A–Z Advice for Companion Planting in Your Vegetable Garden

Find detailed info and links for specific companion plants and planting techniques for popular vegetable garden crops in our alphabetical list, from beets to zucchini.

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What is Companion Planting?

Companion planting is all about diversifying what's grown in a vegetable garden to boost plant health and reduce potential problems with pests and diseases. When flower, herb and veggie "companions" are grown alongside vegetables in healthy soil, the vegetable crops often grow better with fewer issues and less need for insecticides or chemical fertilizers. Learn about specific companion plants and companion planting techniques known to benefit your favorite crops, including tomatoes, peppers, squash, onions and more.

Companion Plants for Beets

Beets have relatively few problems with pests and diseases, but you may still benefit from rotating them into your garden after a crop of radishes or mustard.

Learn More: Companion Plants for Beets

Companion Plants for Broccoli

Broccoli is susceptible to the many pests and diseases that all cabbage-family crops are, which makes companion planting all the more important. Grow with a variety of other herbs and vegetables to discourage specific pests, attract pest predators and camouflage your crop.

Learn More: Companion Planting for Broccoli

Companion Plants for Carrots

Carrots can be grown with a variety of herbs including thyme and basil, flowers like marigolds, and other vegetables such as onions to ward off pests and ensure a good carrot crop.

Learn More: Companion Plants for Carrots

Companion Planting With Cilantro

Though not a veggie itself, cilantro serves as a powerful companion plant in the vegetable garden, attracting beneficial insects that prey on insect pests of a variety of crops, including tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, potatoes, beans and more.

Learn More: Companion Planting With Cilantro

Companion Plants for Cucumbers

Increase your cucumber harvest by growing these vines alongside herbs like borage, flowers such as nasturtium, and other vegetables like certain winter squash varieties, which serve as a trap crop for cucumber beetles. Bonus: Cucumbers also make a handy living mulch to keep down weeds around tomatoes and okra.

Learn More: Best Companion Plants for Cucumbers

Companion Plants for Eggplant

Keep common pests like flea beetles off your eggplant with a variety of companion planting techniques, including co-planting with dill and cilantro, beans, and clover. Planting with garlic also improves plant growth.

Learn More: Companion Planting for Eggplant

Companion Plants for Okra

When summer gets cranked up, certain vegetable garden crops naturally outshine others, and okra is the shining star. Okra can suffer from nematode problems, though, so try companion planting and crop rotation techniques to avoid damage. Other companions will help with weed control and pollination.

Learn More: Companion Planting for Okra

Companion Plants for Onions

Onions are as hardworking in the garden as they are in the kitchen, serving as a great companion for many other vegetables, including tomatoes, potatoes, and cabbages. To keep your onion crop healthy and ward off pests, grow them with a variety of other vegetables as well as flowers like marigold and herbs such as fenugreek.

Learn More: Companion Planting for Onions

Companion Plants for Peppers

Peppers, both hot and sweet, are easy to grow once started and don't suffer from a lot of disease and pest issues. But companion planting can still be beneficial to boost pollination and harvest and keep plants healthy and thriving. Common plants like beans, garlic, and basil can help out your pepper crop.

Learn More: Companion Planting for Sweet and Hot Peppers

Companion Plants for Potatoes

Grow a gorgeous crops of potatoes by planting companions like onions, tansy, and rye to control common pests and diseases. You can also grow potatoes alongside beans for mutual benefit — hungry potato plants benefit from the nitrogen-fixing beans.

Learn More: Companion Planting for Potatoes

Companion Plants for Squash

All varieties of squash, both summer and winter types, suffer from problems with pests and diseases. But several companion plants and techniques can aid pollination, deter pests, and help you get a better harvest.

Learn More: Companion Planting for Summer and Winter Squash

Companion Plants for Strawberries

Borage, fennel, cilantro, onion, and garlic are all great companion plants for strawberries, helping repel common strawberry plant pests and lure pollinators for even more ripe strawberry fruits.

Learn More: Companion Planting for Strawberries

Companion Plants for Tomatoes

Problems with garden tomatoes often arise from lack of pollination or from pests and diseases. When you grow tomatoes alongside a variety of flowers like marigolds, herbs such as basil and thyme, and other vegetables like onions, you increase the likelihood of good pollination and decrease the pressures from pests that carry disease.

Learn More: Companion Planting for Tomatoes

Companion Plants for Watermelon

Give your watermelon crop a good start and help make sure it sets fruit early so that melons have enough warm weather to grow to maturity. Companion planting techniques, including growing alongside a variety of flowers, will help.

Learn More: Companion Planting for Watermelon

Companion Plants for Zucchini

Zucchini plants will pump out squash and edible blossoms as long as they don't get hit by pests and diseases. Trap crops, living mulches, cover crops, and more companion planting techniques will help.

Learn More: Companion Planting for Zucchini