Square Foot Gardening is a simple method of gardening in a raised bed using a grid system to space out your plants. It was started by Mel Bartholomew, an engineer who found a way to make a traditional garden more accessible for new gardeners and more productive for experienced gardeners.

This method of gardening I find to be great for beginners to help the overwhelm of growing a garden for the first time. It is even helpful for more experienced gardeners when there is not much time to plan and they just want to get something in the garden for the season.

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HOW TO SET UP A SQUARE FOOT GARDEN

A square foot garden is a simple way to grow a wide variety of vegetables in a small space while keeping your planting organized and productive.

The most common size for square foot gardening is a 4 ft × 4 ft raised garden bed, though 8 ft × 4 ft beds are also very popular if you have a little more room. These bed sizes make it easy to divide the space into individual 1-foot squares, which helps you plan exactly how many plants to grow in each area.

By organizing your garden into small squares, you can maximize space, reduce wasted soil, and grow more food in a compact area.

Creating the 1-Foot Grid

To use the square foot gardening method, you’ll need to divide your raised bed into 1 ft × 1 ft sections. Many gardeners create these grids using simple materials like:

• Bamboo stakes

• Yardsticks

• Thin wood slats

• Twine stretched across the bed

These grids help keep planting organized and make it easy to follow square foot planting charts.

Another option I recommend is the Garden Grid™ irrigation kit from Garden in Minutes. This system combines your planting grid and watering system in one. Each drip line forms a perfect 1-foot square, giving you a visual guide for planting while also delivering water directly to your plants.

Not only does this simplify garden setup, but it can also help reduce water usage and make watering more efficient.

Pro Tip: Square foot gardening works best in a raised bed filled with nutrient-rich, well-draining soil. Healthy soil supports strong plant growth and prevents issues like poor drainage or compacted roots. If you’re still setting up your beds, check out our guide on what type of soil to use in raised beds. We cover Mel’s recommended soil recipe, along with our favorite sandy loam mix for productive vegetable gardens.

GUIDELINES TO PLAN OUT YOUR SQUARE FOOT GARDEN

Keep these guidelines in mind to make the most of your available space in a well-planned garden.

Give Each Plant Enough Space But No More

This gardening method aims to make the most of any garden size. That means growing as many plants per square foot as you can. If a veggie doesn’t need an entire square foot to itself, you can either grow several plants of the same variety or interplant.

Herbs, for instance, don’t need an entire square to themselves, so I like to have them share a square with a couple small flowering plants. This is the ideal square combo for the front corners of your raised bed.

Grow the Right Plants for the Right Growing Season

For best results, you’ll change out many of the plants in your square foot garden so that each plant is growing during its optimal weather conditions. Below, you’ll find 6 garden planner printables to help you plan out your own gardening space for each season.

Use a Trellis

A strong vertical structure like a trellis means you can grow a large, sprawling plant like a vining tomato in just one square instead of letting it spread out over several squares. Trellises maximize your space and keep plants in the garden nice and healthy. A panel trellis is ideal for the back of a raised bed, while an obelisk goes great in the middle. If you have two raised beds, you could connect them with a beautiful arch trellis.

Place Taller Crops in the Back

If your raised bed backs up against a fence or your home, make sure to place large plants near the back so they don’t block sunlight from other plants in the growing area. If your bed is accessible on all 4 sides, place taller plants in the middle and then shorter plants around the outside. Low herbs like oregano, thyme, and trailing rosemary are best in the front of the bed, while taller herbs like dill and basil are best in the back.

Think About Your Plant Priorities

The idea is to grow a little bit of your own food, so don’t waste a square growing something everyone in your family hates. I recommend making a plant list of your favorite things for each growing season. You can easily swap out my recommendations below for similarly sized but different plants that tickle your tastebuds a little more.

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SQUARE FOOT GARDEN PLANTING PLANS

To help you plan your garden throughout the year, I’ve created two different planting layouts for each of the three main growing seasons: cool season, warm season, and hot season.

Each layout is designed for a 4 ft × 4 ft raised bed, giving you 16 square feet of growing space. In the example layouts, a panel trellis is placed along the back of the bed to support two seasonal vining crops.

You can easily adapt this layout to fit your own garden setup. For example, if you prefer to use an obelisk trellis in the center of the bed, simply place taller or climbing plants in the middle and surround them with shorter vegetables and herbs around the edges.

If you’re working with a larger 8 ft × 4 ft raised bed, you can combine two of these planting plans side by side to fill the entire space.

A Few Design Tips You’ll Notice in These Layouts

You may notice a few consistent patterns in these garden plans:

• Flowers in the corners help attract pollinators while adding color to the garden.

• Plenty of herbs are included so you can harvest fresh leaves regularly while larger vegetables are still maturing.

• Vertical plants are placed on trellises to maximize space and keep the bed organized.

