Q. I am planting a small vegetable garden (200 square feet)and would like to plant one row of each of the following vegetables: tomatoes cucumbers, pepper, beans, zucchini , carrots and peas. Since there will only be one row of each vegetable, do I still need to allow for the recommended spacing? For example, the recommended spacing for cucumbers is five feet between rows. Since I will be planting carrots next to them and not another row of cucumbers, do I still need to have a space of five feet between the cucumbers and carrots?
A. To space two different crops, figure the average of the two recommended distances , assuming they are going to be reaching full size simultaneously. So, your carrots could be about two and a half feet from your cucumbers.
Spacing can be manipulated in a number of ways. One of the most effective is to grow smaller plants in patches rather than rows. By limiting the amount of aisle , you preserve space for growing. For instance, you could grow 20 or more carrots to maturity in a one-foot-square space, plus eat the carrots you thin out in the meantime.
To save lots of space, grow the cucumbers on a trellis. Also look for varieties described as bush, compact, or space-saving.
Remember, too, that early season crops such as spinach will be finished early in the season and could be planted near plants that mature more slowly, such as tomatoes . The tomatoes will not need their full allotted space until well after the spinach is gone.
I suggest that you peruse some books on square-foot gardening or French intensive gardening--these techniques focus on maximizing a small space. Probably the best information books like this provide is the potential yield of various crops--i.e., a 15-foot row of cucumbers or zucchini will produce a lot of fruit.
--National Gardening Association
