Quantcast
A Layout for a Raised Bed Vegetable Garden | Almanac.com

A Layout for a Raised Bed Vegetable Garden

Primary Image
A raised garden made of concrete

A multi-year plan with crop rotation!

Nancy Eggink
Print Friendly and PDF
Almanac Garden Planner

Become a better gardener! Discover our new Almanac Garden Planner features for 2024. It’s easy, fun, and free to try!

Body

What a delight to hear back from Nancy E., who’s now in her second year of raised bed gardening. For Year 2, Nancy used the crop rotation feature to ensure she was arranging plants in a healthy way. Take a look at her garden layouts.

Nancy’s Garden Story

I am an avid gardener who started out gardening just for my family in 2022. I planted in newly constructed raised garden beds. The Almanac’s Garden Planner was a great tool to plan the varieties and spacing. In my first season, I could only plant as the beds were built and filled, so some of the squash and peppers got in really late but still had a decent production year as we had an extended summer (into October). 

Then, I created a follow-up plan for 2023. I love the follow-on plan feature to help with crop rotation. It showed me where NOT to plant items from the same family. 

In 2023, it was the first year I could use all the beds from the beginning of the planting season. My husband had built 16 concrete beds, each with its own irrigation drip system that is controlled in what will be the greenhouse (the block structure in one of the photos).  

I was very excited and used the Garden Planner during the winter to see where everything would go and how many seeds I’d need to start and/or buy. 

Our weather in the Denver, Colorado, area was odd in 2023—a long, cold winter followed by a long, cool, and wet spring, and a short summer. The tomatoes only started to ripen in mid-August! The onions and garlic really liked the consistent moisture, and I went overboard on the cucumber plants, worrying about them not surviving. The most successful plant in the garden this year has been the strawberries. They are dark green and lush, and still producing (Fort Laramie, overbearing). 

As you can see, we are surrounded by nature and are trying to keep out the largest wildlife (deer and pronghorn), but we have seen wild turkeys hop the fence with their poults. With the abundance, I’ve brought many items into my workplace to give to coworkers, and I am considering a small booth in our local farmers market next year.

My garden is my refuge, my happy place. I hope it can inspire others as well.

–Nancy Eggink

Nancy’s Garden Plan and Pics, 2022

Parker, CO (Zone 5)


 
Nancy’s Garden Plan and Pics, 2023

Try the Garden Planner. It’s free for the first seven days, with ample time to play around and plan your first garden!

See more types of garden layouts and pictures!

About The Author

Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann loves nature, stargazing, and gardening so it’s not surprise that she and The Old Farmer’s Almanac found each other. She leads digital content for the Almanac website, and is also a certified master gardener in the state of Indiana. Read More from Catherine Boeckmann

2023 Gardening Club