A raised bed changes the rules of your garden in one afternoon. The soil warms two to three weeks earlier, drainage stops being a gamble, and the clay you inherited stops mattering. What it does not change is arithmetic: one badly chosen crop swallows the whole bed.
Below are 20 crops that earn their place in a cold-climate raised bed, each with sowing depth, spacing, plants per standard bed, timing and an honest difficulty rating. At the end: a comparison table, a frost table for zones 3–6, and the crops that belong somewhere else. Everything about the bed itself – timber, soil mix, watering and winter care – is in the guide to raised bed gardening.
Quick facts: the raised bed as growing space
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Standard bed size | 1.2 × 2.4 m (4 × 8 ft), about 2.9 m² (32 sq ft) |
| Working width | Max 1.2 m (4 ft), so you reach the middle from both sides |
| Soil depth | 15–20 cm (6–8 in) minimum for greens, 30 cm (12 in) for most crops, 40 cm (16 in) for long carrots and potatoes |
| Sun | 6+ hours for fruiting crops, 4 hours for leafy greens |
| Soil temperature at sowing | 6–8 °C (43–46 °F) for greens and peas, 15 °C (60 °F) for beans and tomatoes |
| pH | 6.0–7.0 |
| Spring warm-up | 2–3 weeks ahead of ground-level soil |
| Water | 25–30 mm (1–1.2 in) a week, more often than in-ground |
Contents
- Quick facts: the raised bed as growing space
- Which crops are safest for a first-year bed?
- Leafy greens: four crops that crop all season
- Root crops – what raised beds were invented for
- Brassicas: three that are worth the footprint
- Peas and beans – nitrogen included
- Alliums: garlic and scallions
- Herbs that belong in the bed
- Do tomatoes work in a raised bed?
- Perennials: strawberries, rhubarb and asparagus
- What should you not plant in a raised bed?
- Comparison table: all 20 crops
- Zone table: frost dates and sowing windows, USDA 3–6
- How do you plan a bed so the space lasts?
- Common mistakes
- Frequently asked questions
Which crops are safest for a first-year bed?
If this is your first season and you want it to be fun rather than instructive, plant five things: radishes, leaf lettuce, spinach, snap peas and kale. All five germinate fast, need no indoor setup, can be direct sown, and forgive a weekend you forgot about them. What makes a crop beginner-friendly here: it germinates in under two weeks, tolerates uneven watering, and gives something edible within two months.
Skip what tempts hardest on the seed rack – peppers, eggplant, melons and pumpkins want a long hot season and more room than one bed can spare.
Leafy greens: four crops that crop all season
Leafy greens use a raised bed better than anything else. Roots are shallow, so a 20 cm (8 in) bed is plenty, and since you harvest leaves rather than fruit, four hours of sun is enough. Sow in blocks every three weeks.
1. Lettuce
Depth 1 cm (0.4 in) · Spacing 25 cm (10 in) · 32–36 per bed · Sow April–early August · Ready in 45–60 days · Very easy
Lettuce handles more shade than most vegetables. Sow thinly and thin ruthlessly – crowded lettuce bolts early and goes bitter. Loose-leaf types give the most food per square foot: cut the outer leaves, leave the heart, and one plant gives three or four harvests. See the guide to growing lettuce.
2. Spinach
Depth 2 cm (0.8 in) · Spacing 15 cm (6 in) · 100–130 per bed · Sow March–April and late August · Ready in 40–50 days · Easy
Spinach is a spring and fall crop, full stop. Sown in late May it bolts within three weeks, because long days and warmth are the signal it waits for. Sow as soon as the soil can be raked, often late March in a thawed bed, and again in late August. A September sowing overwinters under a row cover.
3. Swiss chard
Depth 2 cm (0.8 in) · Spacing 30 cm (12 in) · 24–32 per bed · Sow mid-April–early June · Harvest July to hard frost · Very easy
Chard gives more harvest weeks per plant than anything else here. Eight plants sown in May feed a family from July to the first hard freeze, and unlike spinach it does not bolt. Snap the outer stalks off low and leave five leaves in the centre.
4. Arugula
Depth 1 cm (0.4 in) · Spacing 10 cm (4 in) · 200–280 per bed · Sow April–September · Ready in 30–40 days · Very easy
The fastest green there is. Sow a short row every two weeks, cut the stand 2 cm (0.8 in) above the soil and let it regrow – two or three cuts per sowing. Arugula is a brassica and flea beetles find it in May, so lay a row cover straight after sowing.
