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Companion Planting Reference Guide

by Kristi Armes

How to Select Companion Plants for Your Garden Tower® 2 Planting System          

Companion planting allows you to select plants that benefit each other in different ways. Moreover, many common garden plants have allelopathic effects. This means they can slow the growth of certain types of neighboring plants!

The composting vertical Garden Tower® 2 planting system is the definition of a companion planting system. 50 plants in 4 square feet at six elevations guarantees plant-to-plant interactions at both the stem and root levels.

Infographic for Reference  

Here’s a fantastic infographic for determining which vegetables will thrive near each other and which veggies you need to put a little space between:

Companion Planting Table

Infographic courtesy of Afristar Foundation

Afristar Foundation develops educational resources for schools, community programs and adult education in the form of posters, educational documentaries and informational booklets. We make use of accessible media to illustrate techniques and principles of sustainability and to spread information in a manner that is fun, colorful and easy to understand. To learn more visit http://afristarfoundation.org/.

 

Tables to Reference for Plant Selections

The following tables offer valuable insights for plant selection and design in a Garden Tower® 2 planting system or conventional garden.  

Determine what plant(s) you would like to grow, check the table to learn which companion plants will help your desired plant thrive and which plants you should avoid planting adjacent to it!  Don’t be intimidated, it’s simpler than it looks!

Use Firefox browser for the largest text!

 

