Square Foot Gardening: Plants Per Square Foot Chart & Layout Guide
Quick answer: Square foot gardening divides your bed into 1-foot grid squares and assigns each vegetable a density: 1, 2, 4, 9, or 16 plants per square foot based on mature plant size. A single 4x8 raised bed using SFG fits 32 planting squares and can grow enough salad greens, herbs, and vegetables for one to two people. Use the plant spacing calculator to build a custom layout.
I spent my first gardening year planting traditional rows in a 4x8 raised bed. Half the bed was walking paths between rows. I grew 12 tomato plants and a handful of lettuce. The next year I switched to square foot gardening, fitted a grid over the same bed, and grew tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, carrots, herbs, onions, and beans -- all in the same space. The harvest wasn't even close.
Square foot gardening isn't new. Mel Bartholomew published the method in 1981. But it works, and it's the best system I've found for getting maximum food out of a small raised bed.
How Square Foot Gardening Works
The concept is brutally simple.
- Build a raised bed (4x4 or 4x8 are the standards).
- Lay a grid of 1-foot squares on top -- you can use string, lattice strips, or wooden slats.
- Plant each square with one type of vegetable at a specific density.
- When one square is harvested, replant it with something new.
The original SFG method uses a specific soil mix (1/3 peat moss, 1/3 vermiculite, 1/3 blended compost). I use a modified version -- 60% topsoil, 30% compost, 10% perlite -- because it's cheaper and works just as well in open-bottom raised beds. I cover the full soil mix, costs, and filling technique in my how to fill a raised bed guide.
Plants Per Square Foot Chart
This is the core reference. Each vegetable gets a density based on how big it grows. The math is straightforward: if a plant needs 12 inches of space, it gets 1 per square foot. If it only needs 3 inches, you fit 16.
| Vegetable | Plants Per Sq Ft | Spacing | Seed Depth | Good Companions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basil | 4 | 6" | 1/4" | Tomatoes, peppers |
| Beans (bush) | 9 | 4" | 1" | Carrots, cucumbers |
| Beets | 9 | 4" | 1/2" | Lettuce, onions |
| Broccoli | 1 | 12" | 1/2" | Beets, onions |
| Cabbage | 1 | 12" | 1/2" | Beans, celery |
| Carrots | 16 | 3" | 1/4" | Onions, peas |
| Cauliflower | 1 | 12" | 1/2" | Beans, celery |
| Celery | 4 | 6" | Surface | Beans, tomatoes |
| Corn | 4 | 6" | 1-2" | Beans, squash |
| Cucumbers | 2 | 6" + trellis | 1" | Beans, peas |
| Dill | 4 | 6" | 1/4" | Lettuce, cucumbers |
| Eggplant | 1 | 12" | 1/4" | Beans, peppers |
| Garlic | 9 | 4" | 2" | Most crops |
| Kale | 1 | 12" | 1/2" | Beets, celery |
| Lettuce (head) | 4 | 6" | 1/4" | Carrots, radishes |
| Lettuce (leaf) | 4 | 6" | 1/4" | Carrots, onions |
| Onions | 9 | 4" | 1/2" | Carrots, lettuce |
| Parsley | 4 | 6" | 1/4" | Tomatoes, peppers |
| Peas | 8 | 3" + trellis | 1" | Carrots, radishes |
| Peppers | 1 | 12" | 1/4" | Basil, carrots |
| Radishes | 16 | 3" | 1/2" | Carrots, lettuce |
| Spinach | 9 | 4" | 1/2" | Strawberries, peas |
| Squash (summer) | 1 (needs 2 sq) | 24" | 1" | Corn, beans |
| Tomatoes | 1 | 12" + cage | 1/4" | Basil, carrots |
| Zucchini | 1 (needs 2 sq) | 24" | 1" | Corn, beans |
Cucumbers and peas are listed with a trellis because in SFG you almost always grow them vertically. A trellis on the north side of the bed lets you fit 2 cucumbers per square foot without shading other plants.
Planning a 4x8 Square Foot Garden Layout
A 4x8 bed gives you 32 squares. Here's a real layout I've used that fed two people salads, stir-fries, and side dishes from May through October:
| Row | Square 1 | Square 2 | Square 3 | Square 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (north, trellis) | Cucumbers (2) | Peas (8) | Peas (8) | Cucumbers (2) |
| 2 | Tomato (1) | Peppers (1) | Peppers (1) | Tomato (1) |
| 3 | Basil (4) | Carrots (16) | Onions (9) | Basil (4) |
| 4 | Lettuce (4) | Radishes (16) | Beets (9) | Lettuce (4) |
| 5 | Lettuce (4) | Spinach (9) | Carrots (16) | Kale (1) |
| 6 | Beans (9) | Beans (9) | Onions (9) | Garlic (9) |
| 7 | Broccoli (1) | Cauliflower (1) | Cabbage (1) | Eggplant (1) |
| 8 | Radishes (16) | Lettuce (4) | Spinach (9) | Parsley (4) |
The trellis goes on the north side (row 1) so tall plants don't shade shorter ones. Tall plants (tomatoes, broccoli) go in the middle-north. Short stuff (lettuce, radishes) goes south where they get full sun.
For a custom layout with exact plant counts, the plant spacing calculator lets you pick your bed size and drop crops into a grid.
Which Vegetables Work Best (and Worst) in SFG
Best performers in square foot gardens:
- Leaf lettuce -- 4 per square, 30-day harvest, replant 3-4 times per season. The single highest-output crop in SFG by a wide margin.
