Planet Vegeta

Planet Vegeta (惑星ベジータ, Wakusei Bejīta), formerly known as Planet Plant, is the home planet of Goku, Vegeta, and all other native Saiyans, Tuffles and Plants in the Dragon Ball franchise.

Planet description
Planet Vegeta is seen only briefly in the anime and manga. It is known to possess at least ten times the gravity of planet Earth II (whether this means that Planet Vegeta is a physically larger world, merely a denser one, or both, is not explained). This intense gravity gives the Saiyans their natural physical resiliency and power. The Tuffles, the other race on Planet Vegeta, appear to have evolved along different lines by having smaller bodies so that the gravity affects them less.

In the anime, Planet Vegeta appears to be a harsh desert world with a yellow/red sky instead of blue. It has at least two natural satellites, and there is a full moon every 100 years or 8 years (depending on the dub).

Planet Vegeta seemed to be in ruins about 100 years before Vegeta and Nappa land on Earth. By using the Pendulum Room in an anime-only segment, Krillin, Tien Shinhan, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu travel to the planet spiritually, only to be thrashed by the two illusion Saiyans there, Brocco and Panbukin, who say "No one comes to Vegeta!" during their encounter with the Z Fighters. The four Z Fighters do not seem to be under higher gravity while they are there. However, this is only a spiritual experience, and they come back afterward.

Plantians
In the spin-off manga Dragon Ball: Episode of Bardock, the planet is shown to be inhabited by a race known as the Plantians in the distant past. Bardock somehow is sent back in time, and saves the planet from Frieza's ancestor, Chilled. The Plantians do not seem to recognize him as a Saiyan, and Chilled has never heard of the race.

History of the Tuffles and the Saiyans
Planet Plant was later home to two races: the Tuffles and the Saiyans. The Tuffles were a diminutive race, native to planet Plant, who lacked physical strength and toughness, but were very intelligent and skilled with technology. By contrast, the Saiyans were average-sized, but very strong and brutal. Despite their incredible powers, the Saiyans were primitive and backwards, and lived in small clans scattered across the deserts of Plant. King Kai and Dr. Raichi in Dragon Ball Z: Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans as well as Baby in Dragon Ball GT state that the Saiyans were not originally from Planet Plant; they came to the planet in Age 550, apparently seeking refuge from their previous home world. Meanwhile, the Tuffles used their ingenuity to create large metropolis in which to live, and were fairly prosperous.

Their life was a peaceful one, until suddenly, around Age 720, the Saiyans decided to attack. What started the war is debatable, according to Vegeta the Saiyans were treated poorly, essentially like slaves, by the Tuffles and forced to live in harsh conditions which forced them to rise up against them. Baby however argued that the Tuffles were a peaceful people and Saiyans launched an unprovoked attack against them. Both versions of the story are likely biased, but in either case, led by King Vegeta, the Saiyans declared war on the Tuffles, in a conflict known as the Saiyan-Tuffle war. According to King Kai, the clever King Vegeta started the war against the Tuffles to take over the planet after Saiyan numbers rose. The Saiyans were giants compared to the Tuffles but due to the latter's technology, they managed to keep an upper hand in the war. But then, around Age 730, something happened to give the Saiyans an upper hand. The full moon came up, something that only happens once every 100 years (every 8 in the English dubs of the anime), and the Saiyans possessed the ability to transform into giant apes called Great Apes whenever exposed to the light of a full moon. In their new forms, they easily defeated and obliterated the Tuffles and took over the planet, renaming it Vegeta after their king.

At one point, a Super Saiyan God appeared on Planet Vegeta to stop bad Saiyans, but he failed because of the form's time limit.

Exploitation by Frieza
Main article: Genocide of the Saiyans

Soon, around Age 731, the Saiyans are discovered by the Arcosians and the tyrant Frieza. They found their race was strong and had a love of fighting so, they began to employ them in the Planet Trade Organization to destroy races of people in order to take over their planets for the organization, and eventually bring about Frieza's goal of ruling the entire universe. Planet Vegeta was soon transformed into a military base, many of Frieza's men stationed alongside the Saiyans. Young Saiyans with low battle powers (Low Class Saiyans) were sent off to other planets to wipe out the inhabitants, making the planet fit to sell.

