Figure out how many vegetables to plant
Ever wonder how many vegetable plants to buy when you’re planning your garden? The chart below shows the number of individual plants you’ll need to plant for fresh eating each season. If you're doing multiple plantings of a seasonal crop, such as greens or beets, then use the same quantity for each sowing.
Adjust to your vegetable garden needs
Some veggies have tiny seed, so for those we’ve noted how to thin the seedlings. If you want to can or freeze a crop, or you just really like a vegetable, you’ll want to plant more than is suggested below. The chart also includes about how many plants can be grown per foot of row so you can figure out how much space you’ll need. Use this handy chart as a guideline when planning how many vegetables to plant, but feel free to adjust to your preferences!
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Planting a vegetable garden for a family
In general, multiply the number of plants per person by 3 or 4 for a family-sized planting. We’ve done the work for you in adjusting the numbers of these plants in the chart so at harvest you aren’t overwhelmed with too many delicious veggies. Keeping a garden journal from year to year will help you track which crops you had more or less than needed so you can better plan for future growing seasons.
| Crop (number of plants per ft. of row) | Number of plants per person | Number of plants for a family of 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Asparagus (1 plant/ft. of row) | 5-10 plants | 25 plants |
| Bush beans (2 plants/ft. of row) | 12-15 plants | 45 plants |
| Beets (Thin to 3 plants/ft. of row) | 15-30 plants | 90 plants |
| Cucumber (1 plant/2 ft. of row) | 1 vine, 2 bushes | 2 vines, 4 bushes |
| Carrots (Thin to 12 plants/ft. of row) | 48 plants | 144 plants |
| Corn (1 plant/ft. of row) | 10-15 plants | 40 plants (plant in blocks for best pollination) |
| Eggplant (1 plant/2 ft. of row) | 2-3 plants | 7 plants |
| Kale (10/10 ft. of row) | 2-7 plants | 40 plants |
| Leaf lettuce (Thin to 3 plants/ft. of row) | 24 plants | 78 plants |
| Melon (1 plant/6 ft. of row) | 1-2 plants | 4 plants |
| Onion (4 sets/ft. of row) | 12-20 sets | 80-100 sets |
| Peas (6 plants/ft. of row) | 15-20 plants | 70 plants |
| Pepper (1 plant/ft. of row) | 3-5 plants | 8-10 plants |
| Potato (1 plant/ft. of row) | 10 plants | 40 plants |
| Radish (thin to 12 plants/ft. of row) | 10-15 plants | 60 plants |
| Spinach (Thin to 6 plants/ft. of row) | 30-60 plants | 180 plants |
| Squash (1 plant/6 ft. of row) | 1-2 plants | 3 plants |
| Tomato (1 plant/2 ft. of row) | 2-4 plants | 4-6 plants |
| Zucchini (1 plant/3 ft. of row) | 1-2 plants | 4 plants |
