Companion Planting - Good Companions II
by Cathy Dellinger

In my first article I only touched on the importance of companion planting and how we can take advantage, directly or indirectly of the many ways that plants interact. But like the endless list of seeds available to us, there are an infinite variety of plants that assist one another within the environments we create.

As many of us know, it is easy to lose control when that seed catalog arrives in January. I begin my lists with unbridled enthusiasm. By February I have learned restraint, and slowly but surely the list becomes shorter and shorter. The exotics are put aside for the robust beans and beautiful lettuces. The same can be said for companion plants. Here too, I try to limit myself by incorporating herbs that I use frequently and flowers that I just cannot leave behind.

I have listed below what I believe to be both beneficial to the garden and to the gardener's spirt. It is not an overly extensive list, but one that will provide results and interest in your garden.

1. Chives are probably one of the best plants to grow to keep fungal diseases down. Chive sprays have also been used successfully against downy and powdery mildew on cucumbers. Chives are also known to discourage aphids on sunflowers and tomatoes and benefit carrots. Use chives against black spot on roses and scab on apples, but be patient, it takes about three years before it takes effect.

2.Dill goes best among the lettuces and is reputed to attract bees as well as repelling aphids and spider mites on onions, sweet corn and cucumbers.

3. Onions deter the Colorado potato beetle. The cabbage family also gets on well with onions, as do beets, tomatoes and lettuce. Carrots and onions are often interplanted so that the onion and carrot flies are both confused.

4. Peppermint will keep the cabbage family free of cabbage-white butterfly caterpillars by disguising their scent and is especially loved by bees and other beneficial insects. Beware, however, mint can run rampant. Plant mint in pots buried in the soil or else you will have a garden of mint and very little else.

5. French and Pot Marigolds whose strong scent should be used to hide valuable plants from pests in every garden. Sprays made from the Pot Marigold have been used against asparagus beetles and that nasty tomato hornworm.

6. Radishes are not only delicious but help repel cucumber beetles. They also act as easy markers for later crops such as carrots. As quick growers, when harvested they provide easy expansion for maturing carrots.

7. Summer Savory interplanted with beans keeps them free of black aphids and possibly Mexican bean beetle.

This is but the tip of the iceberg. Experiment, plant what is beneficial to the garden and to you and to your eyes. Most importantly, have fun doing it!