Root crops – what raised beds were invented for
Root crops are the strongest argument for building a raised bed at all: loose, stone-free soil is exactly what a carrot wants. A 20 cm (8 in) bed covers radishes, beets and stump-rooted carrots; long storage carrots and potatoes want 40 cm (16 in).
5. Carrots
Depth 1–2 cm (0.4–0.8 in) · Spacing 5 cm (2 in) · 300–400 per bed · Sow late April–early July · Ready in 70–80 days · Medium
Carrots in a raised bed come out straight and smooth in a way they rarely do in native soil. Two things decide it: the soil must not be freshly manured, since raw manure forks the roots, and the surface must stay damp for two to three weeks while the slow seed germinates. In a 20 cm (8 in) bed, choose Nantes or Chantenay types that finish at 12–18 cm (5–7 in). The frame also solves carrot rust fly, which flies low: mesh clipped to the boards makes a tight barrier. See the guide to growing carrots.
6. Radishes
Depth 1–2 cm (0.4–0.8 in) · Spacing 5 cm (2 in) · 350–400 per bed · Sow April–September · Ready in 25–30 days · Very easy
No crop pays out faster: radishes sown mid-April are pulled by mid-May. Use them as a marker crop between slow rows – a row of radish between two rows of carrot clears before the carrots need the room. Crowded radishes make only leaves, and dry ones turn woody. Thin to 5 cm (2 in), and skip June and July.
7. Beets
Depth 2–3 cm (1 in) · Spacing 10 cm (4 in) · 150–190 per bed · Sow late April–late June · Ready in 55–70 days · Easy
Beets are forgiving, store well and give a second harvest as greens. Each seed is a cluster holding two to four seeds, so thinning is not optional – leave them and you get knots of small deformed roots. Pull at 5–7 cm (2–3 in).
8. Potatoes
Depth 10–15 cm (4–6 in) · Spacing 30 cm (12 in) · 14–16 seed potatoes per bed · Plant 2–4 weeks before last frost · Ready in 60–70 days · Easy
Potatoes in a raised bed are a new-potato crop, not a winter store. Fourteen to sixteen seed potatoes in a 40 cm (16 in) bed give 20–35 kg (45–75 lb). Instead of dragging up ridges you plant low and hill by topping the bed up as the shoots rise.
Plant chitted tubers once the soil reaches 8 °C (45 °F), keeping 10 cm (4 in) of the frame free to hill with. Potatoes also make a good first crop in a new bed, breaking up the fill and shading out weeds. See the guide to growing potatoes.
Brassicas: three that are worth the footprint
Cabbage is a space problem in a raised bed. A head cabbage or cauliflower wants 50–60 cm (20–24 in) between plants and gives one cut, poor value for that footprint. Three brassicas are worth the room, all because you pick them over weeks rather than all at once. Feed them with compost at planting, and treat insect mesh over the bed as mandatory.
9. Kale
Depth 1–2 cm (0.4–0.8 in) · Spacing 40 cm (16 in) · 12–18 per bed · Transplant 2 weeks before last frost · Harvest August–December · Easy
Kale is the best brassica for a raised bed: you harvest from the bottom and the plant keeps growing upward all fall. Six plants feed a household, and it takes −12 °C (10 °F), sweetening after frost as it converts starch to sugar. Transplant deep, up to the first true leaves – a top-heavy plant in November acts like a sail.
10. Kohlrabi
Depth 1–2 cm (0.4–0.8 in) · Spacing 25 cm (10 in) · 30–36 per bed · Sow May–July · Ready in 55–60 days · Easy
Kohlrabi is the most underrated brassica for small spaces. The bulb is a swollen stem above the soil, so it asks nothing of bed depth, and it finishes in under two months – two rounds per block. Harvest at 6–8 cm (2.5–3 in); larger goes woody, and uneven watering splits it.
11. Sprouting broccoli
Depth 1–2 cm (0.4–0.8 in) · Spacing 45 cm (18 in) · 8–10 per bed · Transplant 2 weeks before last frost · Ready in 60–80 days · Medium
Broccoli is the borderline case, and it makes the list for one reason: sprouting types. A heading broccoli gives one head per plant, weak return on 45 cm (18 in) of bed. Sprouting broccoli, sold as broccolini or purple sprouting, throws side shoots for six to eight weeks instead.
