⬆️ NORTH (Rear - Full Sun Inflow) ⬆️
⬇️ SOUTH (Front - Low Edge) ⬇️
Companion Ally (+Yield)
Antagonist Clash
Shadow Warning (Tall Plant South)
Design your raised beds on a paper-style square-foot grid before turning the soil. Verify companion pairing, sunlight orientation, and family rotation rules in real time.
Experienced growers know that digging without a plan leads to overcrowded root zones, tall corn blocking morning sun from strawberries, and repetitive nightshade planting that invites soil-borne blight.
In the northern hemisphere, sunlight strikes from the southern sky. Planting high climbers (Sweet Corn, Pole Beans, Indeterminate Tomatoes, Sunflowers) along the Northern rear edge guarantees low-growing herbs, radishes, and leafy greens get uninterrupted sunshine all season.
Originating in Haudenosaunee and Mesoamerican agriculture: tall corn acts as a natural trellis for pole beans; beans fix nitrogen from the atmosphere into the soil; broad spiny squash leaves shade the ground, preventing weeds and conserving precious moisture.
Nightshades (Tomatoes, Peppers, Eggplants) exhaust specific micronutrients and attract identical pathogens. Never plant nightshades in the same square consecutive seasons. Follow heavy feeders with legumes (Beans, Peas) to naturally recharge soil nitrogen.
Aromatic French marigolds emit alpha-terthienyl, naturally suppressing harmful root-knot nematodes. Sweet basil planted near tomatoes enhances vine vigor while deterring tomato hornworms and thrips.