8 Free Vegetable Garden Plans to Bring a Harvest to Your Backyard

2016-02-19
8 Free Vegetable Garden Plans to Bring a Harvest to Your Backyard

If you would like to create a vegetable garden but aren't sure where to start, these free plans will get you on track to grow a healthy, beautiful selection of edible plants. Whether you want just a small raised bed or a full scale patch of produce, you'll find plenty of ideas here.

01 of 08

Small Children's Vegetable Garden

Vegetable garden ideas that involve children help establish healthy habits and get young kids excited about eating produce. Use this easy vegetable garden for fun, and to pass along gardening lessons. Once planted, it takes only a few hours a week to keep it looking its best.

02 of 08

Spring-Harvest Vegetable Garden

What better way to celebrate spring than whipping up a salad with just-picked radishes, spinach, or lettuce? You can enjoy the freshest flavors of the season with this simple spring vegetable garden plan. Designed for a four-foot-square raised bed, it nestles in 10 different cool-season crops that do their best growing in lower temperatures and can even take a light frost.

03 of 08

Summer Vegetable Garden Plan

Once the soil warms, plant summer-yielding vegetables such as tomatoes and peppers as in this vegetable garden plan. It's designed to follow the spring vegetable garden plan for a four-foot-square raised bed, so it has carrots, cabbage, onions, snow peas, and parsley already growing in it.

04 of 08

Fall Harvest Vegetable Garden Plan

Tender lettuce, spinach, and peas aren't limited to spring. Enjoy these and other cool-season crops by following this fall bounty garden plan for a four-foot-square raised bed. This plan is designed to follow the summer vegetable garden plan, so it includes previously planted crops that would be reaching maturity as your fall-planted crops are starting to grow.

05 of 08

French-Inspired Kitchen Garden Plan

This vegetable garden plan features a central diamond-shape bed with four larger raised beds around it and wide brick pathways running between them. A row of ornamental perennials or shrubs of your choice can serve as a hedge around the perimeter, set off by a white picket fence. The raised beds are filled with a variety of vegetables, herbs, and edible flowers, as a nod to the efficient yet beautiful kitchen gardens of Medieval monasteries.

06 of 08

Large-Scale Vegetable Garden Plan

If you're planning your garden with the hope to grow lots of different vegetables and have the space to spread out, try this large-scale vegetable garden plan. It's got a little bit of everything: leafy greens, root veggies, herbs, and tasty pods.

07 of 08

Easy Children's Garden Plan

Kids like plants that appeal to their senses and spark their imaginations. This easy children's vegetable garden plan will please gardeners of all ages with unusual and fun-looking vegetables such as kohlrabi and 'Scallop' summer squash. They'll also love making the garden pretty with the marigolds and sunflowers that flank the bed's edge.

08 of 08

Small-Space Vegetable Garden Plan

Bigger is not always better when it comes to vegetable gardening. Small beds require less time to plant and maintain than large ones, and you can still harvest plenty of produce by choosing more compact crops. This small-space vegetable garden plan for a 6 x 8 foot raised bed brims with fresh greens, herbs, and edible flowers.

Related Article

18 Clever Ways to Use Fallen Twigs and Sticks in Your Garden

18 Clever Ways to Use Fallen Twigs and Sticks in Your Garden

Make cleanup easier and put fallen sticks in your yard to good use by making rustic garden fences, pollinator shelters, compost, and more with these simple ideas.
How to Keep Squirrels Out of Potted Plants: 7 Smart Tips

How to Keep Squirrels Out of Potted Plants: 7 Smart Tips

This guide on how to keep squirrels out of potted plants includes using barriers, applying repellents, and limiting food sources. Stop tree squirrels and ground squirrels from digging in your containers by using several of these tactics to find what works best for you.
Unleashing the Beauty of Geranium - Centric Container Gardens