Peas and beans – nitrogen included
Legumes are the smartest thing you can put in a raised bed. They grow up rather than out, and they fix nitrogen through root nodules. Cut the plants off at soil level after harvest and leave the roots in, and the nitrogen stays for the next crop.
12. Snap peas
Depth 3–4 cm (1.5 in) · Spacing 5–8 cm (2–3 in) in a double row · 70–80 per bed · Sow 4–6 weeks before last frost · Ready in 60–70 days · Easy
Sow a double row along the north long side with netting or brush for support, and the peas shade nothing else. They germinate from 6 °C (43 °F) and shrug off light frost as seedlings, so they go in weeks before anything else. Pick often: a plant allowed to ripen a pod stops setting new ones within a week.
13. Bush beans
Depth 3–4 cm (1.5 in) · Spacing 20 cm (8 in) · 60–72 per bed · Sow after last frost at 15 °C (60 °F) · Ready in 50–60 days · Easy
Bush beans reach 40–50 cm (16–20 in) and need no support. In cold soil the seed rots instead of germinating. They are the perfect follow-on crop, since radishes and spinach clear out in late May exactly when beans want to go in.
14. Pole beans
Depth 3–4 cm (1.5 in) · Spacing 15–20 cm (6–8 in) on a trellis · 12–16 per bed · Sow after last frost at 15 °C (60 °F) · Ready in 65–75 days · Easy
Pole beans give the highest yield per square foot here, because a 2 m (6.5 ft) trellis turns one row of soil into a wall of beans. Run it along the north edge and anchor it well: a loaded trellis on a raised bed in an August storm is a lot of leverage. They crop later than bush beans but far longer.
Alliums: garlic and scallions
Alliums have shallow roots, tolerate crowding and want free-draining soil – exactly what a raised bed delivers. On heavy clay that is the difference between an onion crop and a rotten one.
15. Garlic
Depth 5 cm (2 in) · Spacing 15 cm (6 in) on a grid · 110–128 cloves per bed · Plant September–October · Harvest July · Easy
Garlic goes in during fall and holds the bed until midsummer, the longest tenancy of the year – but it asks nothing of you between November and April. Plant on a 15 cm (6 in) grid rather than in rows, which fits over a hundred cloves into a standard bed. Drainage is the real argument: garlic's worst enemy is standing meltwater in March. See the guide to growing garlic.
16. Scallions
Depth 1–2 cm (0.4–0.8 in) · Spacing 3–5 cm (1–2 in) · 300–400 per bed · Sow April–July · Ready in 60–70 days · Easy
Scallions, also sold as bunching onions, give the most food per square foot and the shortest wait of any allium. Sow in rows, or in clusters of five to eight seeds 10 cm (4 in) apart. Start a new row every three weeks from April to early July – the last sowing takes frost and can be pulled into November.
Herbs that belong in the bed
Most herbs on the seed rack are Mediterranean plants that want dry, lean and hot – rosemary, thyme and oregano belong in a pot, not in rich, moist bed soil. Three are obvious raised bed residents.
17. Dill
Depth 1–2 cm (0.4–0.8 in) · Spacing 10 cm (4 in) · 60–70 per quarter bed · Sow May–July · Harvest all summer · Very easy
Dill is direct sown and hates transplanting – nursery pots rarely give more than one cut. Sow a quarter bed in May and another in June, and you get young fronds instead of flowering heads in August. It self-seeds freely, so give it a fixed corner.
18. Parsley
Depth 1 cm (0.4 in) · Spacing 20 cm (8 in) · 8–12 per bed · Sow 3–4 weeks before last frost · Harvest July–October · Medium
Parsley is the only patience test here: the seed takes three to four weeks to germinate and needs constant moisture. Soak it overnight and keep the surface damp under a row cover. Parsley is biennial and bolts in its second June, so sow fresh each spring.
19. Chives
Plant at pot depth · Spacing 25 cm (10 in) · 4–6 clumps per bed · Plant spring or fall · Harvest May–September · Very easy
Chives are perennial and the laziest crop here – a clump planted this year crops for fifteen years. They do not belong in a bed that rotates; give them a corner or a half bed with other perennial herbs. Shear the whole clump to 5 cm (2 in) rather than picking stems.
Do tomatoes work in a raised bed?
