Which vegetables to plant together and which combinations to avoid?
Benefits of co-cultivation
What vegetables we plant next to each other, and what combinations we avoid, affects the growth of plants and the final quality of the crop. Vegetables planted next to each other can have a positive or negative effect on each other. It is known not from today that when planting vegetables, we want the harvest to be abundant. For this reason, we must do everything to ensure that vegetables have the best conditions for growth and development.
See: VEGETABLE SEEDS
If we learn all the rules and do it in the right way, we will see how vegetables planted next to each other support each other and accelerate their growth, as well as that of their neighbors, and also prevent pests and various diseases from attacking them. Such relationships are the hallmarks of intercropping. This type of cultivation is based on the use of at least two different plant species, which, when planted alternately in several rows, provide a large number of benefits, including: healthy, abundant crop, reduced number of pests, reduced occurrence of weeds and increased species diversity, and what hence - an attractive appearance of the greengrocer.
When planning the cultivation of various vegetables, we must remember about crop rotation. Closely related species can only be grown in the same place after several years.
Intercropping rules
- We do not plant vegetables from the same group and family next to each other (e.g. nightshade vegetables, i.e. tomato and potato).
- It is worth planting legumes, because their roots enter into symbiosis with bacteria, thanks to which they increase the nitrogen content in the soil.
- We can plant vegetables with different extents of the root system next to each other, because they take nutrients from different layers of the soil.
- We cannot plant vegetables with high water and nutrient requirements next to each other, because they will compete with each other and thus will not develop well.
- Plants that repel pests are worth planting together with vegetables, because they effectively deter most pests (examples of this type of plant are: garlic, marigold).
What plants should be next to each other?
When selecting plants that we want to plant next to each other, we must remember to combine species, because some of them secrete substances that have a beneficial effect on others.
One of the most famous examples of such a combination is carrots and onions. The intense smell of onion means that the popular pest - Carrot Glossary will certainly not come close to the carrot. On the other hand, the presence of carrots in the vicinity of onions means that the onion will not get to the onion. For this reason, it is worth growing onions and carrots side by side.
Another example is the combination of garlic with many other plants. Garlic is a great gardener's friend and an excellent neighbor for many garden plants. Garlic is known for its distinctive, intense odor that many pests dislike. An example is the devastating aphid. In addition, garlic is not liked by harmful soil nematodes. Garlic is a vegetable with bactericidal and fungicidal properties, which is due to the high content of sulfur compounds in the juice and pulp. Planted in the vicinity of strawberries, it protects against gray mold, while planted in the vicinity of currants, it will scare away its eternal enemy - the currant large bud. The neighborhood of garlic and tomatoes, or garlic and fruit trees, also has its advantages. It fantastically repels voles that gnaw tree trunks, and when planted near a peach tree, it helps to protect it from curly leaves. In the ornamental garden, garlic will also work great. It is worth planting it next to tulips or lilies to prevent voles from getting to them. Garlic can also be planted next to rose bushes.
A radish planted next to a carrot, leek, parsnip or parsley is another good example of a great neighborhood. Radish is a vegetable that germinates very quickly. It can be seen above the ground a week after sowing. This is the reason why it is worth sowing it in one row with carrots, parsnips, leeks or parsley, which descend slower. Quickly germinating radish will show the line of rows, which will make it much easier for us to remove weeds from between the rows, without damaging other vegetables. In addition, radish can be harvested before other vegetables grow, which is a very optimal use of the surface of the beds.
Tomatoes with basil are a sensational neighborhood, because both plants are not only a perfectly matched pair in a flower bed, but also blend perfectly on a plate. Basil has a positive effect on the growth of tomatoes, because it effectively repels aphids, spider mites and greenhouse whitefly from them. On the other hand, basil effectively attracts bees, which are responsible for pollinating tomato flowers. The neighborhood of basil is also good for cucumber, as it protects them from the aforementioned mealworm. Basil is also desirable in the orchard, where it has a positive effect on the apricot tree, and in the flower garden, the vicinity of which has a positive effect on fuchsia.
Fennel with brassica vegetables is a neighborhood that significantly minimizes the risk of white cabbage invasion on brassica crops. This is due to the fact that cabbage whites cannot stand the aroma of dill.
Beans and broccoli with mint is a combination that effectively repels ants and other flying and ground insects.
Mustard with peas is the secret to avoiding problems with the pea pest - the bean beetle.
Other beneficial combinations:
late carrot and leek
carrots, lettuce and chives,
celery and leek,
tomato and celery,
tomato and parsley,
pumpkin and beans,
cabbage, beetroot and celery,
fruit trees and lupins, dandelion,
cucumber and dill.
Plant combinations to avoid
During the annual planning of a flower bed, we must not forget that some species have an adverse effect on each other. This is due to the fact that their underground organs produce and secrete chemical compounds into the soil, thereby inhibiting the development and growth of other plants. In addition, these types of plants significantly hinder germination and can promote the formation of various deformations. If a species turns out to be an intermediate host of diseases and pests, it attracts them to crops. This is the reason why we cannot grow plants from the same botanical family next to each other. An example of this is tomato and pepper. Why? Many tomato pests quickly spread to peppers.
The combination of beans with garlic, cabbage, onions and beets should be avoided, as beans significantly inhibit the growth of these vegetables.
The combination of cabbage and radishes with tomatoes is also not advisable. Such proximity makes all plants grow weaker. Cabbage and radish effectively delay the flowering of tomatoes.
Potatoes and tomatoes should not be grown next to each other, because their proximity makes the risk of potato infection much greater.
Cucumber, tomato and pepper are plants that automatically grow less when grown in coordinates. They have many pests in common and can therefore be attacked more intensively than individually.
Beans and onions should not be next to each other, because both species feel bad in each other's company. In addition, onions make the growth of beans sharply slow down.
Other unfavorable neighborhoods that are better avoided include:
lettuce and parsley,
brassicas and carrots,
fennel and tomato,
beans and tomato
potatoes and sunflower,
cabbage and mustard.
The influence of herbs on the taste of vegetables
In gardening, there are not only combinations of vegetables with vegetables, but also vegetables with herbs. Some of them make vegetables taste much better when ripe. Examples are connections:
peas - dill,
potato - coriander, peppermint, cumin,
cucumber - parsley, garden savory,
head lettuce - garden savory,
tomato - parsley,
fennel - garden savory,
beetroot - dill,
radish - garden cress,
onion - garden dill.
Good neighborhood is not everything
When it comes to planting plants, the neighborhood and the beneficial effect of plants on each other is important, but not only. If we want our intercropping to have the best conditions and achieve really good results, we must try to get the right planting material, and this means buying excellent quality seedlings or sowing perfect quality seeds from a reliable source. In addition, it is worth paying attention to the resistance of vegetables to diseases and pests. Some varieties are more resistant than others. An example of this is the Flyaway F1 carrot, which the carrot flyweed will not get to.
The second issue that will positively affect the cultivation of vegetables is the right soil and its fertilization. Properly fertilized soil can be obtained thanks to compost based on plant residues, which we can create ourselves from our waste. If we do not have one and we do not intend to produce it, in stores we will find appropriate fertilizers for growing vegetables, which we can use.
Regular weeding is also important in cultivation, because wild plants often become intermediate hosts of pests and plants that are responsible for damaging other garden plants.
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