Lastly, be sure to follow the recommended number of plants per square foot in each layout. This ensures your plants have enough space to grow and helps you avoid situations like ending up with one lonely carrot in an entire square.

Square Foot Garden Planting Plans for the Cool Growing Season

This planting plan features plants that can handle a light frost or two but love growing in temps between 45 and 64 degrees Fahrenheit. For those of us in the Austin area, this represents the plants we can grow over our late fall and winter months.

PLAN #1

The first cool season plan has pea plants growing next to the the panel trellis. Tall herbs like cilantro and parsley can go in the back squares on either side. These herbs can be planted 4 per square foot.

Broccoli plants, which are large plants, take up the 4 middle squares of the bed. You can do kale on one side; plant 1 to 2 kale plants each square depending on how large you’d like the plants to grow. On the opposite side of the kale, you can grow 4 celery plants in one square foot and bok choy in the other (grow just 1 large boy choy plant or 6 toy choy).

You can do herbs with calendula flowers in the front corners, a couple chive plants on one side and trailing rosemary in the other. In the front 2 squares, you can do 16 green onions in 1 square foot and either 2 Swiss chard plants or 4 arugula plants, depending on your preference.

PLAN #2

The second cool season planting plan is similar with pea plants on the trellis and 4 cauliflowers in the center of the bed. Place cabbage plants, one in each of the back corners, and then swap the kale for carrots, which are small plants that can be planted 16 per square foot. Opposite the carrots, you can grow a dill plant in 1 square and 9 spinach plants in the other.

In the front of the bed, you can mix calendula with oregano in one corner, calendula with thyme in another, and then give the last 2 squares to a cool season favorite: lettuce. You can grow 2 to 6 lettuce plants per square foot, depending on the type (looseleaf lettuce can be packed in, while heading lettuce will need more room if you’d like a full head).

This plan allows you to grow up to 66 plants in just 16 square feet of growing space!

Square Foot Garden Plans for the Warm Growing Season

This planting plan features plants that love growing in temps between 65 and 84 degrees Fahrenheit with no chances of frosty weather. If you live in a colder climate, these will likely be representative of your summer garden, while those of us in warmer climates like Austin do best growing these in the spring and fall.

PLAN #1

The first warm season planting plan fills the garden bed with some of our favorite veggies. Two vining tomato plants utilize the panel trellis. Plant basil in each back corner. Growing just 1 basil per square gives each of these plants room to grow to their full potential and become small bushes.

In the middle of the bed, you can give 4 squares over to bush green beans, which can be planted 9 per square foot. This ensures you get good production from these bush-type plants. Opposite the green beans, you can grow 2 summer squash. These are large plants that need 2 entire squares each.

In the front of the bed, you can have a couple chives with marigolds in 1 corner square, and trailing rosemary with marigolds in the other. If you planted Swiss chard last season, you can leave these plants in their spot throughout the entire warm season. If you planted arugula, it’s time for a replant. The final square can grow 9 to 12 beets, depending on the variety you’re growing.

PLAN #2

The second warm season bed features cucumbers on the trellis and zinnias in the place of basil. You can grow sweet peppers, dill, and eggplant along the side of your bed, and potatoes in the middle. Plant 2 to 4 potatoes per square, depending on the mature size of the spud you’re growing. In the front, you can grow oregano, thyme, marigolds, and hot peppers.

Square Foot Garden Plans for the Hot Growing Season

These planting plans feature plants that survive and even thrive when temps are above 85 degrees Fahrenheit. You may not have a hot season where you live. Here in Austin, these are just about the only plants we can keep alive over our scorching summers.

PLAN #1

Tomatillos grow on the trellis, framed by basil on either side in the back. You can grow 16 black-eyed peas (4 each in 4 squares) in the middle. This ensures you get a large enough harvest from these bush-type plants to enjoy. On the other side, you can grow bush winter squash in 2 squares each.

In the front, you can continue growing the chives, Swiss chard, and rosemary from last season. When the marigolds fade, swap them out for gomphrena (a beautiful little flower for hot weather). If you planted arugula, replant before the heat of summer really hits, and your arugula should make it through. In the last square, add some New Zealand spinach plants. These plants are super heat and drought tolerant—and quite tasty!

PLAN #2

It’s a little too hot for regular cucumbers, but you can still grow Armenian cucumbers on the trellis. Keep the zinnias from last season in the back corners; they can push through the heat.

In the middle of the garden space, grow sweet peppers, okra (give each plant 2 full squares), a bush watermelon plant, and an eggplant.

In the front, you can keep your hot pepper plants from last season unless they’re showing signs of stress. You can also keep your oregano and thyme.

I hope you’ve found this online vegetable garden planner useful for your square foot garden. If you’re not ready to commit to the full square foot method, I recommend taking my planting recs and and growing a variety of fruits and veggies in your garden. You’ll enjoy so many benefits, including lots of harvests throughout your growing season!

Let us know in the comments if you have any questions about planning your garden out foot by foot!