How to do companion gardening?
I have a few questions about companion gardening. I plan on planting a bit today, and want to do this the best I can. 
1) How close do the “companions” have to be? Like should they just be in the row next to it’s partner, or planted mixed in with them?
2) What are some companion plants/layouts, if you know of any? If a list of what I’m planting would help, I can provide that. Well hell, I’ll just go ahead and list it.
-Tomatoes (both regular sized and cherry)
-Spinach
-Leaf lettuce
-Carrots
-Onions, probably
-Radishes, probably
-Cilantro
-Basil
-Broccoli
-Bell peppers
-Yellow squash
-Zucchini
-Watermelon
-Peas
-Okra
-Cucumbers
-Sunflowers and other types of flowers (Marigolds, Gladiolas, and Freesia, to be exact)
-Oh, and probably some baking pumpkin
Anyway, I’m only planning on planting a few of each thing, not a whole row of each, if that makes any difference. Thanks for any help!!
June 13th, 2010 at 7:06 am
Plant carrots among your onions to keep carrot fly away. I do a row of carrots with a couple of rows of onions each side. Of course, it all depends exactly how many of each you want and how much space you have…
Plant basil underneath your tomato plants and peppers.
Plant radishes all around and underneath your pumpkins, cucumbers, melons, zucchini etc. to keep away squash borers.
Grow the cilantro in and among your lettuce and spinach, as it helps deter all kinds of aphid.
I don’t know any tips for peas or okra. For the broccoli, try planting sage around it (as much as you can) to keep the caterpillars off.
Plant a ton more marigolds than you actually want, and let the snails have them. They’ll go for the marigolds rather than the rest of your plants – you can even use them as a ‘bait’ plant and go pick the snails off each evening. If you plant enough, hopefully they won’t get all of them!
It’s also good to grow a big variety of herbs around the place; many herbs help to attract beneficial insects and many deter flying pests too. Go for lavender, rosemary, thyme, chives, hyssop, garlic, borage. Nasturtiums, marigolds and calendula are great ‘general’ companions for the vegetable garden – plant them anywhere you have a space!
Hope this helps. Good luck with your garden!
June 13th, 2010 at 9:31 am
i enjoy gardening myself since i was a child. check out this website it gives you an accurate companion guide plus a what not to plant next to guide.
http://www.gardensablaze.com/Companions/CompanionYield.htm