Eliot Coleman recommends 30 inch wide beds, with 12 inch wide paths. So I'm sure it's a good choice, depending on what you're growing. A lot of people, including him, also recommend 4 foot wide beds, to get the maximum amount of growing space, while still being able to reach the middle of the beds. I obsess over bed widths and spacing every time I start new ones, and always end up using the 4 foot width for maximum growing space. This year, I'm designing for 4 foot widths and 1 foot paths. But I may not completely expand my beds this year to take up the full 4 feet. So I'll have a little more path space. But it still leaves me the option to fill out the entire 4 feet, without having to start over.

I think it depends on the person. If you have less mobility for some reason, or just are a shorter-armed person, reaching into a bed 24" can be difficult, and then the paths get wider as you step or kneel into the bed. You maybe should do a trial run with stakes and string to see how comfortable various widths are for you.

I agree with alabamanicole. Sometimes 4 foot can be a stretch. It's best to do a little testing to see what works for you.

I have wider beds like 7 to 12 feet. I am not afraid to do a bit of walking in them. For 3 or 4 rows of potatoes and for watermelons, the wider beds male sense and less space is wasted on paths.

It doesn't matter what anyone else does, go with what is best and most comfortable for you.

If find the 4-ft beds just a bit too wide to sit on my stool and weed the center easily. Now I have 3-ft beds and they're just fine. 30" might even be better.

Sue

g'day sandyman,

same as any bed that you don't want to walk on and create compaction about 1 meter wide or 3' or 4', that's about the width of our free standing beds.

len

Here is a link that might be useful: lens garden page

To maximize the growing space, I have three 10' by 12' (roughly) beds. In order to reach the middle of the bed, I put a pressure treated 2"x6"x10' in the middle rows. I never step on the soil in the bed, only on the board.

One drawback is when growing tomatoes. The tomato branches are so thick you have to craw under the branches to pick tomatoes.

I have 2 beds that are 5' wide and 10' long. There is a path between that is about 24" wide. Due to severe deer over-population, it needed to be fenced. I attached the fencing directly to the beds (in retrospect, I would do it differently). I am 6' tall, so I have a long reach, but I can't reach to the back of beds (5'). I wouldn't go any wider than 4 feet if you are tall (with a long reach), less if you are not so tall. ;-)

I usually have bruised forearms for the latter part of the summer and fall from reaching through the fence to pull weeds, harvest veggies, etc. :-/

My beds are 4 feet wide by 20 feet long with 2 foot wide paths because I'm slightly disabled and have to do most of my gardening sitting on the ground. 2 feet gives me enough room to maneuver this old body around to plant and weed. It would probably be easier if the beds were 3 feet wide instead of 4, but they've been in place almost 20 years and it would be difficult for me to change them now.

I thought it might be easier to envision what I mean with a picture: I can only access my beds from the middle path, this was a mistake with 5' wide beds. I may move the fence out. This was an easy out because the ground is very rocky and I had to clear brush to make a place for the beds. The saving grace is the board in the middle of the beds, this makes it a little easier to reach.

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