Companion planting is the most efficient way to maximize your garden. If you have a vegetable garden, you need to know what species can grow as a beneficial companion. Companionship means that they help each other by repelling insects, increasing soil nutrients, gives shade, and many more benefits. If you plan to revamp your vegetable garden with this planting method, then here is a list of common vegetables and their possible friends and enemies inside the garden.
1. Tomatoes
Basil and tomatoes are good in the kitchen as sauces, but they are also made together as a plant companion. Basil helps tomatoes produce more yields, and it can repel insects like mosquitoes and flies. If you want to beautify the garden with flowers, you can plant marigold as a good companion for tomatoes because it can repel nematodes and other pests. You may also consider other friends like carrots, lettuce, celery, asparagus, spinach, and parsley to benefits tomatoes.
Stay away from:
Tomatoes are not good with beets, dill, rosemary, cabbage, peas, and corn. Also, potatoes and tomatoes can suffer from the same disease, so it is better not to put them together to prevent the spread of diseases and pests.
2. Peppers
Basil is also suitable for companion planting with peppers. It can prevent the infestation of mosquitoes, aphids, flies, and spider mites. Another good thing about planting them together is that basil can aid in improving the flavor of pepper. Besides basil, you may also consider onions, tomatoes, and spinach as a good companion for peppers.
Stay away from:
Beans are not a good companion of peppers as they can harm the plants because of their vines.
3. Green Beans
If you like beans, consider companion planting and corn to serve as natural support as it grows. On the other hand, beans are great for corn as they can absorb nitrogen from the soil, which is good for growing corn. You may consider rosemary, marigold, and summer savory to improve flavor, promote growth, and repel beetles for insect repellent. Other options for companionship are cabbage family, radish, cucumber, potatoes, and peas.
Stay away from:
Beans are not good with beets and other species from the onion family because onions can deter beans’ growth.
4. Cucumbers
If you want to save your cucumber from beetles and aphids, you can do companion planting with nasturtiums and marigolds. Aside from these flowers, lettuce, celery, radish, corn, and dill are good together with cucumber.
Stay away from:
Cucumbers will not thrive together with aromatic plants like sage as they can stunt their growth.
5. Onions
Carrots can live together with onions because it is a good insect repellent for flies. You can plant it with onion-friendly vegetables to repel aphids. Other plants that can tolerate onion through companion planting are carrots, cabbage, beets, lettuce, tomatoes, and some spices like rosemary, savory, and marjoram.
Stay away from:
Onions are not friends with peas, beans, and asparagus, so avoid planting them together.
6. Lettuce
Around lettuce, you can plant mint to avoid slugs from eating the leaves or plant garlic and chives to stay away from aphids. Other companion planting options with lettuce are broccoli, beans, peas, corn, radish, and carrots. For flowers, you can choose marigold as it can attract ladybugs that can eat aphids.
Stay away from:
Parsley is not good with lettuce because of its small bushy plants that can overcrowd the lettuce.
7. Zucchini/Summer Squash
Companion planting with corn can benefit squash as corn stalks provide a place for its vines to grow. Zucchini and squash are good with peas, dill, radish, beans, and marigolds.
Stay away from:
Squash and potatoes cannot get along because both are prone to blight.
8. Radish
You can plant radish and cucumber together because they can prevent the attack of beetles. Aside from that, radish does well with carrots as it can loosen up the soil once it starts to take off as it is harvested first before carrots. Other good companions for radish are kale, spinach, beets, squash, lettuce, and cabbage.
Stay away from:
As you plant radish, you cannot plant Hyssop around it.
9. Sweet Corn
Corn loves to be around vegetables that can fix nitrogen into the soil, such as beans. Cornstalks are very beneficial for trailing and vines for vegetables like beans, peas, melons, cucumber, and pumpkins.
Sat away from:
Tomatoes are not good with corn because they are both prone to earworms infestation. However, you can plant them away from each other to prevent the spread of pests and diseases.
