Come explore the beautiful world of companion planting and get a free printable garden companion planting chart for easy reference. This article will explore the benefits of companion planting, what flowers, herbs and vegetables to plant together in raised beds, and how to practice companion planting in your garden. I’ve included inspiration photos and layout plans from our gardens as examples too!
Table of contents
What is Companion Planting?
Companion planting is the idea that some plants benefit from growing near one another, while others would prefer to be kept at a distance. Practicing companion planting in your vegetable garden can offer a plethora of benefits – and look beautiful too! Follow our companion planting chart below to see what plants grow best together.
The University of Massachusetts further explains: “companion planting is growing two (or more) crops near each other with the theory that they help each other in nutrient uptake, improved pest management and reduced pesticide use, enhanced pollination and higher vegetable yields”.
Good Partner Plants
A recommended companion planting combination usually provides some sort of benefit to one (or both) of the plants, or brings an added perk to your garden in general. You can find these listed as “good friends” in our companion planting guide below. Some may have a profound relationship, such as relying on each others natural plant hormones to promote growth or protection. Other relationships may be as simple as one providing shade for the other.
Example: Consider the classic Native American “Three Sisters” companion planting combination of corn, squash and beans. Perfect for maximizing yield in compact spaces, the corn grows tall and narrow, leaving open space for sprawling squash plants below. The squash shades the soil to help it retain moisture. Pole beans can climb the corn as a support trellis, all while adding nitrogen to the soil that feeds both the squash and corn.
Incompatible Plants
On the other hand, some plants are often recommended to not plant directly next to others – their known or suspected “foes” as I call them in our companion planting chart. Those combinations may cause each other issues, such as stunted growth.
Example: You’ll often see recommendations to avoid growing peas in close proximity to onions or garlic. Why? Well, there honestly isn’t much scientific evidence to support it, but theories suggest it’s because garlic and onions are “heavy feeders” while peas are not. This makes their fertilizing needs incompatible. Peas also add nitrogen to the soil, while onions and garlic don’t like too much. Another idea is that the pea’s sensitive shallow root system may be disrupted by the growth or harvest of onions and garlic nearby.
Benefits of Companion Planting
1) Increased Pollination and Yields
Pairing fruit or vegetable plants with pollen-rich flowers like calendula, cosmos, zinnia, bachelor buttons, or borage is the perfect way to attract pollinators such as bees and butterflies to your garden. Many vegetable crops are not self-fertile and rely on pollinators in order to grow fruit, including zucchini, winter squash, cucumbers, melons, most berries and fruit trees. Therefore, more pollinators = more to harvest!
Related: Learn more about my 7 favorite easy annual companion flowers to grow from seed, or our overall top 23 best plants for pollinators here. Even with plenty of bees around, I still often hand-pollinate my squash to prevent end-rot and increase yields!
2) Attract Other Beneficial Insects
Bees and butterflies aren’t the only good guys we want to encourage in our garden! Companion planting with flowers and herbs like basil, cilantro, sage and dill creates habitat, food, or otherwise attracts other small beneficial insects like lacewings, parasitic wasps, hover flies, predatory mites, or ladybugs. Those guys all play an important role in natural pest control. For instance, did you know that a single ladybug can eat over 50 aphids per day?
3) Natural Pest Control
While many companion plants draw in beneficial bugs, some can also help deter pests or disease. For example, garlic, chives, onions, and fragrant herbs like basil, dill, and cilantro can help repel aphids – ideal for natural aphid control around susceptible crops like brassicas or leafy greens. The sharp smell of marigold flowers also reportedly keeps pest insects like whitefly away.
Interestingly, hot pepper plants contain a substance within their root system that is effective at warding off and preventing root rot diseases, such as Fusarium rot. This helps keep root rot away from other companions in the same garden bed as peppers.
Other companion plants DO attract pest insects – but distract pests away from your fruit and vegetables plants instead! These are referred to as “trap crops” or sacrificial crops. Nasturtium is a prime example of a trap crop. The flowers attract bees and hummingbirds, but nasturtium leaves are also magnets for aphids and cabbage worms. Trap crop plants should be removed from the garden once they become heavily infested.
Prime Example: Marigolds and Root-Knot Nematodes
French marigolds are possibly one of the most famous companion plants, as their roots contain a natural nematocide that kills root-knot nematodes. (Root-knot nematodes are a microscopic and harmful nematode that feed on root systems, reducing plant health and yields.) This makes marigolds an excellent companion plant for tomatoes, squash, melon, peppers, and other crops frequently affected by root-knot nematodes.
This particular beneficial relationship IS scientifically backed! Yet it is often misunderstood by the well-intended gardener. In order to reap the benefits of French marigold companion planting, the marigold root system must be left in place. That means it’s best to cut marigold plants out at the soil line at the end of the season (leaving the roots in place, no-till gardening style) rather than pulling the plants out. Even better results are achieved if many marigold plants are grown prior to planting the veggie crop in the same location.
4) Increase Biodiversity and Beauty
Variety is the spice of life! It’s beautiful and fun to mix different vegetables, flowers and herbs together in your garden beds. Companion planting adds interest, and is generally better for plant and soil health.
