3 Step Vegetable Garden Design

Growing vegetables does not have to be complicated. Good vegetable garden design does require some planning and preparation, though. The first year is where you put in the most effort, because you are learning and because this is when you do most of the soil preparation work.

The best advice is to begin simply and on a smaller scale than your “dream garden.” With a little experience and some success, you will find yourself adding plants and improving techniques each year.

To keep you organized and efficient, we have broken the process into three steps:

Site Selection & Soil Preparation

Before you pick up a shovel or head out to buy seeds or plants, consider first what you hope to get out of the gardening process, and then what your garden needs to grow so that your hopes are fulfilled.

To answer the first question, ask yourself what you want to achieve, and how much time and money you are willing to devote to the project. It is very easy to become carried away, so be honest with yourself and revisit time and money limits as you proceed to create and implement your plan.

To begin sketching out a workable plan, keep your ideas organized using our garden planning form.

Site Selection

To decide where to plant, your most important vegetable garden design considerations are:

To attain each of these objectives, use the garden planning form to chart what you must do and how much time and money each step requires. Then you can plan your time and your actions in a logical sequence that will keep you focused.

For example, to ensure 6-8 hours of sun to your garden area, perhaps you must trim back some overhanging branches or reorganize a patio to accommodate a container garden.

Soil Preparation

This part is critical. All your vegetable garden design work will be lost if your plants do not have the proper foundation for maximal growth.

The information you need to assess and prepare your garden soil can be found on our soil page.

This is the most work you will encounter, so break it down into manageable steps. You can use the garden planning form to keep organized. Or consider starting with a container vegetable garden, for which you can use store bought potting soil.

Choosing Varieties & Garden Organization

Choosing what to grow is the fun part of vegetable garden design. It is a function of what you like to eat as well as what will be most likely to succeed in your area.

Which Varieties?

Also review seed and plant catalogs for this information. Buy only good seed from a reputable company. Look for certified disease free seed.

If you buy plants to transplant to your garden, small stocky plants are best (about 4 in./10 cm). Don’t buy tall, spindly plants. Choose those with a deep green color. Avoid those with any hint of disease, as this can infect other plants.

Enter all your choices, in order of preference, into the garden planning form.

Garden Organization

Where you place plants matters. You should first sketch out a bird’s eye view of your vegetable garden design. Use pencil so you can erase and revise easily.

Some considerations:

Unless your garden is narrow and you can easily reach all areas from the perimeter, you will have to incorporate some walkways to get at your plants.

Row gardens are the more traditional design, but they generally require more weed control measures than if you break your garden space into blocks (like an egg carton). The block design will require more pathways, however, and will affect your companion planting arrangement.

If you have limited space, consider container gardening, planting several smaller gardens, or planting smaller varieties of your favorite vegetables. Smaller versions usually contain mini, bush, baby or patio in their names.

Feeding & Maintenance

Finally, your vegetable garden design should consider what it will take to keep your garden growing, providing you with healthy inexpensive food for many years:

Shelter for Young Plants

You should protect your plants when they are young from insects, frost and wind. Cutworms eat young stems, so wrap the bottom 2’’ of the stem with a newspaper collar before planting, and have 1” of the collar below ground. Remove once plants are established.

Frost protection is as simple as a gallon milk jug with its bottom cut off placed over young plants at night. Wind protection for young plants can be accomplished with a A-frame made from window screens anchored into the ground with sticks.

Mulch & Watering

These are complimentary practices, as mulch helps in water protection and soil preservation. You can use your mulch material to cover your garden pathways, a less expensive alternative to brick or stone. Learn all you need to know about mulching here.

Seedlings need to be constantly moist, while larger plants should be watered when the soil is dry several inches down. Feel for this with your fingers. To save water, limit weeds, and promote deep roots, give each plant a good soaking at its base rather than frequent lighter watering.

Fertilizing

Part of your soil preparation includes ensuring a good nutrient balance. The most important are phosphorous, nitrogen and potash. You can provide these with either organic or inorganic fertilizers.

Organic fertilizers include rotted manure, compost, blood meal, bone meal and seaweed. Inorganic fertilizers list the three essential nutrients as a series of numbers for phosphorous-nitrogen-potash concentration. A good balance is 10-10-10. Wash any inorganic fertilizer from leaf or stem areas, as it will burn. For the same reason, wear gloves, do not breath in the dust, and wash your hands after use.

Pest Control

This is a science unto itself, so for some pests you will need expert help. But you can approach this systematically using a time tested method, which fortunately includes free help.

A fencing plan is critical to good vegetable garden design. You can use a wire fence, but to deter rabbits, you need to bury the fence 12” underground, angled at a 45 degree angle inward. For deer, the fence should be at least 6' tall, as deer are amazing jumpers.

An easier alternative for these pests is to spray with the organic Liquid Fence, a safe and effective product that deters rabbits and deer without harming your plants.

Sometimes the best vegetable garden design will not prevent all possible pests. Since chemical pesticides are expensive, consider natural alternatives. Examples include using diatomaceous earth to kill flea beetles, shallow pans of beer to drown slugs at night, or using predator insects such as ladybugs, lacewings or praying mantis. You can also plant a few more of each vegetable variety than you think you’ll need. Then some loss to pests will not devastate your crop.

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