I love to harvest my own vegetables. For me, thinking about how food is produced and, if possible, growing it myself is part of a sustainable lifestyle. So it’s even nicer to finally have the opportunity to do it here. I’m going to take you along with me raised bed planning for 2024. (Header Picture: ©Andreas Gollner via Pixabay)

Things to think about before you start

Before we start planning the actual planting, you should think about what you have and what you expect.

Location and size: For example, my raised bed is relatively large and L-shaped. It is also very protected because it is on the roof terrace (second floor) and under a plexiglass roof. It is always a few degrees warmer than the actual outside temperature, and the whole thing is almost like a greenhouse, especially in the summer.

Planting last year: The raised bed has been in place for a year, so it has already had a “gardening season”. Even though I’m filling it with soil and compost again this year, since it has sunk a lot, I still have to take into account last year’s planting. I’ve drawn a sketch of this for you below.

Why is this important? A good rule of thumb is to never plant vegetables from the same family in the same spot. So where you had tomatoes last year, don’t plant tomatoes this year. Otherwise, the soil will be depleted on one side and the plants will not grow properly.

Wish: I would definitely like to plant some tomatoes again. Also some zucchini, melons, and spinach. Then I’ll fill the rest of the space with vegetables.

Mixed cultivation in a raised bed

There is definitely a science to planting a raised bed. High and low plants, preferred nutrients, water usage, etc. It all needs to work together and not be too one-sided. While I pay attention to some things (like the rule of thumb above), for other things I just go with trial and error. Last year, for example, I found that chilies did not grow well in a raised bed, but did very well in a tub. And the rest will be tried out the same way 🙂

However, I’ve picked out a few combinations that work well together in a raised bed that I’ll use as a guide:

Combination 1: Bruschetta

Tomato + Basil + Parsley (Note: For “normal” vining tomatoes, you need a relatively large volume of soil! If in doubt, use smaller vine tomatoes 🙂 )

Combination 2: Salad bar

Spinach + Asian Lettuce

Combination 3: Red and green

Beet + cucumber + dill

Tables that show you good neighbors are also helpful. You can find lots of them on the Internet! There are also some classic raised-bed vegetables you can try, such as squash, Swiss chard, runner beans, lettuce, and kohlrabi.

My raised bed planning for 2024

I don’t have much room for tomatoes this year. Maybe two more plants can take their place in tubs. There will just be fewer chilies 😉 I’m planning a lot of space for the zucchini, as they will probably (and hopefully) spread out over just under a square meter. The melons, on the other hand, can look forward to a climbing aid and will therefore take up very little space in the bed itself.

You can find out more about gardening and permaculture/mixed cultivation in these blog articles: