Hey gardeners!
Companion planting — the idea that growing certain kinds of crops together can benefit them both — has been around in some form for thousands of years. For example, the traditional agricultural practices of many indigenous communities include the Three Sisters: three important crops (beans, squash, and corn) that grow well together. You can read more about that here, as well as learn how to set up your own Three Sisters Garden: (https://www.nativeseeds.org/blogs/blog-news/how-to-grow-a-three-sisters-garden)
The specific effects of companion planting will vary from pairing to pairing, but they often fall into a couple of broad categories.
First: some companion plants repel pests, while others attract beneficial insects like pollinators — some even do both! For example: planting basil near your tomatoes will discourage tomato hornworms and armyworms, but it will also attract bees. These two things together can lead to healthier tomato plants and therefore an overall higher yield. Wow!
Some companion plants act as natural supports. “Climbing” plants, like peas or beans, don’t necessarily need to be staked — they can also grow up the stems of taller plants like corn and sunflowers.
Other companion plants can improve soil fertility. Nitrogen is essential for plant growth — this is why so many fertilizers are nitrogen based. Legumes can actually add to the nitrogen in the soil, (as they often have nitrogen-fixing bacteria living on their roots!), which helps the plants around them.
Finally, companion planting can provide shade. Larger plants can block sun from shade-dependent plants, and plants with larger leaves (like squash) can shade the soil, which helps retain moisture and keeps weeds out.
Here a few articles with other companion pairs:
https://www.almanac.com/companion-planting-guide-vegetables
You can learn more about this at VINES’s Resilient Garden Practices workshop on March 12!
Register here: vinesgardens.org/events/.
