Small vegetable garden layout

A plan for a 4 × 6 ft (1.2 × 1.8 m) bed, filled with crops worth the space: ones that cost a lot to buy, taste best fresh and keep cropping for weeks.

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Bed size, shape and units

Bed name Width Length

Units

metresfeet

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The plan

Small garden bed

1.2 × 1.8 m (4 × 6 ft), 24 squares

Climbing beans, tomatoes, courgette, salads and herbs: the crops worth the space.

Crop	Squares	Plants
Runner bean	4	16
Tomato	2	2
Basil	1	4
French marigold	1	4
Courgette (zucchini)	4	1
Chard	1	4
Kale	1	1
Lettuce	2	8
Salad leaves (salad mix)	2	32
Spring onion (scallion)	1	16
Parsley	1	4
Carrot	2	32
Radish	1	16
Coriander (cilantro)	1	9

Runner beans climb a row of canes at the north end. Growing up instead of out gets the most from a small bed.
One courgette is plenty for most households, and it takes 4 squares.
Chard, kale and cut-and-come-again salad are picked a few leaves at a time, so a handful of plants keeps you going for months.

Salad bed

1.2 × 1.2 m (4 × 4 ft), 16 squares

Lettuce, rocket, radishes, spinach and herbs for picking all summer.

Crop	Squares	Plants
Lettuce	3	12
Rocket (arugula)	2	8
Radish	1	16
Spring onion (scallion)	1	16
Spinach	2	18
Beetroot (beet)	2	18
Chard	1	4
Coriander (cilantro)	1	9
Carrot	2	32
Parsley	1	4

For an even smaller space: a 4 × 4 ft bed of salads and herbs.

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Getting more from a small space

Grow up. Climbing beans, peas and cucumbers on canes or netting take a fraction of the ground.
Fill gaps straight away. Sow radishes or salad wherever a crop has just come out.
Use pots for the spreaders. Mint and strawberries do well in pots by the door, leaving the bed for vegetables.

More on choosing crops in what to grow in a small vegetable garden.

Questions

What is the best layout for a small vegetable garden?

One or two beds about 1.2 m (4 ft) wide that you can reach across, with tall crops at the north end and the crops you pick most often nearest the house.

Which vegetables give the most food in a small space?

Climbing beans, tomatoes, courgettes, chard, kale and cut-and-come-again salad all keep cropping for weeks. Maincrop potatoes, onions and cabbages take a lot of room for what they give, and are cheap to buy.

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