In a vegetable garden, not all plants have the same needs... or the same friends! Some plants grow better when they are side by side, protecting each other from pests, improving soil quality or encouraging pollination. These are known as beneficial associations, or companionship in the garden.
Rather than leave it to chance to decide your vegetables' housemates, here's a guide to the best associations for getting the most out of your vegetable patch - naturally.
🥕 Tomatoes and basil: the mythical partnership
We love them together on the plate, but they also help each other in the garden! Basil repels certain pests such as white flies and aphids, and attracts bees, which help pollinate tomatoes.
Bonus: according to several experienced gardeners, this combination improves the taste of tomatoes.
🧅 Carrots and leeks: an anti-pest duo
Carrots are often the target of the carrot fly, while leeks are attacked by the leek moth. The good news is that both pests can't stand the smell of the other plant.
The result: planted together, carrots and leeks protect each other. A perfect exchange of courtesies for the vegetable garden.
🥬 Cabbages and herbs: natural defence
Cabbages attract many undesirables such as flea beetles, cabbage flies and caterpillars. But certain aromatic herbs, such as mint, sage, rosemary or thyme, repel these pests.
Tip: Plant these aromatics around or between cabbage rows to create a protective barrier, while also scenting your garden.
🫘 Beans and maize: the strength of the Three Sisters
An old technique used by the Amerindian peoples involves growing maize, climbing beans and squash together. This combination, known as the ‘Three Sisters’, works wonders:
- The maize acts as a natural support for the beans.
- The beans enrich the soil with nitrogen.
- The squashes cover the soil, keeping down weeds and conserving moisture.
An age-old agricultural collaboration that is still effective today.
🍓 Strawberries and garlic: subtle protection
Strawberries are prone to fungal diseases such as botrytis (grey mould). Garlic, on the other hand, releases sulphur compounds with antifungal properties.
By planting them together, garlic helps to protect the strawberry plants while taking up very little space. A discreet but useful combination.
🍆 Lettuces and radishes: optimising space
Radishes grow very quickly (often in less than 30 days), while lettuces take longer. By sowing them together, you harvest the radishes first, freeing up space for the lettuces, which continue to grow.
Advantage: no loss of space, and soil always occupied - which limits weeds.
🚫 Bad associations to avoid
Some plants don't like each other at all and can even harm the growth of their neighbours. Here are some duos to avoid:
- Potatoes and tomatoes: too close botanically, they share the same diseases.
- Onions and beans: onions inhibit the growth of legumes.
- Fennel and just about everyone else: fennel gives off substances that are harmful to many vegetables. Plant it separately.
🌸 Conclusion: a balanced garden is a well thought-out garden
Intelligently combining your plants is not only aesthetically pleasing, it is above all a natural and sustainable way of promoting the health and productivity of your vegetable garden. Observe, test and adjust: every soil and climate has its own particularities. But if you keep these key combinations in mind, you'll have a head start.