by Janette Peel

Created on: April 15, 2009

Put nature's natural friendships' to work for a healthier, more productive garden. Organic gardeners have used companion planting for years to cut down on pests and improve plant health.

Companion planting is the practice of growing certain plants near one another for their mutual benefit. One plant may assist another by repelling or attracting insects, providing shade, attracting pollinating bees, repelling pests such as while cabbage butterflies or aphids, occupying different root zones, or even decomposing into nutrients needed and absorbed by the other plant.

Plants can also be considered companions' if they mature at different times when planted together.

Some plants have an invigorating effect on each other, such as beetroot and onions, or corn and pumpkins. However, there are also some plants that are considered natural enemies, such as beans (or peas) and onions, which tend to diminish each other's growth.

The way in which plants help each other grow are as varied and interesting as the plant type themselves.

Peas, beans and other pod-type vegetables harbor bacteria in their roots that capture nitrogen from the air, making this important nutrient readily available to neighboring plants. As a result, these plants are good companions to root vegetables, such as carrots, turnips, radishes and beetroot.

Aromatic marigolds exude a substance from their roots that repels whiteflies and nematodes. Many gardeners plant a border of marigolds around their vegetable garden to repel these pests.

Garlic is a good all purpose pest repellent. Grown in rich soil, it gives off sulphur compounds (which make it smell) that will kill aphids and onion flies.

Many aromatic herbs are effective at warding off pests and insects. Most herbs can be grown between vegetable crops to the benefit of the entire garden. There are exceptions however, including the weakening effect sage has on beans, and dill on carrots. Any garden layout should always be carefully considered.

Did you know members of the Allium family, including chives, garlic and onions, are particularly beneficial companions to roses. In addition to repelling rose aphids, and protecting roses from black spot and mildew, Alliums can cause roses to develop a stronger scent.

To grow roses without pesticides:

1. Choose a sunny site with rich, well-drained soil. Using a shovel, dig holes for roses, allowing at least 1.2 meters between the plants.

2. Break the garlic into cloves and plant, pointed ends up, 2 cm dip, 10-15 cm apart, between

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