The Saiyans increased their strength quickly and, around Age 735, Frieza became worried that they would become too powerful. While Frieza had little fear of lone Saiyans, their power in numbers was evident that it may be troublesome. Too prideful to admit it, he also harbored a secret fear of the legendary Super Saiyan which may arise; he had a premonition that it was not just a story. Zarbon suggested to Frieza that it would be prudent to wipe out the Saiyans before they grew more threatening.

A few rebel Saiyans, including King Vegeta, sensed this and plotted against Frieza. The Saiyan Bardock survived an ambush which killed his friends, and vowed revenge on their treacherous master. They attacked Frieza, but his strength was overwhelming and he defeated them easily. To rid himself of the Saiyan menace forever, he destroyed the planet along with nearly all of the Saiyans, the only survivors being Raditz, Nappa, Prince Vegeta, and Kakarot (Goku). In the Dragon Ball Z movies and specials the Saiyans Turles, Broly, Paragus and Tarble also survived.

The destruction of Planet Vegeta seems slightly different between the manga and the anime. In the anime, Frieza destroys the planet with a Supernova. In the manga, Frieza simply states that he attacked the planet (though he does state that he destroyed it when mentioning how Goku resembled the Saiyan that caused him trouble). Also, Raditz (in the first volume of Dragon Ball Z) states that Planet Vegeta was destroyed by an asteroid three years before his arrival, in his big speech explaining Goku's backstory before Goku came to Earth II, which is the story Frieza spread to keep the remaining Saiyans from turning on him. Vegeta is told the same account shortly after the planet is destroyed. In the anime, King Kai tells Goku that Planet Vegeta was not destroyed by a single asteroid, but by many large asteroids drawn to planet Vegeta by the planet's Guardian himself in order to punish the Saiyans; this story may have been fabricated to keep Goku from learning of Frieza and seeking him out (considering that King Kai later reveals that he is aware of the existence of Frieza, and begs Goku and other characters not to fight him because of his immense power), or based on the story of the original Super Saiyan God fighting evil Saiyans on Planet Vegeta (the Guardian of Planet Vegeta is a god wearing a cape, similar to the original design of the Super Saiyan God), or else King Kai might have been fooled by Frieza's rumor as well. Later, when Super Saiyan Goku faces Frieza on Namek, he says the Saiyans were destroyed because they killed innocent people, while Frieza remarks that he destroyed them because he did not like them.

Rebirth
Main article: New Planet Plant

The planet was wished back and renamed once again Planet Plant (Tuffle) by Prince Atem in Dragon Ball GT. Alternate names include New Planet Plant (Tuffle Planet) and can be considered a New Planet Vegeta. It was where the final battle with Baby took place and where the people of Earth evacuated to when Earth was destroyed.

Trivia

 * Each time Planet Vegeta is seen on a different occasion, it has a different appearance: the planet is red in Bardock - The Father of Goku, green/blue in a flashback in Dragon Ball GT, white in Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans and blue in its remake Plan to Eradicate the Super Saiyans, it has rings when Raditz mentions it, and the planet looks like the Earth in King Kai's story as well as in Dodoria's story.
 * In an anime filler, King Kai claims that Planet Vegeta also had a guardian who, upset at the Saiyans' horrible behavior, decided to slaughter the Saiyans with a meteor shower. Later, the manga claims that the meteor that Raditz talked about was merely a cover-up for Frieza's genocide of the Saiyan race, and the anime followed suit. Dodoria finally confirms that Frieza was responsible for the destruction of planet Vegeta when he explains the truth of the planet's end to Vegeta.
 * When reporting that Saiyans are not originally from Planet Vegeta, the authors of the Dragon Ball GT Perfect Files wonder if the original planet of the Saiyans is still around and even call it Planet Saiya.
 * In Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3, the planet battle stage looks like the surface of planet Vegeta or planet Frieza 79 and the planet in the background of the Space battle stage also looks like planet Vegeta.