How Far Apart to Plant Lettuce
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GardenSays
Your 8×4 ft raised bed fits 36 lettuce plants at 10-inch spacing.
- Between plants
- 10 in
- Grid
- 9 × 4
- Total plants
- 36
Lettuce plants need 8-12 inches between plants, and in a raised bed you can use that same spacing in both directions — no walking rows needed. At the 10-inch midpoint, that's 9 along the bed and 4 across — 36 plants.
Calculated result · 1 verified source · Checked 2026-07-16 · How we decide
Why
Crowding is the most common spacing mistake: closer planting doesn't add yield, it adds shade, disease pressure, and small fruit. When in doubt, use the wider end of the range.
- Air circulation between mature plants is the cheapest disease prevention there is.
- Roots spread wider than the plant looks in June — spacing is set for August size.
When this doesn't apply
- Compact lettuce plants can take the tight end of the range; large or vigorous ones want the wide end.
- Square-foot gardening compresses further than these numbers — it trades yield per plant for yield per bed and needs diligent feeding.
How this was calculated
- 1. In-row spacing10 in
Lettuce: 8-12 inches between plants (extension guidance); midpoint used
- 2. Intensive grid9 × 4 plants
Raised beds skip walking paths: plants sit on a 10×10 inch grid. 96÷10 along, 48÷10 across (edge margins included in the division)
- 3. Total36 plants
9 × 4
Data sources
- University of Minnesota Extension — Growing lettuce, endive and radicchio in home gardens — Thin head lettuce to roughly a foot apart; leaf lettuce tolerates tighter spacing for cut-and-come-again harvest. (checked 2026-07-16)
What changes this answer
Layout
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