Unleashing the Beauty of Geranium - Centric Container Gardens

Unleashing the Beauty of Geranium - Centric Container Gardens
14 Best Low-Maintenance Outdoor Plants for Containers in Sun or Shade

14 Best Low-Maintenance Outdoor Plants for Containers in Sun or Shade

Choosing the right pot size and selecting low-maintenance outdoor plants to suit your space goes a long way toward achieving an easy-care container garden. These tips and ideas will help you choose beautiful, easy-care container plants.
Unveiling the Mystique of Stapelia: A Captivating Addition to Your Indoor Garden

Unveiling the Mystique of Stapelia: A Captivating Addition to Your Indoor Garden

Unveiling the Mystique of Stapelia: A Captivating Addition to Your Indoor Garden
Unveiling the Secrets of Lucky Bamboo: Repotting, Propagation, and DIY Displays

Unveiling the Secrets of Lucky Bamboo: Repotting, Propagation, and DIY Displays

Unveiling the Secrets of Lucky Bamboo: Repotting, Propagation, and DIY Displays
The Enchanting Allure of Blanket Flowers in Your Garden

The Enchanting Allure of Blanket Flowers in Your Garden

The Enchanting Allure of Blanket Flowers in Your Garden
Unveiling the Secrets of Perfect Garden Edging

Unveiling the Secrets of Perfect Garden Edging

Unveiling the Secrets of Perfect Garden Edging
Transform Tiny Outdoor Spaces with a DIY Container Pond

Transform Tiny Outdoor Spaces with a DIY Container Pond

Transform Tiny Outdoor Spaces with a DIY Container Pond
12 Backyard Waterfall Ideas to Transform Your Space

12 Backyard Waterfall Ideas to Transform Your Space

This guide to backyard waterfall ideas will help you decide if you want a private retreat, a place to entertain guests, a low-maintenance waterfall, or a pond with extensive plantings and fish. Here are some spectacular water garden ideas to help you get inspired to build a backyard waterfall.
Nature's Defense: Keeping Fleas and Ticks at Bay with Garden Plants

Nature's Defense: Keeping Fleas and Ticks at Bay with Garden Plants

Nature's Defense: Keeping Fleas and Ticks at Bay with Garden Plants
Unveiling the Secrets to Organic Leafhopper Control in Your Garden

Unveiling the Secrets to Organic Leafhopper Control in Your Garden

Unveiling the Secrets to Organic Leafhopper Control in Your Garden
How to Identify and Get Rid of Poison Ivy Safely

How to Identify and Get Rid of Poison Ivy Safely

Find out how to identify and get rid of poison ivy without touching this rash-causing plant.

8 Expert Tips on How to Keep Squirrels Out of Bird Feeders

8 Expert Tips on How to Keep Squirrels Out of Bird Feeders

These tips from experts on how to keep squirrels out of bird feeders ensure a cleaner outdoor space and only birds at your feeder.
The Truth About Railroad Ties in Gardening

The Truth About Railroad Ties in Gardening

The Truth About Railroad Ties in Gardening
The Magic of Growing Produce from Scraps

The Magic of Growing Produce from Scraps

The Magic of Growing Produce from Scraps
Unveiling the Wonders of Malabar Spinach: A Dual-Purpose Delight

Unveiling the Wonders of Malabar Spinach: A Dual-Purpose Delight

Unveiling the Wonders of Malabar Spinach: A Dual-Purpose Delight
Unveiling the Secrets of Attracting Birds to Your Garden

Unveiling the Secrets of Attracting Birds to Your Garden

Unveiling the Secrets of Attracting Birds to Your Garden
Unveiling the Magic of Fireflies in Your Garden

Unveiling the Magic of Fireflies in Your Garden

Unveiling the Magic of Fireflies in Your Garden
Transforming Trash into a Bird's Paradise: A DIY Adventure

Transforming Trash into a Bird's Paradise: A DIY Adventure

Transforming Trash into a Bird's Paradise: A DIY Adventure