I’d like to share an early gardening memory with you. My grandfather loved homegrown tomatoes, and every summer he had some growing in the backyard of their house in Ohio. I remember standing there, late one May, as he planted a row of marigolds along the edges of his tomato garden. “Keeps the rabbits out,” he said. I was confused- beyond not understanding why rabbits were bad (I would learn that much later when I had my own house and garden), I didn’t understand how a flower could deter any animals or insects.
What is Companion Planting & Gardening
Companion planting is the art of growing different plants together. These different combinations can yield positive results when done correctly, as some plants deter insects and other pests.
We’ve all grown up with the folklore of companion planting, and some of us still plant things together without really knowing why. Tomatoes and basil go in a giant pot on my back patio every May- but did you know basil supposedly makes tomatoes taste better and helps repel mosquitoes and flies? I didn’t. I just like the two of them together, and we’ve always planted them that way. I considered companion planting two seasons ago, as I was planning my summer garden. I researched which plants could help each other, but as I did my research, I quickly learned that while some plants help each other, others can harm each other.
Companion Planting Benefits
For example, if you plant tomatoes and peppers next to each other (and I did, for years), both attract tomato hornworm, so you’ve basically set up a buffet for those nasty little worms- and they are very tough to get rid of. However, when companion planting and gardening is done correctly, you can expect the following benefits:
- Attraction of beneficial insections, like pollinators
- Deterred pests
- Reguation of Shade
- Improving soil fertility
- Weed Suppression
- Improved plant health
As I did my research, I found that it can be very easy to incorporate companion planting into your gardening, and I was going about it the wrong way. One thing to try is mixing your plants together. It certainly isn’t what we see in so many of today’s planned landscapes, but take a stroll through a metro park, or drive past a country meadow, and you see that nature does companion planting the best way- naturally.
Companion Planting Implementations
Instead of planting your lettuce in neat rows, basically inviting pests to chow on through, interplant the lettuce with other veggies in order to deter the pests, or at least slow their progress. You can also plant other companion plants like herbs and flowers that lure pests away- something tastier for the pests to eat as a distraction, such as nasturtiums.
Common Companion Planting Vegetables
A classic example of this is the “three sisters” companion planting combo consisting of squash, corn, and beans. This trio is perfect to make the best use of the space they’ve planted in; the corn is tall and thin, proving shade and helping the soil retain moisture while ensuring that squash has plenty of room to expand horizontally. Meanwhile, the beans return nitrogen to the soil, providing nutrients for the corn and squash, while using the corn as a trellis to climb. These benefits make this trio the perfect combination of companion planting vegetables.
What to Avoid With Companion Planting
As stated previously, there are some plants that should never be planted together. Sometimes, their pairing can result in increased pests, but some companion plants are even more destructive. A common grouping to avoid is peas and onions or garlic. There is no clear answer as to why these plants shouldn’t be put within proximity, but it’s thought that peas’ shallow roots might be disturbed by the growth and harvest of onions or garlic.
Companion Planting is not Always the Answer
Companion planting alone is not going to solve the pest issues of your garden. As always, a healthy garden relies on good soil, mulching, weeding, and paying careful attention to your plants as they grow and watching for any signs of pest damage. Let us know if you have a particular companion planting that works in your yard, or one that was an experiment gone wrong- we’d love to read your stories!