How Far Apart to Plant Zucchini

Zucchini are most of the most popular vegetables in home gardens. They are prolific producers that bring a high yield from just a couple of plants and you can even grow zucchini in containers!

But how far apart, exactly, should you plant your zucchini? You actually have a couple of different options – read on to find out what’s best for your garden.

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Zucchini plant spacing

My first gardening book was the classic Square Foot Gardening manual and my first gardens were in containers. I used to cram my garden plants as close together as possible in order to plant as much as I could in a small space.

This is a viable gardening strategy…if you have the time and ability to carefully tend your plants. Closely spaced plants require more watering, fertilizer, and pest/disease management.

Zucchini is what’s known as a heavy feeder. This means it needs a lot of nutrients throughout the growing season. It is also a large, sprawling plant. Both of these factors influence how far apart you should plant zucchini. It simply cannot be crammed in close together like carrots! The more closely you plant your zucchini, the more time you’ll need to spend caring for your plants.

So how far apart should you space your zucchini? It depends. Let’s take a look at a few options so you can make the best choice for your garden space and gardening style.

Square foot garden zucchini spacing

Although some people grow zucchini spaced as closely as 12″ (one per square foot in a square foot garden) and trellis it upwards, normal square foot gardening zucchini spacing is to place 1 zucchini plant in the center of two squares.

If you decide to trellis your zucchini, you will need to secure it to the supports with twine or coated wire. Although it is a vining plant, it’s what’s known as a “scrambler.” It does not grow tendrils that can cling to a trellis, nor does it cling to poles like a bean.

Containers for growing zucchini

Yes, you can grow zucchini in containers! I grew large black beauty zucchini in several different containers last year to see if it could be done. I’m working on a post about growing zucchini in containers. Until then, know that it is possible if you get the largest container you can find and only plant one zucchini per pot. It may not look like it based on the angle and size of the plant, but the pot below is almost 2 feet across at the top.

Use a minimum of a 7 gallon pot or grow bag per zucchini. A 10 or 12 gallon container is better. You can plant two or three seeds if you’re unsure of germination, but snip off the extra seedlings after your plants get their first set of true leaves.

Garden spacing for zucchini

In a non-square foot garden, people typically plant zucchini as little as 18″ apart or up to 3′ apart. Two to three feet apart is common for zucchini grown in rows and raised beds. In general, zucchini can grow roots as far as their vines spread. If you have a small, compact “bush” zucchini, you can use 18″-24″ spacing. If your zucchini is not a bush variety, go with 2-3′.

Many gardeners plant their squash, including zucchini, in “hills.” If you decide to make squash hills, plant 2-3 seeds a few inches apart in the center of a 3-4′ prepared area. Although some people do mound up dirt to make a literal hill, a squash “hill” is actually just an area that’s been dug and prepared for squash. No need to make a pitcher’s mound in your garden! well

This is not to say you can’t use raised rows/beds for your zucchini. It’s perfectly okay to grow zucchini in low raised rows if that’s what you use in your garden. It can also grow in raised beds with sides (wood, metal, etc.), but make sure the beds are deep to give your plant space to send down roots. In the photo below, you can see zucchini happily growing in a raised bed in the ground/without sides:

Although these spacings are common, and work if you regularly water and feed your plants, you can get higher yields with less work if you have the space to plant your zucchini even further apart.

Not everyone has that kind of space to spare, but it’s worth trying if you do have the space. Solomon insists that widely spaced squash plants do not wilt on hot summer afternoons, if they have been grown from seed instead of transplanted. Transplanting weakens a zucchini’s root system. I’m experimenting with wider spacing and direct seeded zucchini in this summer’s garden, so I will update this post in the fall to let you know how it went.

Happy growing!