Yes, with two conditions: the right type, and a low plant count.
20. Determinate tomatoes
Plant 5–10 cm (2–4 in) deeper than the pot · Spacing 45–60 cm (18–24 in) · 6–8 per bed · Transplant after last frost · Ready in 55–70 days · Medium
Determinate or bush tomatoes, which stop growing on their own and ripen in a concentrated flush, suit an outdoor bed in a short season. They reach 60–90 cm (24–36 in), need no suckering and finish before September rain. Six to eight plants is the ceiling; closer and the canopy stays wet and blight takes over. In zones 3 and 4 only early types that ripen 55–65 days from transplant are realistic. Plant deep, since the buried stem grows new roots.
Perennials: strawberries, rhubarb and asparagus
Perennials lock up the space for years and sit outside every rotation. The answer differs sharply between the three most common.
Strawberries: yes, gladly. Shallow roots happy in 20 cm (8 in) of soil, and 30–36 plants at 30 cm (12 in) fill a standard bed. The frame keeps fruit off the soil and makes netting easy. Replace plants every three or four years.
Rhubarb: only in a bed of its own. A mature crown needs a full square metre (10 sq ft) and roots 40–50 cm (16–20 in) deep. In a shared bed it takes over the whole footprint within two seasons. See the guide to growing rhubarb.
Asparagus: no. It wants 60–100 cm (24–40 in) of loose soil and three years to a first real harvest. Even a deep bed gives too little root run, and you tie up the space for a decade for a six-week crop.
What should you not plant in a raised bed?
This is the list almost nobody publishes, and it prevents more disappointment than any recommendation. Everything below can be grown in a bed – it is simply the wrong use of 2.9 square metres (32 sq ft).
Crops that take over the space
Pumpkins and winter squash. One plant runs vines three to four metres (10–13 ft), smothers everything sown underneath and returns two or three fruits for a whole bed-season. Summer squash is borderline: one plant in its own bed works, two do not.
Melons, globe artichokes and sweet potatoes. Melons have the pumpkin footprint problem plus a heat requirement zones 3–6 rarely meet outdoors. A globe artichoke reaches 150 cm (5 ft) tall and as wide for four edible buds. Sweet potato vines sprawl a metre (3 ft) in every direction and need a longer season than zones 3–5 have.
Crops that grow too tall or catch too much wind
Sweet corn. Two reasons. Corn reaches 180–250 cm (6–8 ft) and stands on top of an already raised bed with the full wind load on it, so one summer storm flattens the block. And it is wind-pollinated: the ears only fill with 15–20 plants in a block, not a row. That does not fit, and isolated plants give half-empty cobs.
Jerusalem artichokes. They reach two to three metres (7–10 ft), shade everything around them and topple in wind. Worse, every tuber you miss becomes a plant next year, and you never find them all. A bed with Jerusalem artichokes in it stays one permanently.
Crops that become weeds
Horseradish. It regrows from the smallest root fragment and pushes out through the gaps between boards. Removing it means emptying the bed of soil. Grow it in a sunken bucket or not at all.
Mint and lemon balm. They spread by runner and fill a bed in two seasons. Same fix: a pot sunk into the bed, never planted into the soil.
Crops that are simply happier elsewhere
Peppers, chillies and eggplant. They want 25–30 °C (77–86 °F) and shelter. In an open bed in a cold climate they ripen late or not at all, while the same plant in a pot against a south wall crops fully.
Basil. It wants more heat and less moisture than the rest of the bed, and is a slug magnet at ground level.
Long storage carrots and parsnips. Good crops, but they want 35–40 cm (14–16 in) of depth. In a shallow bed you get short, stubby roots.
Comparison table: all 20 crops
Figures are for a standard 1.2 × 2.4 m (4 × 8 ft) bed in USDA zone 5, assuming the crop gets the whole bed. Sowing depths are listed with each crop above.
