The Best Vegetables For Square Foot Gardening

Choosing the best vegetables for square foot gardening is crucial if you want to efficiently plant using this method. Your space is limited, and there’s little room for error.

When I started my square foot garden, I thought I could just start digging! Square foot gardening is easy and has plenty of benefits, but you need to plan your layout for the most success. If you do it right from the start, your next planting season will be a breeze.

In this article, I share which vegetables work best in a square foot garden and how I choose which ones to grow in mine!

The Best Vegetables For Square Foot Gardening

You should keep a few simple rules in mind when you’re setting up a square foot garden and choosing what to grow in it. To get the most from your garden, remember to:

• Choose vegetables and herbs that can benefit one another.
• Keep the height of plants and the amount of sun each needs in mind.
• Use garlic, leeks, onions, and shallots to border your vegetables (these will keep insects and pests away)

With that said, here are some of the best vegetables to grow in your square foot garden!

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16 Per Square Foot

You can plant 16 seeds of carrots, chives, radishes, and spring onions per square foot. Border the carrot squares with chives to keep carrot flies away, and place the radishes next to an onion square to save them from pests. 

9 Per Square Foot

You can grow nine beets, celery stalks, leeks, and spinach bunches per square foot. Excellent companion plants for beets include onions and radishes, while spinach works well next to garlic.

4 – 8 Per Square Foot

The 4 to 8 per square foot category is big, so you have a variety of plants to choose from!

• Basil
• Beans
• Garlic
• Lettuce
• Onions
• Parsley

These all work excellent as companion plants for the veggies in the 9 and 16 per square foot category. They won’t compete for nutrients and will provide each other with mutual protection from pests.

1 Per Square Foot

The vegetables in this category can grow big, and while you might get away with planting two or three per square foot, the recommended number is one.

• Asparagus
• Broccoli
• Brussel Sprouts
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Corn
• Dill 
• Eggplant
• Mint
• Oregano
• Peppers
• Potato
• Rosemary
• Sage
• Squash
• Tomatoes
• Zucchini

Most of these veggies are favorites for many of us, and you’ll likely want to grow them in your square foot garden. Because they take up a whole square foot, you’ll have to carefully plan the layout of your vegetable garden to make the most use of the little space you have. 

How To Choose The Best Vegetables For Square Foot Gardening

Choosing what veggies to grow in your square foot garden can take some time. You have so little space to work with, so it’s essential that you make the right decision! While planning my garden, I ask myself some questions about each crop I’m considering. 

1. Do I eat this? If yes, how much of it?
2. How much space does this plant need to grow?
3. Are there companion plants for this vegetable?
4. How much sun and water does this need?
5. Will I need to regularly trim this vegetable to keep it thriving in a square foot space?
6. How much produce can I yield from this per square foot?

Asking myself these questions helps me categorize each vegetable or herb I’d like to grow. This makes it easier to plan my garden layout and keep track of what I’ve planted. I can also go back to my chart to get a head start on the next season’s seedlings. 

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The Advantages And Disadvantages Of Square Foot Gardening

Square foot gardening isn’t for everyone. Many people grow better when they have more space or want bigger gardens to meet their needs. 

The Advantages Of Square Foot Gardening

Square foot gardens offer you ease and simplicity. If you’re new to gardening, have little time to maintain one, or want to involve your kids, square foot gardening is an excellent method to follow.

You can build a square foot garden on the ground or in raised beds. It’s easy to set up and maintain, you can grow a variety of fruits and vegetables in a smaller space, and you’ll waste less!

The Disadvantages Of Square Foot Gardening

Square foot gardening can cost more to get started. If you want to use raised beds, you have to purchase or make these, and the specific soil mix fill-up can shake your pocket.

Another disadvantage of square foot gardening is that you’re limited to growing smaller plants. Large vegetables like melons or squash are difficult to accommodate. 

Before You Start Planting

Square foot gardening is fun, and you can get really creative with the way you design yours. Once you’ve chosen the right vegetables to grow, you can plan your layout and get started! It’s an easy, low-maintenance way of planting enough to keep your pantry full.

I hope this article gave you an idea of which veggies work best in a square foot garden and how you need to plant each to keep the others pest free. If you have any more questions about growing vegetables in a square foot garden, pop them in the comments, and I’ll get back to you!