Corn standing as a living stake for climbing beans, squash sprawling across the bare soil, a row of chives threaded through the strawberries: companion planting sets vegetables to work for one another. Keep the ground green all year round with mustard and clover, and the patch asks for no spade, no fertiliser and no spraying.
A vegetable patch that is always green is the golden rule of companion planting: green manure and vegetables run an uninterrupted relay. No need to spade nor fertilize!
Simply run the cultivator once a year just after the last fall crop before sowing mustard seed. For pathways all around the garden, seed them over with clover. This special green manure has roots that work the soil loose and the greens serve as compost for the surface.
Organize your vegetable patch with spinach which you alternate with companion crops. Spinach will provide for the basic structure of your garden and will act as mulch. In addition, its roots will feed micro-organisms in the soil.
The three sisters corn, beans and squash is a triple-play score since these plants support each other wonderfully:
Sow cosmos or other plants of the Asteraceae family among the cabbage to repel large white (the dreadful cabbage moth). The many butterflies attracted by these flowers scare the devastating cabbage moths away.
The pairings described below all work on the same principle: one plant supplies what the other lacks, or drives off the pest that troubles it. Use the table to see which neighbour to slot in beside each crop.
| Crop | Companion | What the pairing does |
|---|---|---|
| Corn, beans and squash | One another | Corn stakes the beans, squash shades the ground, and the beans pack nitrogen into the soil |
| Cabbage | Cosmos and other Asteraceae | Flowers pull in butterflies that keep the cabbage moth away |
| Strawberry | Leek or chives | The fruit bush benefits from the disinfectant properties of these Alliaceae |
| Carrot | Onion | Each protects the other from its own parasite fly |
| Tomato | French marigold, planted in the same hole | Fights off nematodes |
| Cucumber | Chervil and basil | Attract pollinating bees so fruit sets |
With a few seasons’ practice you will start spotting pairings of your own.
Plant leek or chives within your strawberry bed, so that the fruit bush may benefit from the disinfectant properties of these Alliaceae family members. Carrot and onion are best friends: each protects the other from its specific parasite fly.
Carrot also appreciates tomato. The gardener’s favorite vine has the reputation of making insects flee because of its strong smell. Plant French marigold in the same hole as tomato plant to fight off nematodes.
Pair savory with beans. This fends off aphids. Chervil and basil will protect cucumbers from downy mildew. These herbs will also attract pollinating bees to ensure fruit formation. With a few season’s practice, you’ll be finding your own successful companions!
M.-C. H.
