The area which gets the most direct sun is usually the best area to plant a veggie garden. 8-10 hours is good. Also veggies do well with early morning sun and late day shade. The early sun will dry up the dew (avoiding fungal problems) and the late day shade helps with tempering the summer heat.

Really depends on a number of factors, not the least of which is how you want to use the rest of the yard. Generally speaking, the sunniest spot near a water supply.

tj

I'll amend my first post to say that the 8-10 direct sun hours would be for certain plants like watermelons and corn. Depending on what you want to grow the sun hours can range down to 5-6 hours for summer squash, cukes, lettuce, etc. 7-8 hours for tomatoes, peppers, and so on. Also it's best to place the tall crops (corn, staked tomatoes) on the north side of the plot so that they won't shade shorter plants.

Since you posted this in the Oklahoma group, I'm guessing you're in Oklahoma? If so, welcome! And be sure & check out our weekly thread in the Oklahoma Gardening forum. There are a few of us who post regularly and most of them know way more than I do about gardening. I'm sure we could help you out with advice specific to Oklahoma.

Most experts advise to put the beds east to west to prevent taller plants from shading out shorter ones. But with our summer sun, sometimes you want that shade. If possible, I'd do a mix of east-west and north-south beds, see which works best for you.

As for position, put it close to the house and a water source as you can. If it's inconvenient for you to get to it, you're less inclined to go out. Ideally, I put my beds somewhere I have to walk by every time I leave the house. That way I am more likely to stop and pull weeds or water or whatever needs to be done, & doing something every day means I only spend a few minutes at a time.

thanks I am in Oklahoma. I will check out the weekly thread for sure ☺