Vegetable gardening
32 crop pages for US backyard gardens, with spacing, soil, sun, water, and common problems.
Fruiting crops
Tomatoes, peppers, squash, beans, and other crops grown for fruit or pods.
- TomatoesHow to grow tomatoes in raised beds: spacing, soil, watering, planting depth, harvest timing, and common problems.
- PeppersHow to grow bell and hot peppers in raised beds: spacing, warmth, soil, watering, and common problems.
- CucumbersCucumber spacing, trellising, soil, and watering for raised beds.
- ZucchiniGrowing zucchini in raised beds: spacing, powdery mildew, pollination, and watering.
- EggplantHow to grow eggplant in raised beds: warmth, spacing, watering, and flea beetle pressure.
- BeansBush and pole beans in raised beds: spacing, nitrogen, trellising, and harvest timing.
- PeasGrow peas in raised beds: cool-season timing, trellis spacing, and why they fail in heat.
- OkraGrowing okra in raised beds: heat, spacing, harvest size, and why it sulks in cool springs.
- Winter squashButternut and other winter squash in raised beds: space, trellising, and why one plant is enough.
- CornSweet corn in backyard gardens: why it needs a block for pollination, and why a single raised bed is a weak fit.
Leafy greens & brassicas
Lettuce, kale, spinach, broccoli, and other cool-season leaves and heads.
- LettuceGrow lettuce in raised beds: spacing, cool-season timing, soil, and watering.
- KaleGrowing kale in raised beds: spacing, frost, watering, and cabbage worm pressure.
- SpinachGrow spinach in raised beds: cool soil, tight spacing, and why it bolts in heat.
- Swiss chardGrowing Swiss chard in raised beds: spacing, heat tolerance, and cut-and-come-again harvest.
- BroccoliGrowing broccoli in raised beds: cool weather, 18-inch spacing, and side-shoot harvest.
- CabbageHow to grow cabbage in raised beds: spacing by head size, watering, and split heads.
- CauliflowerGrowing cauliflower in raised beds: why it is fussier than broccoli, blanching, and heat.
- ArugulaGrow arugula in raised beds: fast harvest, tight spacing, and heat bitterness.
- Collard greensGrowing collard greens in raised beds: spacing, Southern seasons, and frost flavor.
Roots & alliums
Carrots, potatoes, onions, garlic, and other underground or bulb crops.
- CarrotsCarrot spacing, soil depth, and watering for straight roots in raised beds.
- RadishesFast radish crops in raised beds: spacing, soil, and why they get pithy or all tops.
- BeetsGrowing beets in raised beds: thinning, soil depth, and using both roots and greens.
- OnionsGrowing onions in raised beds: sets vs plants, spacing, day length, and watering.
- GarlicGrowing garlic in raised beds: fall planting, spacing, watering, and harvest timing.
- PotatoesGrowing potatoes in raised beds: seed pieces, hilling, soil depth, and watering.
- Sweet potatoesGrowing sweet potatoes in raised beds: slips, heat, spacing, and curing.
- TurnipsGrowing turnips in raised beds: fast roots, greens, spacing, and cool-season timing.
Herbs
Culinary herbs that earn a square or two at the edge of a vegetable bed.
Perennials
Crops that stay in the bed more than one season.
Related tools
Plant spacing calculatorPick a crop and a bed size. No spacing chart required.Fertilizer calculatorPick a crop. See whether the bag should be high N, high P, high K, or balanced.How often to waterFinger test, crop differences, and why gallon charts fail.Container gardeningPlastic, ceramic, and fabric pots — which vegetables fit 1, 5, and 10 gallons.Raised beds hubSoil depth, volume, and bed prep.