make one panel blank in ggplot2

Question

p <- ggplot(mtcars, aes(mpg, wt)) 
p + geom_point()+facet_grid(cyl ~ vs)+theme_bw()

I would like to make the panel (1 vs 8 in the lower right hand corner) blank where no data points are shown, but at the same time, I would like to keep this arrangement.

so facet_wrap(cyl ~ vs) could not solve my problem.

maybe more general question is that is it possible to arrange each panel in ggplot2?

I gave up trying to do it in ggplot a while ago, it's straightforward with the regular plot command. Also, you might try sending this to the ggplot mailing list. — Jeremy Miles, Dec 12 '13 at 18:03
But the arrangement **is** preserved if you use `facet_wrap(cyl ~ vs, ncol=2)`, although the labeling changes slightly. Is this not your intention? — Nick, Dec 12 '13 at 19:32

score 18 · Answer 1 · edited Sep 20 '17 at 15:58

18

You can do that, but not with facet_wrap (as far as I know). Create your seperate sub-plots. For a detailed step by step approach, see my answer here.

Create a blank plot & with the package gridExtra you can combine the plots:

library(gridExtra)
library(grid)

blank <- grid.rect(gp=gpar(col="white"))

grid.arrange(plot1, plot2, blank, plot3, ncol=2)

This approach will give you also a lot influence on the appearance of you final plot (IMHO).

edited Sep 20 '17 at 15:58

user20650

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answered Dec 12 '13 at 19:54

Jaap

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@joaoal no it isn't; `grid.arrange` is a function from the `gridExtra`-package – Jaap Jul 05 '17 at 16:55
@Jaap but `grid.rect` requires `library("grid")` – Rufo Sep 20 '17 at 15:51
This did not work for me, there was a huge blank space created before the plots... – halo09876 Jan 02 '19 at 17:14

score 11 · Accepted Answer · answered Dec 12 '13 at 20:05

11

You change the table grobs.

## get the table grobs
g1 <- ggplot_gtable(ggplot_build(p))

library(gtable)
library(grid)
## here the main modification
## change one panel by a new rectangle.
pp <- gtable_add_grob(g1,rectGrob(gp=gpar(col=NA)),t=8,l=6,b=8,r=6)
grid.draw(pp)

enter image description here

answered Dec 12 '13 at 20:05

agstudy

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`g = ggplotGrob(p); ;g$grobs[[max(which(g$layout$name == "panel"))]] = nullGrob(); grid.draw(g)` – baptiste Dec 12 '13 at 20:44
@agstudy, Thank you very much agstudy, this is exactly what i want. – user36102 Dec 13 '13 at 09:42

make one panel blank in ggplot2

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