| # | Crop | Spacing | Per standard bed | Sow or plant | Harvest | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lettuce | 25 cm (10 in) | 32–36 | April–early August | 45–60 days from sowing | Very easy |
| 2 | Spinach | 15 cm (6 in) | 100–130 | March–April, late August | 40–50 days from sowing | Easy |
| 3 | Swiss chard | 30 cm (12 in) | 24–32 | Mid-April–early June | July to hard frost | Very easy |
| 4 | Arugula | 10 cm (4 in) | 200–280 | April–September | 30–40 days from sowing | Very easy |
| 5 | Carrots | 5 cm (2 in) | 300–400 | Late April–early July | 70–80 days from sowing | Medium |
| 6 | Radishes | 5 cm (2 in) | 350–400 | April–September | 25–30 days from sowing | Very easy |
| 7 | Beets | 10 cm (4 in) | 150–190 | Late April–late June | 55–70 days from sowing | Easy |
| 8 | Potatoes | 30 cm (12 in) | 14–16 | 2–4 weeks before last frost | 60–70 days after planting | Easy |
| 9 | Kale | 40 cm (16 in) | 12–18 | Transplant 2 weeks before last frost | August–December | Easy |
| 10 | Kohlrabi | 25 cm (10 in) | 30–36 | May–July | 55–60 days from sowing | Easy |
| 11 | Sprouting broccoli | 45 cm (18 in) | 8–10 | Transplant 2 weeks before last frost | 60–80 days from transplant | Medium |
| 12 | Snap peas | 5–8 cm (2–3 in) double row | 70–80 | 4–6 weeks before last frost | 60–70 days from sowing | Easy |
| 13 | Bush beans | 20 cm (8 in) | 60–72 | After last frost, soil 15 °C (60 °F) | 50–60 days from sowing | Easy |
| 14 | Pole beans | 15–20 cm (6–8 in) | 12–16 | After last frost, soil 15 °C (60 °F) | 65–75 days from sowing | Easy |
| 15 | Garlic | 15 cm (6 in) grid | 110–128 | September–October | July | Easy |
| 16 | Scallions | 3–5 cm (1–2 in) | 300–400 | April–July | 60–70 days from sowing | Easy |
| 17 | Dill | 10 cm (4 in) | 60–70 per quarter bed | May–July | All summer | Very easy |
| 18 | Parsley | 20 cm (8 in) | 8–12 | 3–4 weeks before last frost | July–October | Medium |
| 19 | Chives | 25 cm (10 in) | 4–6 clumps | Spring or fall | May–September | Very easy |
| 20 | Determinate tomatoes | 45–60 cm (18–24 in) | 6–8 | Transplant after last frost | 55–70 days from transplant | Medium |
Zone table: frost dates and sowing windows, USDA 3–6
A raised bed warms two to three weeks ahead of ground-level soil, because it is elevated, drained and sun-exposed on all sides. The dates below are set for beds, not open ground, and run about two weeks ahead of a standard frost chart.
| Zone | Typical areas | Average last spring frost | First bed sowing (hardy crops) | Transplant tender crops | Last sowing for fall harvest | Average first fall frost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Northern Minnesota, the Canadian prairies, interior Alaska | 25 May–10 June | 1–10 May | 5–15 June | 1 July | 5–15 September |
| 4 | Minneapolis, northern Maine, Montana, southern Manitoba | 10–25 May | 15–25 April | 25 May–5 June | 20 July | 20–30 September |
| 5 | Chicago, Denver, inland New England, southern Ontario, Scottish Highlands | 25 April–10 May | 1–10 April | 10–20 May | 10 August | 5–15 October |
| 6 | Philadelphia, Kansas City, coastal Pacific Northwest, most of England | 10–25 April | 15–25 March | 25 April–5 May | 1 September | 20–31 October |
What that means for crop choice: in zones 3 and 4, outdoor tomatoes, heading broccoli and long storage carrots stop being safe bets in an uncovered bed. What remains is leafy greens, radishes, beets, potatoes, peas, beans, kale, garlic and herbs – plenty, and the kale gets better the colder the fall runs. A floating row cover in spring and fall moves you one zone south.
How do you plan a bed so the space lasts?
The most common raised bed mistake is not the wrong crop but too many crops. Eight short rows of eight different things sounds efficient and becomes a weeding problem, because they want different water and finish at different times.
Stick to two to four crops per bed
A layout that works across four beds: one of leafy greens resown in blocks, one of roots, one of legumes on a north-edge trellis, and one for long-stay crops such as kale, tomatoes or strawberries.
Think in quarters, not rows
Divide the bed mentally into four blocks of about 60 × 120 cm (2 × 4 ft). One block holds eight lettuce heads, ninety radishes, seventy-five carrots or two determinate tomatoes – and it makes resowing one block at a time natural.
