The crooked row may still feed the people who planted it.

Neatness and yield are separate questions, though they tend to get judged together. A crooked row is being measured against a picture of what gardens look like, and the vegetables are indifferent to the picture. Plenty of what people call doing something badly is only doing it in a way that would not photograph well. The test is whether it feeds anyone.

Take one standard you hold yourself to and ask whether it belongs to the result or to the appearance of the result. If it is appearance, you can drop it without losing anything real. Plant the row, even knowing in advance that it will be crooked.