How To Avoid Overplanting: Common Vegetable Yields Per Plant

It's time to plan this year's garden, but knowing how many of each vegetable to plant can be tricky. Unfortunately, overplanting is a common and costly mistake that even experienced gardeners make. When you can't sell, give away, or donate unwanted produce, it often ends up in the trash or on the compost pile.

Calculating Vegetable Needs

Determining how much produce your family requires is the first step when figuring out how many vegetables to plant. There are general guidelines which recommend the number of plants to grow per person, but it's important to realize that no two families are alike. Consider these factors when calculating your needs:

• Family size
• Age and appetite level of family members
• Number of meals prepared each week using fresh veggies
• How often fresh veggies are consumed as snacks
• Family preferences for certain vegetables
• Plans to preserve or store vegetables for winter

Vegetable Garden Yield Per Square Foot

Once you've estimated your family's gardening goals, you can use a vegetable yield chart to determine how many plants you'll need. When garden size is limited, also consider the amount of space it takes to achieve your harvest goals.

Factors such as soil fertility, the types of vegetables grown, and the methods of gardening you employ can alter how much food you harvest from a given area. Consider keeping a garden journal to help fine tune your needs for future years.

Average Yield per Plant

Here are average yields for popular garden vegetables, including the suggested number of plants per person and how many square feet per vegetable plant is recommended:

Broccoli

• 1 to 1.75 pounds (0.5-1 kg) per plant
• 2 to 3 plants per person
• 4 to 7.5 square feet (0.4-1 sq. m) per plant
• 1 pound of chopped broccoli equals approximately 2 cups

Carrots

• 1 pound (0.5 kg) per 1 foot (31 cm) row
• 20 to 40 plants per person
• 4 to 6 plants per square foot (0.09 sq. m)
• 2 medium carrots equals approximately 1 cup

Corn

• 1 to 2 ears per plant
• 6 to 12 plants per person
• 1.3 square feet (0.12 sq. m) per plant
• 2 medium ears of corn equals approximately 1 cup of kernels

Cucumbers

• 4 to 10 fruit per plant
• 2 to 3 plants per person
• 5 to 7.5 square feet (0.5-1 sq. m) per plant
• Save space by growing cucumbers on a trellis

Green Beans

• 8 to 16 pounds (4-7 kg) per 10 foot (3 m) row of 24 to 30 plants
• 12 to 15 plants per person
• 20 to 30 square foot (2-3 sq. m) per row
• 1 pound of beans equals approximately 3 cups
• Succession plant to extend the harvest of green beans

Leaf Lettuce

• 1 head averaging 1 to 2 pounds (0.5-1 kg) per plant
• 10 to 20 plants per person
• 0.5 to 1 square foot (0.05-0.09 sq. m) per plant
• 1 cup dinner salad equals approximately 2.5 to 3 ounces (71-85 g) of lettuce.
• Leaves can be harvested individually

Peas

• 3 ounces (85 g) per plant or 1 pound (0.5 kg) per 10 foot (3 m) row
• 15 to 20 plants per person
• 6 plants per square foot (0.09 sq.m.)
• 1 pound (0.5 kg) of peas equals approximately 1 to 2 cups

Peppers:

• 6 to 12 bell peppers or 20 to 50 hot peppers per plant
• 3 to 5 plants per person
• 2 to 3 square feet (0.2-0.3 sq. m) per plant
• Bell peppers generally have 2 to 4 fruit in various stages of maturity at any given time

Squash and Zucchini

• 4 to 5 pounds (2 kg) of squash per plant; 6 to 10 pounds (3-4.5 kg) of zucchini per plant
• 1 to 2 plants per person
• 8 square feet (0.7 sq. m) per plant
• Harvest zucchini and squash regularly to keep production high

Tomatoes

• 10 to 12 pounds (4.5-5 kg) per plant
• 2 to 4 plants per person for table use
• 5 to 7 plants per person when canning
• 2 to 3 square feet (0.2-0.3 sq. m) per plant for staked tomato plants