I’ve been growing vegetables in some capacity since I was about seven or eight years old. When I was growing up in Toronto, my best friend who lived around the corner from me had a pretty large back garden and would grow some veggies every year. I used to come over and help her out with the planting and then the harvesting later in the summer. Our specialty was potatoes. I remember going over to her house to harvest the potatoes and then using them to make homemade french fries. It was always a lot of fun. I’d say that this summer activity of ours is what sparked my interest in gardening, which has only grown bigger over the years. I had my first real vegetable garden of my own the summer after we moved into my current family home. What started out as a roughly 8×10 foot garden has developed and grown over the years to become an 8×23 foot garden now with raised beds, which we built a couple of summers ago. Planning and caring for my garden is one of my favourite things to do. There is something so satisfying about growing your own food and flowers. In the summer months I can often be found just wandering around the garden checking on my various beds of vegetables, flowers, and herbs.

I’ve consumed a lot of content about gardening over the years through various mediums such as social media accounts I follow or books that I’ve read. These are a couple of my favourite instagram accounts for gardening tips and inspiration: Urban Farmstead and Seattle Urban Farm Co. One topic that I learned quite a bit about early on in my gardening journey is the idea of companion planting. Companion planting is arranging your garden so that ‘compatible’ plants are grown near one another. This can increase crop yields and reduce the risk of certain pests and diseases. Similarly, planting certain plants next to other that they are not ‘compatible’ with can have the opposite effect. There are tons of great resources online about companion planting and its benefits. I did quite a bit of research about it a number of years ago and transferred that information into my trusty garden planning journal for easy reference every year when I sit down to plan my garden. So if you’ve ever had a crop do great one year and terrible the next, what you planted it next to could be a factor.

Below you can. find a list of common garden vegetables and their best growing companions. If you’d like to keep this list handy, you can download this PDF to keep on hand for making planting decisions.

Companion Planting Guide

Beans

Plant Near: Broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, peas, potatoes, radishes, squash, strawberries, tomatoes

Steer Clear: Garlic, onions, peppers, sunflowers

Beets

Plant Near: Asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce, onions, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, Swiss chard

Steer Clear: Mustard, pole beans

Broccoli

Plant Near: Beans, beets, celery, cucumbers, onions, potatoes, sage, marigolds

Steer Clear: Cabbage, cauliflower, lettuce, pole beans, tomatoes

Brussels Sprouts

Plant Near: Dill, lettuce, radishes, sage, spinach, turnips

Steer Clear: Tomatoes

Cabbage

Plant Near: Beans, celery, cucumbers, dill, kale, lettuce, onions, potatoes, sage, spinach, thyme

Steer Clear: Broccoli, cauliflower, strawberries, tomatoes

Carrots

Plant Near: Beans, lettuce, onions, peas, radishes, rosemary, sage, tomatoes, leeks

Steer Clear: Dill, parsley

Cauliflower

Plant Near: Beans, beets, celery, cucumber, sage, thyme

Steer Clear: Broccoli, cabbage, strawberries, tomatoes

Celery

Plant Near: Beans, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, leeks, spinach, tomatoes

Steer Clear: Parsnips, potatoes

Corn

Plant Near: Beans, cucumbers, lettuce, melons, peas, potatoes, squash, sunflowers

Steer Clear: Tomatoes

Cucumbers

Plant Near: Beans, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, corn, lettuce, peas, radishes, sunflowers

Steer Clear: Herbs, melons, potatoes

Eggplant

Plant Near: Broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, corn, cucumbers, peas, potatoes, radishes, squash, strawberries, tomatoes, basil, spinach, beans

Steer Clear: Onions, garlic, peppers

Garlic

Plant Near: Cucumbers, lettuce

Kale

Plant Near: Cabbage, dill, potatoes, rosemary, sage

Steer Clear: Strawberries, tomatoes

Lettuce

Plant Near: Asparagus, beets, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, onions, peas, potatoes, radishes, strawberries, tomatoes

Steer Clear: Broccoli

Melons

Plant Near: Corn, pea, radishes, tomatoes

Steer Clear: Cucumbers, potatoes

Onions

Plant Near: Beets, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, lettuce, peppers, potatoes, spinach, tomatoes

Steer Clear: Beans, peas, sage

Parsnips

Plant Near: Garlic, onion, potatoes, radishes, peppers, beans, peas

Peas

Plant Near: Beans, carrots, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, lettuce, melons, parsnips, potatoes, radishes, spinach, turnips

Steer Clear: Garlic, onions

Peppers

Plant Near: Basil, cilantro, onions, spinach, tomatoes

Steer Clear: Beans

Potatoes

Plant Near: Beans, broccoli, cabbage, corn, eggplant, garlic, kale, lettuce, onions, peas, radishes

Steer Clear: Cucumbers, melons, squash, tomatoes, turnips

Radishes

Plant Near: Beets, beans, carrots, cucumber, lettuce, melons, peas, spinach, squash, tomatoes

Steer Clear: Brussels Sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower

Spinach

Plant Near: Asparagus, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, celery, dill, eggplant, lettuce, onions, peas, peppers, radishes, strawberries, tomatoes

Steer Clear: Parsnips, potatoes

Squash

Plant Near: Beans, corn, cucumber, peas

Swiss Chard

Plant Near: Beans, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, celery, cauliflower, turnip

Steer Clear: Parsnips

Tomatoes

Plant Near: Asparagus, basil, beans, borage, carrots, celery, dill, lettuce, melons, onions, parsley, peppers, radishes, spinach, thyme

Steer Clear: Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, corn, kale, potatoes

Zucchini

Plant Near: Corn, lettuce, marigolds, melons, nasturtium, peas, radishes, sunflowers, squash

Steer Clear: Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, fennel, kale, potatoes

This is by no means an exhaustive list of all the fruits and vegetables that can be grown in your garden, but it covers most of the basics. I encourage you to review this list either through this post or by downloading this PDF that summarizes what I’ve written above. In addition, I encourage you to do more research on the topic. Understanding more about companion planting will help your garden thrive.

Happy gardening!

xx

Ashley

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