While a lot of gardeners (like myself) run after larger yields, there is a major portion of people who don’t want that. They want to plant just enough to have a sufficient yield that will be fully utilized.
If you’re one of those people, this article is for you. Today, we’ll be discussing what crop sizes to plant if you’re looking to minimize overplanting. Let’s dive right into it!
Ideal Crop Sizes To Limit Chances Of Overplanting
Tomatoes:
When it comes to tomatoes, they tend to grow quite tall and shade other garden plants from sunlight.
Ideally, you want to plant them in sunny conditions and stake or cage them to support heavy fruit loads. The recommended crop size for tomatoes is no more than 4 plants per person.
Bell Peppers:
As much as I love bell peppers, I do have to say that they need a good amount of care and maintenance to grow properly. Peppers need constant moisture and plenty of sun exposure to produce crisp, flavorful fruits.
They’re great for containers and raised garden beds. 4 plants per person would be the ideal crop size to limit overplanting.
Cucumbers:
For cucumbers, the crop size can be larger, up to 6 plants per person. If you’re short on space, grow cucumbers on a trellis and encourage straighter fruit.
Ideally, you want to keep the soil consistently moist for the cucumbers to grow as large and juicy as they possibly can.
Zucchini:
If you’ve ever grown zucchini, you’ll know that it’s a prolific producer and needs plenty of space to grow and spread properly. Zucchini is not something you can plant if you’re tight on space.
The best crop size would be 4 zucchini plants per person but make sure to harvest the fruit while it’s small and juicy. Older zucchinis have a hard texture and don’t taste very pleasant.
Lettuce:
I’d recommend planting only about 5-6 lettuce plants per person.It’s a leafy green that grows extremely quickly and can be harvested continuously as long as basic maintenance requirements are being met.
Lettuce planting is perfect for cooler climates or shaded spots in summer.
Green Beans:
When it comes to green beans, I’d recommend planting up to 15-20 seeds per person.
Surprisingly, green beans are super easy to grow and highly productive crops. They’ll thrive in small spaces as long as other growing variables are in place. Pole beans need trellises, while bush beans grow compactly.
Carrots:
Because of how productive carrot plants are, I want you to sow no more than 15 carrot seeds per person. This conservative approach will not only save you from overplanting but also give each seedling sufficient space to grow properly.
Carrots need loose, well-draining soil to develop straight roots. You want to thin seedlings to give each carrot enough space to grow.
Sweet Corn:
It’s best to grow sweet corn in blocks to ensure proper pollination is taking place. Because we want healthy corn ears, keeping the soil consistently moist is a priority. Sow up to 6 corn seeds per person in your garden to avoid overplanting.
Spinach:
For spinach, I’d recommend planting up to 6 plants per person. This is a versatile and filling crop that’s super easy and quick to grow. Spinach prefers cooler weather and evenly moist soil for meaningful growth. You want to harvest its leaves regularly to promote regrowth.
Potatoes:
As we already know, potatoes are very versatile and filling. In containers, they can be grown easily while garden beds are also ideal as long there’s loose, well-draining soil. I’d recommend planting 3-4 potato plants per person.
Conclusion
Growing up, I always thought gardeners were after bigger and bigger yields not knowing that there are also conservative ones that only grow for their families.
If you want to grow a few vegetables of your own but don’t want to store large harvests in the pantry that could potentially go to waste, a more conservative approach where you plant crops according to the number of people you plan to serve is ideal.
