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3 Types of Planting in Rows for Your Vegetable Garden

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Updated 2.7.2024

Three types of planting in rows are most common in planning the layout of a vegetable garden.

Single Row Planting

Single row planting is the most conventional way to plant vegetables.

Seeds or plants are set in one row. Rows are arranged in a parallel lines.

When to plant in single rows

This approach is practical for vine crops that you want to grow vertically, such as pole beans and trellised peas.

In addition, corn and tomatoes typically are planted in single rows, allowing the corn to pollinate easily and for tomatoes to spread upward and outward when staked.

Wide Row Planting

Wide row planting is a garden layout method used to maximize space.

Rather than planting a single row of seeds or plants, you cluster vegetables in strips or blocks that are up to six feet wide.

Wide rows work best for vegetables that are harvested over time, such as lettuce, spinach, and green beans, rather than crops harvested in a short period of time such as corn.

Benefits of wide row planting

• Wide rows allow you to grow more vegetables in less space.
• Wide rows allow plants to grow more densely, crowding out weeds.
• Wide rows allow plants mingle together, creating shade on the soil to keep it cooler and reduce evaporation.

When to plant wide rows

Wide row planting is growing more popular among gardeners in warmer climates who discover its many benefits during long summer months.

The wide-swath approach to planting in rows also widespread among those who have small gardens and want to be as productive as possible. Wide row planting can produce as much as six times the yield as the same space when planted with single rows.

Important tip when planting wide rows

Layout rows so they are no more than 6 feet wide so that you can reach the innermost plants from the outside. Rows can be as long as you desire.

Raised Bed Planting

A raised bed is built on top of your regular garden plot, elevating the garden space above its regular level.

Raised beds have numerous advantages. By building a raised bed, you can easily correct the soil and allow for better drainage. Soil warms more quickly in the spring and cools later in the fall. A raised bed is also easier to maintain since it requires little to no tilling and less weeding than a regular garden. Because a raised bed is usually smaller than a standard garden plot, you will find it easier to harvest vegetables.

On this minus side, raised beds have limited space.

When to plant vegetables in raised beds

• Raised beds are useful in cooler climates and for early crops like salad greens, onions, and peas because soil is 8 to 10 degrees warmer than soil at ground level.
• Raised beds are a good option when your garden soil is heavy or drains poorly. Because of their height, raised beds dry out faster than a ground-level garden plot. Oxygen circulates more freely among crops planted in raised beds.
• Raised beds are excellent for heat-loving vegetables like tomatoes and peppers, because veggies stay warmer and drier when surrounded by air and sun on three sides.
• Raised beds are a terrific option for root crops (beets, carrots, radishes, parsnips, rutabagas, potatoes, and turnips) because soil is loose, allowing vegetables to expand easily.

Growing tomatoes in raised beds is one of the easiest and practical options to planting in rows. We've got a whole FAQs page about starting a raised bed vegetable garden. And check out more ideas for raised beds on our Raised Beds for Tomatoes Pinterest board.

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