Which Direction Should Your Beds and Tunnels Face? (It Matters Less Than You Think)
By Jonathan Dysinger and John Dysinger
Updated on
Show Transcript
0:00Hi guys, Jonathan here with Farmer's Friend and we're at Bountiful Blessings Farm again this morning. I'm with my dad John and we're going to be talking a
0:07little bit about bed orientation and maybe touching on tunnel orientation.
0:11It's a question that I think a lot of people have especially maybe at the beginning of your farming endeavor starting out. There's so many there's so
0:18many questions that people have and I think that's one thing that sometimes people people get hung up on is how to lay out orientation north, south, east,
0:28west, you know. So, let's talk about that a little bit. Yeah, I think it's actually something that's overthought too often. Um,
0:37you know, these beds in this greenhouse are oriented pretty much north south and you know, so the so the sun's coming up
0:46over here and over the course of the day the plants are getting the same amount of sunlight, you know, no matter where
0:55they are. There's the thought that orienting your beds east west might
1:02cause some shading. You know, if you have tall crops,
1:07um they could shade everything on the north side of it.
1:12But the reality is most,
1:18you know, the the only time that shading is going to occur is when the sun is is,
1:24you know, I mean, in the winter time when the sun's low,
1:27either just coming up or just coming down or Yeah. So, so the point is most people
1:34aren't trying to grow tall crops in the winter time. So, I think it's, you know,
1:40the angle of the sun, especially if you're way up north in the winter,
1:45you're you're going to be casting some shadows.
1:49But from our experience, it's like I said, I think it's really overthought cuz in the winter when when it could be
1:58an issue, it's usually not an issue cuz you're not growing tall plants. In the summer, you know, the the the sun is pretty much overhead.
2:08So you're not having a lot of shadow.
2:11Yeah. So that that's in the same argument I guess with tunnel orientation. Which way do you orient it?
2:19Yeah. And again I think people spend a lot of energy you know stressing over that decision. Uh when in the reality
2:26you kind of need to make like the lay of the land as probably the highest priority or the or the highest factor in
2:34making that decision. Uh here at Boundful Blessings Farm, there's tunnels kind of facing all directions. We have some east, west, and some north,
2:43south,
2:44and we have never noticed a real issue with it.
2:48Yeah. Yeah. So, I think the the takeaway from this is there are reasons why people make the argument one way or the
2:57other, but don't spend a ton of time stressing about it. just figure out how the the layout of your farm is going to
3:04be best suited for the operation and um it's gonna it's going to be okay. It'll
3:11all be okay. It'll work out. Any other final thoughts? I I think you know I think the general consensus is that if you live further
3:20north, you know, the northern half of the US or northern third of the US, that it's best to run your tunnels east west.
3:30But again, I don't really think it's that big of a deal. If you're on a slope,
3:37I think it's probably best to run your your tunnels with the slope rather than across the slope. But really, it's it's
3:46all about drainage. You just have to think about drainage. Yeah.
3:49And that's a whole another topic, but u Okay. So, it's a consideration, but there's other things like drainage and
3:57just lay of the land that are going to be the highest factors in making the decision of which way you position your beds and
4:04tunnels. So, we hope this little bit of information has been helpful. If you have questions like this, feel free to submit them uh to by responding to this
4:13email. And until next time, happy growing.
4:17[Music]
Bed and tunnel orientation is one of the most overthought decisions in market farming. North-south beds give the most even sun exposure, but east-west beds work fine too — shading from tall crops is only a concern in winter when the sun is low, and you're not growing tall crops in winter anyway. For tunnels, let the lay of your land and drainage dictate orientation rather than compass direction. Bountiful Blessings Farm has tunnels facing multiple directions and has never had a real issue with any of them.
If you're laying out a new farm or putting up your first tunnel, the orientation question can feel paralyzing. North-south or east-west? Which way should the beds run? What about the tunnels? There are strong opinions on both sides online, and it's easy to spend weeks agonizing over a decision that, in practice, matters far less than people think.
My dad, John Dysinger, has tunnels running in multiple directions at Bountiful Blessings Farm — some east-west, some north-south — and in 27 years, he's never noticed a meaningful difference. Here's his practical take.
How Should I Orient My Beds?
The general recommendation is north-south, and there's a logical reason: as the sun moves east to west across the sky over the course of the day, north-south beds receive even sunlight along their entire length. No plant is permanently shaded by its neighbor.
The concern with east-west beds is that taller crops could shade everything on the north side. And that's technically true — but only when the sun is low on the horizon, which happens in winter. In summer, the sun is nearly overhead and shading is minimal regardless of orientation.
Here's the practical reality: in winter, you're not growing tall crops. You're growing spinach, lettuce, kale, and other low-profile cold-hardy crops. There's nothing tall enough to cast a meaningful shadow. And in summer, when you might have tall tomatoes or trellised cucumbers, the sun angle is high enough that east-west shading is negligible.
So yes, north-south is slightly better in theory. But if your land, drainage, or farm layout works better with east-west beds, don't lose sleep over it. It's going to be fine.
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How Should I Orient My Tunnels?
The general consensus — particularly for growers in the northern third of the US — is to run tunnels east-west so the long sidewall faces south and captures the most winter sun. That makes sense in theory, especially at high latitudes where winter sun angles are very low.
But once again, my dad thinks this decision gets more stress than it deserves. At Bountiful Blessings Farm, tunnels face various directions based on how the land lays, and they've never had a production problem attributable to orientation.
What Actually Matters More Than Compass Direction
The lay of your land. If you're on a slope, run your tunnels with the slope rather than across it. Fighting the natural grade creates drainage and leveling headaches that are far more consequential than a few degrees of orientation.
Drainage. This is the factor my dad considers most important. Water needs to move away from your tunnels, not pool around or inside them. How the land drains should heavily influence where and how you position your structures — and drainage patterns don't always align with the compass.
Operational efficiency. How do your beds, paths, irrigation, and equipment access flow together? A tunnel oriented "perfectly" by compass but awkwardly positioned relative to your wash station, cooler, or field access is going to cost you time every single day.
The Takeaway
Don't let orientation paralysis delay your farm layout. North-south beds and east-west tunnels are reasonable defaults if your land allows it. But if your terrain, drainage, or operational needs push you in a different direction, go with what works. Bountiful Blessings Farm is proof that tunnels facing multiple directions can all produce excellent crops.
The best orientation is the one that fits your land, drains well, and lets you farm efficiently. Everything else is fine-tuning.
Frequently Asked Questions
North-south is slightly better for even sun exposure across the bed, but the practical difference is small. Shading from east-west beds is only a concern with tall crops in winter when the sun is low — and you're typically not growing tall crops in winter. Don't let this decision hold up your farm layout.
The general recommendation for northern growers is east-west, but the lay of your land and drainage should take priority over compass direction. Run tunnels with the slope if you're on a grade, and make sure water drains away from the structure. Bountiful Blessings Farm has tunnels in multiple orientations with no noticeable production difference.
In theory, an east-west tunnel in far northern climates captures more low-angle winter sun along its south-facing sidewall. In practice, the difference is modest — especially for growers in the mid-latitudes and South. Good crop selection and the two-layer system (tunnel plastic + interior row cover) matter far more for winter production than tunnel orientation.
Drainage, operational efficiency, and the lay of your land. A well-drained site with logical workflow between beds, tunnels, wash station, and cooler will outperform a "perfectly oriented" layout that fights the terrain or creates awkward daily logistics.