Common name Scientific name
 Helps Helped by Attracts Repels Avoid Comments
Alliums Allium fruit trees, nightshades (tomatoes, capsicum peppers, potatoes), brassicas (cabbage, broccoli, kohlrabi, etc.) carrots carrots slugs, aphids, carrot fly, cabbage worms[1] beans, peas, parsley Alliums include onions, garlic, leeks, shallots, chives, and others
Asparagus Asparagus officinalis Tomatoes[2] Aster Family flowers, Dill, Coriander, Tomatoes, Parsley, Basil, Comfrey, Marigolds coupled with Basil seems to encourage lady bugs Onion, Garlic, Potatoes
Brassicas Brassica potatoes, cereals (e.g. corn, wheat) geraniums, dill, alliums (onions, shallots, garlic, etc.), rosemary, nasturtium, borage wireworms mustards, nightshades (tomatoes, peppers, etc.) Brassicas are a family of species which include broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, kohlrabi, and cauliflower.
Beans Phaseolus Corn (see Three Sisters), Spinach, lettuce, rosemary, summer savory, dill, carrots, brassicas, beets, radish, strawberry and cucumbers Eggplant, Summer savoury California beetles Tomatoes, chili peppers, alliums (onions, garlic, etc.), brassicas (cabbage, broccoli, etc.) Hosts nitrogen-fixing bacteria, a good fertiliser for some plants, too much for others
Beets Beta Vulgaris lettuce, kohlrabi, onions and brassicas Catnip, Garlic, Mint Runner or pole beans[2] Good for adding minerals to the soil through composting leaves which have up to 25% magnesium. Runner or pole beans and beets stunt each other’s growth.
Broccoli Brassica oleracea geraniums, dill, alliums, rosemary, nasturtium, borage mustards, Tomatoes, peppers Rosemary repels cabbage fly, geraniums trap cabbage worms, same general companion profile as all brassica (cabbage, kohlrabi, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, etc.)
Cabbage Brassica oleracea geraniums, dill, alliums, rosemary mustards, Tomatoes, peppers strawberries, and pole/runner beans Rosemary repels cabbage flies, geraniums trap cabbage worms, same general companion profile as all brassica (cabbage, kohlrabi, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, etc.)
Carrots Daucus carota Tomatoes, Alliums (onions, chives, etc.), lettuce alliums (leeks, shallots, etc.), rosemary, wormwood, sage, beans, flax assassin bug, lacewing, parasitic wasp, yellow jacket and other predatory wasps Dill, parsnip, radish Tomatoes grow better with carrots, but may stunt the carrots’ growth. Beans (which are bad for tomatoes) provide the nitrogen carrots need more than some other vegetables. Aromatic companion plants repel carrot fly. Alliums inter-planted with carrots confuse onion and carrot flies.
Celery Apium graveolens Cosmos, Daisies, Snapdragons corn, Aster flowers, these can transmit the aster yellows disease
Corn / Maize Zea mays beans Sunflowers, legumes (beans, peas, etc.), peanuts, cucurbits (squash, cucumbers, melons, etc.), amaranth, white geranium, lamb’s quarters, morning glory, parsley, and potato [2] Tomato, Celery Provides beans with a trellis, is protected from predators and dryness by cucurbits, in the three sisters technique
Cucumber Cucumis Sativus Nasturtiums, radishes, marigolds, sunflowers, peas, beets, carrots, and Dill Beneficial for ground beetles Tomato, Sage
Common name Scientific name Helps Helped by Attracts Repels Avoid Comments
Eggplant or Aubergine Solanum melongena Beans, Peppers Marigolds, tarragon, mints Marigolds will deter nematodes.
Leek Allium ampeloprasum v. porrum Celery, apple trees carrots cabbage worms, aphids, carrot fly, others Legumes (beans, peas, etc.), Swiss chard Same companion traits as all alliums (onions, garlic, shallots, chives, etc.)
Lettuce Lactuca sativa Radish, Kohlrabi, beans, carrots celery, cabbage, cress, parsley Mints (including hyssop, sage, and various “balms”) repel slugs, a bane of lettuce and cabbages
Mustard Brassicaceae, Sinapis alba Cabbage, cauliflower, radish, Brussels sprouts, turnips various pests Same general companion profile as all brassica (cabbage, kohlrabi, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, etc.)
Nightshades Solanaceae carrots, alliums, mints (basil, oregano, etc.) beans, black walnuts, corn, fennel, dill, brassica (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, etc.) Nightshade plants include tomatoes, tobacco, chili peppers (including bell peppers), potatoes, eggplant, and others
Common name Scientific name Helps Helped by Attracts Repels Avoid Comments
Onion Allium cepa Tomatoes, brassicas (broccoli, cabbage, etc.) Carrots aphids, carrot fly, other pests Beans, lentils, peas, parsley Same companion traits as all other alliums (chives, garlic, shallots, leeks, etc.)
Peppers Solanaceae, Capsicum themselves, marjoram tomatoes, geraniums, petunias Tomato Hornworm beans, kale (cabbage, Brussels sprouts, etc.) Pepper plants like high humidity, which can be helped along by planting with some kind of dense-leaf companion, like marjoram and basil; they also need direct sunlight, but their fruit can be harmed by it…pepper plants grown together, or with tomatoes, can shelter the fruit from sunlight, and raises the humidity level.
Potato Solanum tuberosum Horseradish Atriplex, carrot, cucumber, onion, raspberries, squash, sunflower, tomato Horseradish increases the disease resistance of potatoes
Parsnip Pastinaca Sativa fruit trees a variety of predatory insects The flowers of the parsnip plant left to seed will attract a variety of predatory insects to the garden, they are particularly helpful when left under fruit trees, the predators attacking codling moth and light brown apple moth. The root also contains Myristricin, which is toxic to fruit flies, house flies, red spider mite, pea aphids.
Pumpkin and other Squash Curcurbita spp corn, beans Buckwheat, catnip, tansy, radishes Spiders, Ground Beetles Radishes can be used as a trap crop against flea beetles, Curcurbita can be used in the three sisters technique
Radish Rafanus Sativus squash, eggplant, cucumber,[2] lettuce flea beetles, cucumber beetles Radishes can be used as a trap crop against flea beetles
Spinach Spinacia oleracea Peas, Beans The peas and beans provide natural shade for the spinach
Tomatoes Solanum lycopersicum roses, peppers, asparagus basil,[3] oregano, parsley, carrots, marigold, Alliums, celery, Geraniums, Petunias, Nasturtium, Borage, any type of onion or chives Tomato Hornworm asparagus beetle Black walnut, corn, fennel, peas, dill, potatoes, beetroot, brassicas (kohlrabi, cabbage, etc.), rosemary Dill attracts tomato hornworm.

 

Growing basil 10 inches apart from tomatoes can increase the yield of tomatoes by about 20%.[3]

Source: Modified From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_companion_plants References & Footnotes:

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