How much to plant for four people
A family of four eating fresh produce through the season typically needs 200–400 sq ft of actively managed beds. Quantities below assume a 4×8 ft (32 sq ft) bed per bundle. Adjust upward if you preserve or cook large batches, downward if you travel often. These are starting points, not guarantees.
Tips
- • One standard tomato plant feeds two adults during peak season — plant 2–3 for a family of four.
- • A 4-ft row of bush beans gives roughly 4–6 pounds over 3 weeks — plant in two successions.
- • Greens can be cut-and-come-again; one 4-ft row of collards feeds a family for weeks.
Spring bundle (plant Feb 15–Mar 30)
Direct-sow: 'Provider' bush beans (2 rows), 'Cherry Belle' radish (broadcast, thin to 2 in), 'Salad Bowl' lettuce (2 rows). Transplant: 'Clemson Spineless' okra is too early — hold for May. Set out: 'Sugar Snap' peas along a trellis. Harvest begins 30–55 days from sowing.
Tips
- • Protect early transplants from late frost with a row cover or overturned bucket.
- • Thin radishes aggressively — crowded radishes grow only tops.
- • Peas fix nitrogen; follow them with a heavy feeder like tomatoes or squash.
Summer bundle (plant Apr 15–Jun 15)
Transplant: 'Celebrity' or 'Better Boy' tomato (3 plants, 24 in spacing), 'California Wonder' pepper (2 plants), 'Clemson Spineless' okra (6 plants, 12 in). Direct-sow: 'Mississippi Silver' southern peas (2 rows), 'Centennial' sweet potato slips (9 slips in a 4×4 patch). Mulch heavily to hold moisture.
Tips
- • Stake or cage tomatoes at planting — waiting breaks roots later.
- • Okra flowers and sets pods in heat when little else does; pick every 2 days.
- • Sweet potato slips spread — give them their own bed or they will overrun neighbors.
Fall bundle (plant Aug 1–Sep 15)
Direct-sow: 'Purple Top White Globe' turnips, 'Savanna' mustard, 'Vates' collards, 'Detroit Dark Red' beet. Transplant: 'Snow Crown' cauliflower, 'Green Magic' broccoli. Garlic goes in October. Fall is Georgia's best greens season — cool nights sweeten the leaves.
Tips
- • Fall seedlings need shade cloth and steady water to survive August heat.
- • Garlic planted in October harvests the following June — plan the space.
- • Row covers extend the fall season into December for hardy greens.
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