Square foot gardening grid layout

Square foot gardening (SFG), developed by Mel Bartholomew, divides a 4x4-foot bed into 16 one-square-foot sections using a visible grid. Each square is planted with a specific number of plants based on spacing: 1 plant per square (tomato, pepper, broccoli), 4 per square (lettuce head, basil), 9 per square (bush beans, beets, spinach), or 16 per square (radishes, carrots, green onions). The grid makes planning, planting, and tracking incredibly simple for beginners. Build the grid from thin wooden strips, string, or conduit laid across the bed. The 4x4 size (rather than 4x8) keeps all squares reachable from any side without overreaching. SFG uses intensive planting that produces roughly 5x the harvest of traditional row gardening per square foot. The visual grid prevents over-spacing (wasting area) and under-spacing (overcrowding). This method works with any bed material and any soil mix, though Mel's Mix is the traditional pairing. The grid is also useful for crop rotation tracking: note what was planted in each square and rotate families the following year.