Vegetable Garden Layout

[TillinWithMyPeeps]

I was thinking, instead of having my vegetable garden in rows to orient it like this instead:

With a different vegetable in each block. Would that work alright?

 

[vfem]

I am sure it will work fine. Have you looked into companion planting at all though? Some plants work so well together its scary!

I want to get this book here: Carrots Love Tomatoes: Secrets of Companion Planting for Successful Gardening

I found some great things that worked this year, like planting radishes inbetween my eggplants and cukes kept a ton of beetles off of the good plants, then I just let the radish bolt and I got a ton of seed and protection of my plants at the same time.

 

[lesa]

I don't think there is any great problem arranging your garden like that. However, after you have those little squares planted it is kind of hard to reach into the giant mess of plants, come harvest time. Another issue is air circulation. Even though rows are boring they allow plenty of air-helping to prevent blight spread and powdery mildew problems. That being said- I plant most of my garden in rows and have a couple "square" areas. I plant my lettuce/greens in one, and one is devoted to french tarragon and lily trees. There are really no hard and fast rules in gardening- do what makes you happy, experiment and enjoy!!!! Counting the days till spring...

 

[journey11]

I see no reason why you couldn't. Just be sure to take note of the direction of the sun thru the day so you don't have tall plants shading short ones. Also things that vine or get really bushy, you might want to place on the outskirts so you don't get obstructed from reaching other plantings. I always put my watermelons, cantelope, etc on the perimeter so that they can overflow into the yard if they need to.

 

[obsessed]

I think could work. It may make things easier for you as far as watering and fertilzing.

 

[patandchickens]

You can do that, certainly it is what the square-foot-garden dude tries to get people to do. You don't want the blocks more than about 4x4' or you won't be able to reach in to the center without being a yoga master or circus performer (I know reaching 2' doesn't seem like far, but it is when it's on the ground. Mock something up on your livingroom floor and you can decide for yourself)

Do note however that it's more space-efficient to do wide row planting (think of it as a row of your blocks without the cross-aisles! ), because you get to use more of the total area as garden, less as path. It is useful to have a cross-path every 12' or so just so you don't have to do major detours to get from one side of a row to the other; just not necessarily so many as you've indicated, and if space is an issue they don't necessarily need to be full width (you won't be 'working' from them, just using them as a shortcut).

If you do wide rows, again I would not make them more than 3-4' wide. But they do give you more plants in less space than the traditional American row-gardening style where you have a single row of whatever, then 2-3 feet wide between aisles, then another single row of whatever other plants, and so forth.

Just something to think about anyhow. Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[ducks4you]

I am sure it will work fine. Have you looked into companion planting at all though? Some plants work so well together its scary!

I want to get this book here: Carrots Love Tomatoes: Secrets of Companion Planting for Successful Gardening

Also read this online article:
http://www.almanac.com/content/plant-companions-list-ten-common-vegetables
scroll down 1/2 a page for the chart
I've been searching the net for over a year now, and I've saved A LOT of articles, including below. Hope this helps!
A Beginner's Vegetable Garden
If you're ready to think about a vegetable garden, remember this: It's better to be proud of a small garden than to be frustrated by a big one!
One of the common errors for beginners is planting too much too soon and way more than anybody could eat or want. Unless you want to have zucchini taking up residence in your attic, plan carefully. Start small.

The Very Basics
Here are some very basic concepts on topics you'll want to explore further as you become a vegetable gardener extraordinaire:
Vegetables love the sun. They require six hours (continuous, if possible) of sunlight each day, at least.
Vegetables must have good, loamy, well-drained soil. Most backyard soil is not perfect and needs a helping hand. Check with your local nursery or county extension office about soil testing, soil types, and soil enrichments.
Placement is everything. Like humans, vegetables need proper nutrition. A vegetable garden too near a tree will lose its nutrients to the tree's greedy root system. On the other hand, a garden close to the house will help to discourage wild animals from nibbling away your potential harvest.
Vegetables need lots of water, at least one inch of water a week. In the early spring, walk around your property to see where the snow melts first, when the sun catches in warm pockets. This will make a difference in how well your vegetables grow.
Study those seed catalogs and order early.
Deciding How Big
A good-size beginner vegetable garden is 10x16 feet and features crops that are easy to grow. A plot this size, planted as suggested below, can feed a family of four for one summer, with a little extra for canning and freezing (or giving away).
Vegetables that may yield more than one crop per season are beans, beets, carrots, cabbage, kohlrabi, lettuce, radishes, rutabagas, spinach, turnips. For the plan below, your rows should run north and south to take full advantage of the sun.
Make your garden eleven rows of 10 feet each of the following:
Tomatoes -- 5 plants staked
Zucchini squash -- 4 plants
Peppers -- 6 plants
Cabbage
Bush beans
Lettuce, leaf and/or Bibb
Beets
Carrots
Chard
Radish
Marigolds to discourage rabbits!
Leave 2 feet between bush beans, 1/2 foot between bush beans and lettuce, and 1 foot between all of the rest. If you are a beginner, we'd love to hear about it, and we welcome suggestions. Just e-mail us at

gardening@yankeepub.com
with your reports.
http://www.almanac.com/garden/start...e-Companion_February_17_2009&utm_medium=email