Building a garden on a farm is everyone’s dream but it’s not realistic for a lot of people. There are many ways to grow a garden, regardless of the amount of space you have.

Here are 6 ways you can take advantage of smaller spaces to still be able to yield a reasonable amount of crops.

Choose high yield crops- Plants like tomatoes, peppers, onions, eggplant, beans, cucumber, summer squash, lettuce and greens offer a lot of produce throughout the season.

Plant wide rows- Reduce the need of overall rows needed by planting rows with 2-3 plants side by side, creating a double or triple row. Use this method on all crops except vining plants (cucumbers/melons).

Grow in raised beds- If you lack space, have poor soil or a bad back, raised beds are a great option. Soil in raised beds is more ideal, therefore you can space plants closer together than you can in the ground.

Try vertical gardening- If you can’t grow in the ground, grow up. Vining plants like cucumbers, beans, peas, squash and tomatoes grow easily on trellises or fences, which can be made of anything from wood to bamboo to string.

Plant crops together- Plant fast-growing vegetables among slower-growing ones, such as radishes (faster) and carrots (slower), so that you harvest the fast crop before it begins to crowd the slow one. You also can plant low-growing crops that can take a little shade (lettuce, greens, cool-season herbs like parsley and chives) under tall crops like tomatoes and peppers, where the lower level will catch the rays that the taller plants let filter through.

Extend the season- By planting in all seasons, you get more annual harvest out of your space, which is the ultimate goal of intensive gardening. Having a plan for succession planting also helps extend the season and increase overall yields.

We hope these tips help you in making the most out of your space, whatever that may look like.

Share in the comments if you have a small space where you’ve managed to grow a garden in!