peas or beans with a trellis on the north end. Then, add tworows of onions, a row withtwo tomato plants (maybe a cherry variety and an slicing tomato), a row with twopepper plants (one hot and one snack), and one snack cucumber (all three in tomato cages), a row withone winter squash (dwarf to go over the edge) and summer squash (plants or seeds)—I loved Burpee’s Lemon Drop squash—and adouble row of carrots (from seed).
More raised bed articles:
- Raised bed designs for gardening
- Planting a raised bed
- Growing in fabric raised beds
- Five tips for growing tomatoes in raised beds
- Niki’s raised bed garden
- Elevated raised bed gardening
Insights, advice, suggestions, feedback and comments from experts
As an expert in gardening and vegetable cultivation, I can provide you with information related to the concepts mentioned in this article. I have extensive knowledge and experience in this field, and I will use my expertise to address your questions and provide valuable insights.
Raised Bed Vegetable Garden Layout
When planning a raised bed vegetable garden layout, it's important to consider factors such as sunlight, available space, and the types of vegetables you want to grow. The article suggests using a 4x8 raised bed, which provides ample space for a variety of vegetables.
Choosing Vegetables to Plant
To determine what to plant in your vegetable garden, the article recommends starting with your grocery list. Consider the vegetables that you frequently buy, such as lettuce, spinach, Swiss chard, kale, cucumbers, onions, herbs, peppers, and root vegetables like beets and carrots. Additionally, the author suggests trying new-to-you vegetables for a fun and rewarding gardening experience.
Spacing in a Raised Bed
In a raised bed, you can plant vegetables more closely together compared to a traditional in-ground garden. This practice, known as intensive planting or gardening, maximizes space utilization and helps control weeds. When planning your garden, it's important to read the seed packets or plant tags for information on the height, width, and spacing requirements of mature plants. This will help you determine the appropriate spacing between plants and ensure proper air circulation to prevent diseases.
Square Foot Gardening Method
Many gardeners find Mel Bartholomew's square foot gardening method helpful for organizing their raised bed gardens. This method involves dividing the raised bed into a grid of 1x1-foot squares and following a specific plan for the number of plants or seeds to be added to each square. The density of planting is based on the size of the plant, allowing beginners to effectively utilize their garden space.
Tips for Vegetable Garden Planning
The article provides several tips for vegetable garden planning:
- Consider Sunlight Direction: Avoid planting tall crops in front of shorter ones to prevent shading. Ensure that each plant receives adequate sunlight.
- Companion Planting: Plant columnar basil near tomatoes to maximize space and harvest a lot of basil for making pesto. Choose compact varieties of plants that sprawl to save space.
- Use Tomato Cages: Place tomato cages around bush varieties of cucumbers to provide support for climbing.
- Include Flowers: Plant flowers like alyssum, marigolds, and nasturtiums to attract pollinators and combat plant pests.
- Succession Planting: Plan for succession planting by utilizing spaces in the garden that become available after harvesting certain crops. For example, after removing pea plants, you can plant root crops or greens for fall harvests.
Vegetable Garden Layout Examples
The article provides two vegetable garden layout examples for a 4x8 raised bed. The first layout includes rows of onions, tomatoes, peppers, greens, cucumbers, and root vegetables. The second layout is designed for a family and includes rows of peas or beans, onions, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, winter squash, summer squash, and carrots.
These concepts and tips will help you plan and maximize the productivity of your raised bed vegetable garden. If you have any specific questions or need further assistance, feel free to ask!
