Companion Planting

Posted by Rosie

Last year, overall the veg patch did really well but there were a few notable exceptions. The onions hardly got any bigger than shallots and one patch of kale and brussels didn't put on any decent growth. Now I think I may have the answer.

I was reading a book this evening about Companion planting called Tomatoes love Carrots. I've known for ages that certain plants can help others grow either by repelling pests or by other less well understood methods but I never investigated it further. So, as I read I took a few notes. "Brassicas i.e. cabbages, kale, brussels etc hate strawberries" and "Onions hate beans." What is right next to the poor kale and brussels? The strawberry patch. What was next to the onions? Broad beans.

Call it co-incidence, I don't know, but I have spent this evening drawing up a plan of what I will grow where this year, taking into account what grew where last year and what likes or dislikes other vegetables. I will report back in the autumn (if I remember) as to how things did - especially the onions as I almost decided not to grow them this year. Now, can I put onions next to the strawberry patch .......?