Do you know what plants work well together in the garden? Companion planting is a gardening technique that pairs certain plants with others to encourage the growth of both. It's also beneficial for keeping harmful insects away from your plants.
Put nature's 'natural friendships' to work for a healthier, more productive garden with the help of companion planting. Organic gardeners have used this technique for years and it reduces pests while improving plant health.
Growing plants near one another for their mutual benefit is a practice called companion planting. One plant may help the other by repelling or attracting insects, providing shade, attracting pollinating bees, driving away pests and occupying different root zones that lead to decomposition of nutrients needed by both species.
By arranging different types of plantings next to one another such that they interact with each other without competing too much (a careful balance), many benefits can be attained through low-maintenance gardening techniques.
What is a companion plant?
There are many different plants that can be considered companions if they mature at a variety of times. Vegetables, flowers and fruit trees all have their own life cycle.
When planting more than one companion plant together in the garden make sure to account for how long each type needs before it matures into its final form as well as what season or climate zone you're gardening in so everything has time enough to grow!
Examples of Companion Plants
It's not uncommon for two plants to have a symbiotic relationship, whether it be invigorating or diminishing. For example: onion and beetroot produce more growth when grown together than separately; corn and pumpkin are natural enemies because they tend to diminish each other's growth but the reverse is true with beans (or peas).
Plants have a complex, symbiotic relationship. Some plants will aid other plants in growth by providing them with water and nutrients from their roots or by acting as pollinators for the plant species that do not produce pollen themselves.
Peas, beans and other pod-type veggies are a gardener's best friend. These plants capture nitrogen from the air to help their neighbors thrive! It is important for these vegetables to be planted with root vegetables like carrots, turnips and beetroots because they have an easy time getting nutrients from them due to this process.
Peas, beans and other pod-type veggies make gardening easier by capturing much needed Nitrogen that can't always get into the ground so easily on its own in order for all of your roots (carrots etc.) to grow strong and healthy without any problem whatsoever.
The smell of a garden is not only calming, but it also keeps pests like nematodes and whiteflies away. Marigolds are the best plants to help with this as they release their own odors that repel these creepy crawlies! Plant some marigold border around your vegetable gardens for natural pest prevention.
The strong scent of garlic is enough to ward off pesky flies, but the good news doesn't end there. Grown in rich soil, it gives off sulfur compounds that will kill aphids and onion flies!
Many aromatic herbs are effective at warding off pests and insects. They can be grown between vegetable crops to the benefit of your entire garden, with some exceptions like sage weakening beans or dill harming carrots. A carefully laid out garden is always key to success!
The Allium family, including chives, garlic and onions are well known for repelling aphids. They also protect roses from black spots and mildew; however they can have another beneficial effect on the rose plant: causing them to develop a stronger scent!
Using Companion Plants with Roses
1. Choose a sunny site with rich, well-drained soil. Using a shovel, dig holes for roses, allowing at least 1.2 meters between the plants.
2. Break the garlic into cloves and plant, pointed ends up, 2 cm dip, 10-15 cm apart, between the roses. Cover will soil and water well.
3. Next, plant one or two clumps of chives 10cm apart and in front of the rose bushes. Firm the soil around the chives' roots and water well.
4. Plant rhubarb behind the roses. The poisonous leaves of rhubarb will discourage many insects from attacking the roses.
Companion Plants for Tomatoes
1. In a sunny, well-drained site, plant tomatoes in a row, leaving at least 1.2-1.5 meters between plants.
2. Plant basil between tomatoes to encourage strong growth and to attract beneficial insects.
3. Edge the bed with five insect-repelling marigolds and five tomato stem-borer attracting dill plants.
Additional common companion plants include:
Marigold:
Marigolds are known for their pest-repelling abilities and make good companions with other plants like roses, strawberries, cucumbers.
Marigolds will make your vegetables and flowers happy. They repel bugs that would otherwise destroy them, like aphids, beetles, cabbage maggots and nematodes. Plant a few of these around the perimeter of your garden for some guaranteed protection from pests!
Nasturtium:
Nasturtium is a common garden plant that attracts aphids and repels carrot rust flies. It's also an excellent companion for many vegetables, such as melons or asparagus!
Clover:
Clover is a plant that can repel various insects. Clover attracts aphids, cabbage butterflies, root flies and wireworms in order to eat them! In addition to being good for your plants because of its pest-resistant abilities, clover also has the ability to attract fruit trees and vegetables so they will grow better with more nutrients around them.
Onion (Allium family):
Onions have a long history of being used to ward off pests because they emit powerful sulfur compounds. These help protect your other crops from unwanted visitors such as cabbage loopers, maggot worms, carrot rust flies and aphids all the while keeping potato moths at bay too! The only veggies that don't get along with onions are peas so be careful if you're growing them together in one container or garden bed.
Corn:
One of the many benefits to growing corn is that it repels pumpkin beetles. Corn can be planted with peanut, cucumbers, squash and beans as a companion plant for these vegetables because they are also great at repelling pests.
Radish:
Radishes not only repel cabbage maggots and pumpkin beetles, but they also provide a healthy companion for peas, lettuce, and squash. Radish leaves are edible as well!
Coriander:
Coriander is one cool herb with useful benefits for your whole kitchen garden. For example, this super-herb helps to repel potato moths while attracting bees and other helpful bugs - perfect if you're growing vegetables such as potatoes or tomatoes!
Basil:
Basil is an herb that can be used in many culinary dishes. Basil repels both asparagus beetles and flies, making it a great ingredient for pest control on your vegetable garden! The opal basil variety not only repels tomato stem-borer but also makes good companions with asparagus, tomatoes and most vegetables.
Dill:
Dill is an herb that repels many pests. In addition to cabbage loopers, spider mites, caterpillars and codling moths it also deters broccoli-eating bugs like aphids who don’t want the dill flavor in their mouths. Dill works best on these plants as a companion plant because they are all pollinated by bees which will fly over the aromatic scent of this beneficial weed while looking for pollen from other more desirable produce.
Dill is wonderful to use for attracting butterflies into your garden! You can sprinkle a few dill seeds in the ground of any flower bed, or on top of your containers. Butterflies are drawn to their natural fragrance and will come out from miles away just to see what you've created.
Rosemary:
Rosemary has a way of keeping away unwanted pests that attack vegetables. It's also great for repelling cabbage butterflies, carrot rust flies, snails and slugs so it is an excellent plant to grow on your farm or in your garden next to brassicas like cabbages, carrots and beans which are all susceptible insects as well!
Sage:
Sage is a potent herb that can keep away cabbage loopers, maggots, and other pesky insects. It makes an excellent partner with carrots because it both repels insects from the carrot's leaves while attracting those pests to its own flowers which have medicinal properties. Sage also works well as a companion plant for brassicas like broccoli or cauliflower; marjoram; strawberries--especially in container gardens--and tomatoes!
Garlic:
Garlic is a wonderful natural tool to have on hand in the garden. It can be used as an organic insect repellent and it also wards off slugs. When planted around fruit trees or vegetables, garlic will keep aphids away from those plants - except for peas! Garlic has been said to ward off Japanese beetles when placed near your lawn too; however, you should not plant any beans if they're close by because that would make them go crazy with excitement (and produce heaps more).