- Radishes -- 16 per square, 25-day harvest, replant after every crop. I use radish squares as placeholders for slow-starting crops.
- Herbs (basil, parsley, cilantro) -- 4 per square, continuous harvest, high value per square foot.
- Bush beans -- 9 per square, minimal maintenance, fix nitrogen in the soil for the next crop.
- Carrots -- 16 per square in loose SFG soil. They grow straighter in SFG mix than in any ground soil I've tried.
- Winter squash -- needs 4-9 square feet per plant. One butternut plant consumes 25% of a 4x8 bed. Grow it elsewhere.
- Corn -- needs a minimum 2x2 block for pollination and produces one ear per stalk. That's 4 squares for 4 ears of corn. Not worth the space unless you have a huge bed.
- Potatoes -- need 12+ inches of depth and constant hilling. Possible in SFG but easier in a dedicated potato bin or bag.
- Melons -- sprawl aggressively and need 60+ days of space. Unless you trellis them, they dominate a bed.
SFG vs Traditional Rows: What You Actually Get
I tracked this one summer because I was curious. Same soil mix, same bed depth (12 inches), same watering schedule. One 4x8 bed with SFG grid, one 4x8 bed with traditional rows.
| Metric | SFG | Traditional Rows |
|---|---|---|
| Usable planting area | 32 sq ft (100%) | 18-20 sq ft (~60%) |
| Total plants | 170+ | 60-80 |
| Different crop varieties | 18 | 8 |
| Lettuce harvests (season) | 48 heads | 16 heads |
| Weeding time per week | 5-10 minutes | 30+ minutes |
| Water usage | Lower (less exposed soil) | Higher |
Common SFG Mistakes
Not using a physical grid. The grid is the whole system. Without it, you'll eyeball spacing and end up with crowded plants and wasted gaps. I use 1x2 cedar strips screwed into a lattice that sits on top of the bed frame. Cost: $15. Lasts for years.
Planting too deep for SFG. The standard SFG soil mix is lighter than native soil. Seeds planted at the traditional depth sometimes sit too deep in the fluffy mix. I reduce seed depth by about 25% in my SFG beds -- a 1-inch bean seed goes at 3/4 inch instead.
Ignoring succession planting. SFG is designed for replanting. When you harvest all 16 radishes from a square, that square should have new seeds in it the same day. I keep a list of what goes where after each crop finishes. Without succession planting, you lose half the productivity advantage.
Overplanting large crops. Four squares of tomatoes in a 4x8 bed is fine. Eight squares of tomatoes means half your bed grows one crop. Mix it up. The diversity is a feature -- it attracts different pollinators and reduces pest pressure.
Forgetting depth. SFG beds need 6 inches minimum, but 12 inches is far better. Most SFG literature says 6 inches is enough. Technically true for lettuce and herbs. For tomatoes, peppers, and root crops, you want 10-12 inches. Check the soil volume calculator to figure out what that depth costs in soil.
Starting SFG on a Budget
You don't need expensive raised bed kits. Here's what my first SFG bed cost:
- 4x8 bed frame (untreated 2x12 lumber): $45
- Grid strips (cedar lattice): $15
- Bulk soil mix (1.2 cubic yards): $60
- Seeds (10 varieties from a seed swap): $12
- Total: $132
Compare that to the raised bed cost calculator if you want to price out different lumber options and sizes.
FAQ
How deep does a square foot garden need to be?
The original SFG method says 6 inches. I strongly recommend 12 inches. At 6 inches you're limited to salad greens and herbs. At 12 inches you can grow everything including tomatoes, carrots, and peppers. My 12-inch beds also retain moisture far better than my 6-inch beds -- I water them half as often in summer.
Can I do square foot gardening in the ground?
Yes, but you lose some advantages. You can lay a grid directly on prepared ground soil and plant into it. The spacing benefits still apply. But SFG soil mixes perform better than most native ground soil, and the raised frame makes the grid easier to manage. If your ground soil is decent, mark out a 4x4 area, amend with 3-4 inches of compost, lay a grid, and plant.
How many people can a 4x8 SFG bed feed?
One 4x8 bed with good succession planting provides supplemental vegetables for 1-2 people throughout the growing season. It won't replace your grocery store trips entirely -- you'd need 100-200 square feet of intensive SFG planting for that. But it covers daily salads, cooking herbs, and enough tomatoes and peppers for fresh eating easily.
What do I plant after harvesting a square?
This depends on timing. In spring, follow cool-weather crops (peas, lettuce, spinach) with warm-weather crops (beans, cucumbers, basil). In late summer, follow spent warm crops with fall cool crops (more lettuce, kale, radishes). Radishes are the best filler crop -- 25 days from seed to harvest, and they loosen the soil for whatever comes next.
Can I use SFG in containers?
Yes, with adjustments. A single square foot is the minimum useful container size for SFG. A 2x2 container (4 squares) works well for a small herb and salad garden on a balcony. Use the SFG soil mix (which is essentially a container mix) rather than my bulk raised bed recipe. Make sure containers have drainage holes -- SFG mix in a container without drainage turns into a swamp.
Next Steps
- Plan your exact layout with the plant spacing calculator -- it supports SFG grid mode and gives you plant counts per square.
- Figure out lumber and soil costs with the raised bed cost calculator.
- Need to know how much soil mix to buy? Use the soil volume calculator for exact cubic feet and bag counts.