Companion planting is a form of polyculture, or planting several types of crops together in a small space instead of just one. Polyculture and companion planting help increase biodiversity and turn your garden into a mini-ecosystem – an esteemed achievement in organic gardening!
When compared to traditional agriculture or monoculture, a bio-diverse garden is less likely to be overrun with disease or pests. It reduces the need for pesticides, synethic fertilizers, or other chemical products. Diverse gardens also have more robust immune systems to handle environmental stress such as drought, heat, or cold snaps.
Companion Planting Chart
And now… what you likely came here for! Please enjoy this free printable companion planting chart as an easy visual resource and reminder of what plants grow well together (or not). I like to keep our companion planting chart on the fridge, along with the seed starting calendar for our zone. To create this, I gleaned information from dozens of my favorite gardening books and online resources to compile one comprehensive companion planting guide.
For even more helpful garden resources, don’t miss our 20-page Free Garden Planning Toolkit. It includes tips to start a garden, raised bed plot plan templates, journal pages, plus seed starting and planting calendars for every growing zone.
I realize the font is small, especially if you’re on a mobile device. There was a lot of information to fit on one page! If it’s difficult to view online, get a printable PDF version here.
Homestead and Chill Companion Planting ChartDownload
How to Companion Plant in Your Garden
- Make a plan. Rather than heading outside with a bunch of seedlings and stuffing them in a bed willy-nilly, refer to our companion planting chart and sketch out a garden layout plan of where you want to plant everything first. You’ll be less likely to run out of room or accidentally put incompatible plants next to each other. It doesn’t need to be set in stone, but a general plan helps me stay more organized! See our vegetable garden plot plan example below.
- Some of the best and easiest companion plants to grow amongst your vegetables are flowers and herbs. Calendula, nasturtiums, basil, cilantro, oregano, parsley, thyme, and rosemary all have no known “foes” – so feel free to mix them into your garden where ever you can! Calendula is my all-time favorite flower (and medicinal herb) so you’ll find it in almost every one of our garden beds. I’ve also become increasingly fond of planting cosmos, bachelor buttons, and zinnia amongst our vegetables, which draw in a ton of pollinators! Get growing tips on our favorite easy companion flowers here.
- Remember to practice good plant spacing – companions included. Over-crowding plants can thwart the benefits you’re trying to gain with companion planting in the first place! Crowded plants compete for nutrients, water, sunlight and air flow. They’re more prone to disease like mildew and blight. Pests and disease also more easily pass between them. The good new is: most companion flowers and herbs take kindly to pruning, so feel free to cut them back as needed to give your veggies the space they need.
- When companion planting in raised garden beds, I usually add flowers or herbs to the corners of each raised bed at minimum. Then after I plant out all the vegetables, I assess where I have room to tuck more flowers or herbs between them.
Raised Bed Garden Layout Plans
The Science: Does Companion Planting Really Work?
Some benefits of companion planting are undeniable, such as increasing biodiversity and attracting more pollinators to your garden. Yet some companion planting recommendations are more based on theory or anecdotal evidence. This is especially true when it comes to the supposed incompatible plants.
I’ve tried to research scholarly articles that back companion planting with science, and truth be told, they’re sorely lacking. That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s all bunk though! Some things are well-studied, like the benefits of marigolds. Plus, experimentation and personal observation is how all scientific theories get started, after all. If many gardeners have seen the results of companion planting in their own garden, I say it’s worth considering.
My Experience and Final Thoughts
Companion planting must have some truth behind it, or it wouldn’t be such a popular subject in the gardening world. However, I personally pay most attention to the beneficial planting combinations. Those make clear sense to me! Plus the fun and colorful mix of things bring me joy. When possible, I try to avoid the frowned-upon combinations too – but with less scrutiny.
I like to think of the “incompatible” plant combos like neighbors. We don’t adore all of them, right? We all have different needs, lifestyles, and tolerance for nuisance. But will I up and die if I have to live in close proximity to someone I don’t particularly care for? No, probably not. I will chug along and live my life, perhaps just a little less happily…
For instance, we have inter-planted beans with peppers in the past, as well as garlic near peas – both supposed incompatible foes. They still grew, though I do admit they seemed less healthy and vigorous than usual. Perhaps it was just an off year? Or maybe it was the nuisance neighbor.
In all, I try to set my plants up to live their best life, with as few hindrances as possible. My suggestion is to make a modest effort to follow the “rules” of companion planting. Yet if limited space or other circ*mstances leads you to break the rules, don’t stress about it too much!
And that’s companion planting 101!
Have you experimented with companion planting yet? What are your thoughts? Do you think it works, or is the jury still out? As far as I am concerned, there is no harm in trying. Plus, the more flowers and herbs, the better! Please feel free to ask questions, leave feedback, or share this article. Happy (companion) planting!
Other organic gardening articles you may enjoy:
- Seed Starting 101: How to Sow Seeds Indoors
- Organic Pest Control: Over 25 Ways to Stop Pests from Destroying Your Garden
