If all the plants are short, then row orientation is irrelevant. Taller plants cast a shadow, and the footprint of that shadow - and its movement throughout the day - needs to be taken into account. I use both N-S and E-W orientation in my gardens. Whenever possible, I place the tallest plants in the North side of a bed, in E-W orientation. This results in a zone of permanent shadow, so E-W orientation in the middle of a bed will result in loss of usable space. Because of that, I often place paths in that location, or a block of corn. (And BTW, those shaded paths are most welcome in the dog days of summer.) If I use tall trellises in a N-S orientation, then I try to grow plants of medium height adjacent to them, so that shading will be less of an issue. These might be shorter trellises of cucumbers, or caged tomatoes. In areas with hot summers (such as when I gardened in SoCal) some plants can benefit from being planted on the East side of tall crops, so they will be protected from the afternoon heat. Tomatoes really seemed to like that arrangement, it caused a major reduction of sunscald. If you are planting a lot of tall crops, then the amount of shade increases, and wider row spacing is required to compensate for it. I often plant adjacent 6-foot trellises for various beans & gourds. With E-W orientation, the plants get full sun all day, but only on one side; and rows need to be spaced 3 1/2-4' apart. With N-S orientation, plants get equal sunlight on both sides... but the rows will shade each other both early & late in the day. If spaced too closely in either orientation, then the plants will be top heavy late in the season, with little growth - or yield - in the shaded zone. Shebear brought up a good reason to use tall crops, which is as wind breaks. I plant tall trellises on both the North side (running E-W) and the West side (running N-S) of my gardens, to protect from cool NW winds. Here in the North, heat-loving crops (such as okra, eggplant, and watermelon) do better in those protected micro-climates. Furthermore, those outside barriers usually sacrifice themselves to protect the interior from the first frost. I also use tall trellises as baffles, to block or re-direct pollinators for seed saving. In various locations, both N-S and E-W rows serve that purpose. So really, the question of row orientation is dependent upon your gardening philosophy. If you have limited space, then using only short crops - or a row of tall crops on the N side - is the best utilization of space. Rows can be closer together, so you can grow a greater variety... and orientation won't matter. But if you have more space, enjoy picking without bending over, or prefer to grow varieties that climb (as I do), then just consider that planting tall crops is planting shade, and plan for the shadows accordingly.

Corrigan, I think, as they say in Las Vegas, "you are trying to make your point the hard way". It doesn't matter what way your form your beds, its the sun exposure that makes the difference and since you are aware that some plants will be taller....or with more foliage, than others, then it comes down to how you plan your beds. Make a sketch of just how you see your vegetables in the beds. As far as how the beds receive sunlight, that can depend on other obstancles --such as trees, buildings, fences etc. The main concern about raised beds is how they drain well and how you can properly moisturize the soil. If you have, perhaps, an automatic sprinkling system, that would not be what your vegetable patch would like since the water is timed and such watering may not be according to how the plants should be given their watering. Since beds that are raised---even slightly, will drain much better than surface beds, a better means of delivering water--such as a hose that will reach satisfactorily the furthest plants. One point; the size of the bed is good...4 by 8, since this allows you to easily reach the center of each patch without having to step into the bed....thus preventing compacting the soil there. You mention in other years your tomatoes have had problems. You should really do a google search on each vegetable you plan on putting in for their advisability to be rotated. As long as the patch is 10 feet away from where it was prior to, that is OK. Then there are families of vegetables that should be considered to be planted near each other. In this way, like vegetables can be given applications of fertilizer and pesticide in a like manner. Crop rotation prevents building diseases up in the soil and preserves micro-nutrients. Rotating is not very difficult, but does take a little advance planning as well as a basic knowledge of the vegetable families. Vegetables are broken down into basic family groups. These groups should be rotated together as they use soil in similar ways and share similar pests. Alliums Include Onions, Garlic, Scallions, Shallots, and Leeks Brassicas include Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cabbage, Brussels Sprouts, and Kale. Crucifers include Turnips, Radishes, Rutabaga, and Collards. Cucurbits Include Cucumbers, Squashes (from zucchini to pumpkin), and Melons. Legumes Include Peas and Beans. Solanaceae Include Tomatoes, Peppers, and Eggplant. Perennial vegetables such as Asparagus, Rhubarb and Artichokes should not be rotated and therefore should be planted separately. The rest should be rotated every year on a four year plan (so that the same family of vegetables is not planted in the same location within four years). This is easy to accommodate if you have planted four beds for your rotating plants and one bed for your non-rotating perennials. See where that advanced planning starts to come in handy? Rhubarb can be re-invigorated once it loses its good growing..dig up the plant, remove at least 1/2 the soil it has there with some good compost. Wood ashes can be added to soil that is heavy loamÂbut do add lots of humus with compost. If annual vegetable crops are grown in the same place year after year, there is a risk that soil borne pests and diseases will become a problem, and that plant health and vigour will decline. Organised rotation helps to prevent the build up of problems in the soil. Likewise, there are certain combinations of plants that will inhibit the growth of one or both types of plants. Here are a few combinations to avoid: Potatoes  inhibit growth of tomatoes and squash Beans  inhibit growth of onions Broccoli  inhibits growth of tomatoes Carrots  inhibit growth of dill This isnÂt to say that you canÂt grow these plants together in the same garden, just donÂt grow them right next to each other.

I have planter boxes - 3 to 4 ft. x 6 to 8 ft. - so if I grow climbing beans or snow peas in them, I like the boxes to be east/west - so that as these veggies climb, they will be in back (northerly). More can also be planted that way. Shorter stuff is planted in front, cabbage, broccoli, etc., and plant garlic/onions along the front facing south - not shading as much the medium-sized plants behind. Its important in our fall/spring growing season (Oct - April) as the sun goes south, to try to "catch" as much sunshine as possible. Fruit trees are planted on the north side of the house - a short distance away from the house, to get maximum sun. Shade ornamentals for dry environments and ground cover are planted under and around fruit trees to conserve moisture and - hopefully - eye-appealing (when kept weeded). Bejay

I grew ivies for a few years on a north-facing windowsill facing out on a covered porch -- so basically, no natural light whatsoever. Instead, I had electric lights on timers set to 16 hrs/day year round. During the summer, that meant daytime temperatures in the 80s or even the 90s and night-time temps in the 70s, and I never saw much growth. In the winter, with freezing north winds beating on the window, the lights would still heat the windowsill up into the 70s when they were on, but the temperature would plummet into the 50s or lower as soon as the lights turned off -- and the ivies grew like crazy. So... These are very much cool-weather growers. If the west-facing window is much warmer than the east-facing window, then I'd say that's why the ivy there is growing more slowly. (I only have one of those ivies now, and am debating whether to keep it... It's never quite recovered from the spider mite plague that went through a couple years back. FWIW: I've found that the key to keeping mites off ivy is to give the plant a shower every couple of weeks whenever the weather is warm but the humidity is low -- which for me translates to most of the spring. Related trick: Put the ivy under a ceiling fan after the shower to dry the leaves off quickly, otherwise you'll get leaf blight.)