Often it is the plants that taste good together that are also companions in the garden. Think of tomato and basil (see below), potato and mint, peas and carrots. All of these should be grown and then cooked deliciously together!
In my gardens I always plant a ‘perimeter of smell’ around the vegetables. I plant strong-smelling vegetables and herbs as a barrier to pests – marigolds, lavender, rosemary, scented geraniums, and alliums. These are generic companions that protect the whole garden. Lavender and rosemary are also good windbreaks, useful to plant in the southeast of any Cape garden.
Finally, here is a table of companionships that I commonly use. I recommend Margaret Roberts’ book ‘Companion Planting’ for a comprehensive guide.
This is the final article in our series ‘The Stoep Harvest’. We have covered planning the garden, preparing the soil, composting, planting, mulching, watering, pest control, rotating and now companion planting. All the articles will remain on the site and my contact details are below for further correspondence.
I wish you all the best with your gardens; may they be abundant; may they be a place of joy and peace for you; may they encourage a green revolution in Africa!
By Sam Adams
0 Comments