Does Companion Planting Work? Just Ask My Beans!
After quite a bit of reading about companion planting, last spring I decided to try it.
Exactly what is companion planting, you ask? Companion planting is simply the process of planting different plants together that mutually benefit from having each other around. Native Americans used to do this with their corn, pole beans, and squash. They would make little mounds and plant several corn in the center. As the corn grew they would plant beans and squash around it. The corn provided the poles for the beans, the beans provided the nitrogen for the soil, and the squash acted as a mulch – preventing weeds and retaining moisture.
So I decided to give it a try – though not exactly as the natives did. I planted my corn in a block about 25 feet long and six feet wide with two feet between stalks. The corn was double planted and I planted two regular bush-type beans between the corn stalks. In the end, it looked like this…
Yesterday I picked the beans. When I compared the beans planted with the corn, they were much bigger than the same beans planted elsewhere in the garden. I was impressed. Companion planting does indeed work! So next year I thing I might try a few more combos.
Try These In Your Garden
Onion – plant with parsley to keep away onion fly
Celery – plant with cabbage, broccoli, or cauliflower to deter butterflies (grows well with beans, tomatoes, and leeks)
Asparagus – plant with tomatoes, parsley, or basil
Swiss Chard – plant with cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, onions, lettuce, or herbs – do not plant with string beans
Beets – plant with kohlrabi, carrots, cucumber, lettuce, onions, cabbage, broccoli, or cauliflower – do not plant with string beans, dill, or fennel
Brussels Sprouts – plant with onions
Cabbage – plant with herbs, onion, garlic, peas, celery, potatoes, or beets
Kohlrabi – plant with beets or onions
Peppers – plant with basil, okra, or tomatoes
Cucumber – plant with corn, sunflowers, peas, beans, beets, or carrots
Pumpkin & Squash - Plant with corn, peas, or beans
Carrot – Plant with onions, annual flowers, lettuce, radishes, tomatoes, or peas – do not plant with anise and dill
Lettuce – Plant with cucumbers, onions, radishes, carrots, or dill (dill protects them from aphids)
Tomato – Plant with basil, parsley, and asparagus or French marigolds (French marigolds deter whiteflies)
Bean – plant with celery, corns, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower or melons
Peas – plant with beans, root crops, potatoes, or corn
Radish – Plant with peas or lettuce
Potato – plant with corn, cabbage, beans, or marigolds
Spinach – plant with beans, peas, corn, and strawberries
Corn – Plant with beans, peas, sunflowers, cucumbers, squash, melons, and potatoes
September 9th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
We too researched companion planting and did a lot with it. We planted the “three sisters” – corn, beans and squash. This was our experiment year and boy did we learn. We planted the corn too close together, and needed to wait until it was at least 6″ high before adding two bean stalks per corn, and 1 vining pumpkin per 2 corn stalks. We planted everything too close together so by the time we could find the green beans, they were freaking huge! Zucchini and other gourds/squashes do NOT work – need something that vines like pumpkins or Mexican X-top squash. HOWever I ignored one companion planting: beans and onions don’t get along at all. So even though every soybean sprouted, not one onion did. Will teach me! Anyway, to see more info about our very first garden (yep, newbies), check out our blog at http://www.thorntonwilliamsfamily.blogspot.com and thanks for your own postings! Vikki from near Denver, Colorado
September 19th, 2008 at 11:33 am
I remember as akid we had a family garden (my grandmother, brother, mom and dad all lived in separate houses on the same large property) that we all tended and companion planted like you described. Sometimes there were a few rows of veggies that wouldn’t get something planted near and they would always come out just a little less quality than the others. Companion planting is for sure the way to go to avoid all the nasty chemicals that most use to keep away everyday pests. What a great way to learn about the plants themselves too!
October 20th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
looking forward for more information about this. thanks for sharing. Eugene
December 7th, 2008 at 4:02 pm
Nice post. Thank you for the info. Keep it up.
January 13th, 2009 at 3:36 pm
Great blog! I was wondering what to plant with strawberries. Can I plant tomatoes with onion, chive or leek or do they hate eachother? Thanks!
January 13th, 2009 at 4:29 pm
For strawberries – plant them near beans and onions (go figure!) And they say they like to be mulched in pine needles. I mulched mine in pine saw dust this past year and that seemed to work pretty good. I plan to mulch in wood chips in the future as the wet saw dust can stick to the strawberries, requiring you to wash them before eating. I’ve also read that strawberries grow well under raspberries, gooseberries, and roses – though I couldn’t personally verify that.
As for tomatoes – I see no reason to keep them from onions, chives, or leeks.
June 18th, 2009 at 4:40 pm
Very interesting. Anyone know the companion for string beans or collard greens. Have just sprayed greens for green worms. Any suggestions?