Follow one crop with another in the same block
The space stretches much further if each block carries two crops a year. Three sequences for zones 4–6: radishes in April then bush beans in June, spinach in late March then kale in late May, snap peas in April then fall lettuce in August. In zone 5 the second crop must be sown by mid-July.
Never grow the same family twice in a row
Rotation matters more in a raised bed than in open ground, precisely because the footprint is small and you are tempted to put the favourite crop in the same spot every year. Brassicas after brassicas build up clubroot; alliums after alliums build up white rot. Both persist for years, and a bed is too small to dodge an infected patch. With four beds: move each crop group one bed clockwise every spring.
Common mistakes
- Sowing everything at once in May. It all ripens in a three-week pile in August and the bed sits empty afterwards. Sow one block at a time.
- Skipping the thinning. Carrots standing ten to the inch never become carrots. Thinning feels wasteful and is the most important job for root crops.
- Putting squash or pumpkins in a shared bed. The vines cover the surface by July and whatever you sowed beneath yields nothing.
- Growing peppers, chillies and basil in an open bed. They need 25–30 °C (77–86 °F), and the same plants in a pot against a south wall crop several times as heavily.
- Forgetting that a bed dries faster than the ground. A raised frame loses water from four sides, so check moisture at 5 cm (2 in) down, not at the surface.
- Putting tall crops on the south side. Pea netting, pole beans and kale belong along the north edge, or they shade everything from July onward.
- Running brassicas or alliums in the same bed every year. Clubroot and white rot survive for many years in soil, and a bed is too small to avoid the infected patch.
- Planting horseradish or mint straight into the soil. Both take over within two seasons and can only be removed by emptying the bed of soil.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best crops to grow in raised beds?
Anything with shallow roots and a short season: leafy greens such as lettuce, spinach, chard and arugula, roots such as radishes, beets and stump-rooted carrots, legumes such as snap peas and bush beans, plus kale, kohlrabi, garlic, scallions and herbs. Potatoes and determinate tomatoes work too if the bed is deep or the spot warm.
How many plants fit in a 4 × 8 raised bed?
A standard 1.2 × 2.4 m (4 × 8 ft) bed is about 2.9 m² (32 sq ft). That holds roughly 32 lettuce heads, 350 radishes, 300–400 carrots, 128 garlic cloves, 14–16 seed potatoes, 12–18 kale plants or 6–8 determinate tomatoes. Divide by four for a quarter-bed block.
What should you not plant in a raised bed?
Avoid pumpkins, winter squash, melons and globe artichokes, which sprawl across the whole surface, plus sweet corn and Jerusalem artichokes, which grow too tall and catch wind on a raised frame. Never plant horseradish or mint straight into the soil – they take over and can only be removed by emptying the bed. Peppers and basil crop better in pots.
How deep does a raised bed need to be for carrots?
A 20 cm (8 in) bed handles Nantes and Chantenay types that finish at 12–18 cm (5–7 in). Long storage carrots and parsnips want 35–40 cm (14–16 in). If the bed sits on open soil rather than a hard surface, roots push past the frame, so shallow beds on native ground do better than the depth suggests.
Can you grow potatoes in a raised bed?
Yes, and it works best as a new-potato crop. Plant 14–16 chitted seed potatoes 30 cm (12 in) apart in a 40 cm (16 in) bed and keep 10 cm (4 in) of the frame free so you can hill by topping up with soil. Expect 20–35 kg (45–75 lb) – weeks of eating, not a winter store.
How many raised beds do I need to feed a family?
Three to four standard beds cover fresh eating for two people: one greens, one roots, one legumes and one for long-stay crops. Feeding a family of four most of its vegetables takes eight or ten beds, and at that point watering rather than space becomes the limiting factor.
Can you grow several crops in the same raised bed?
Yes, but keep it to two to four species – more gets hard to water and harvest, since crops finish at different times. Divide the bed into four blocks of 60 × 120 cm (2 × 4 ft) and grow one crop per block, with tall crops such as peas, pole beans and kale along the north edge.
When can you start planting in a raised bed in spring?
Two to three weeks earlier than open ground. Hardy crops such as spinach, radishes and peas go in during late March in zone 6, early April in zone 5, mid to late April in zone 4 and early May in zone 3. Check soil temperature, not the calendar: 6–8 °C (43–46 °F) suits greens and peas, beans and tomatoes want 15 °C (60 °F).
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