Certain plants grow best when they are grown close by specific other plants, deterring pests, promoting growth or improving flavour. A few examples are listed below together with some flowers and herbs that help your garden.
Marigolds help almost every vegetable, particularly tomatoes, & repel whiteflies
Nasturtiums protect other plants from aphids as it attracts them away from other plants, also improves the flavour and growth of cucumbers, radishes and tomatoes
Zinnias attract ladybugs which eat unwanted pests
Basil planted close to tomatoes increases tomato yields, also improves the flavour of lettuce, and repels aphids and flies.
Chives improves the flavour of carrots and tomatoes, also repels aphids
Dill attracts lady bugs and is good for cucumbers, lettuce and onions
Garlic is good for beets, celery, lettuce, potatoes, strawberries and tomatoes
Thyme will enhance the flavour of strawberries
Beets and Garlic (garlic improves the flavour of the beets as well as being an anti fungal preventing disease in the beets) also Beets improve the growth of Lettuce
Carrots and Leeks (each of these vegetables acts as a repellent for the other’s pests)
Cucumbers and Peas (the peas increase the nitrogen content of the soil which helps thecucumbers grow)
Peas are good to plant with carrots, cucumbers, parsley, potatoes and peppers to name a few,but not onions
Radishes like to be grown with lettuce, peas, and tomatoes but not potatoes
Swiss Chard loves to grow with beans or onions
Tomatoes really like carrots, cucumber, garlic, lettuce and parsley but keep them away from dill and potatoes, the latter might spread blight to them
From the Garden Committee,
Courtesy of Linda Martin
March 2021 (This is from multiple sources gleaned over several years)
St. Barnabas Community Garden 