Topic: companion planting question

[kingkano]

I was going to do alot of companion planting this year, nothing too complicated, just marigolds all around, sunflowers with corn, poached egg round the potatoes and others.

My question is - how the heck do you handle weeds in this kinda setup?  I'd love to just go mad with the flowers and stuff, but I imagine it must be heck to hoe then.  Or am I better off sowing the flowers in rows between, or even in the row between the main plants?

[philcooper]

I think that question is on a par with the one to which the answer is 42 (which is probably much higher now due to inflation)

The only companion planting that can be controlled is when the companions are planted as opposed to sown alongside their companions that way you just have to hoe round 2 sets of plants not one.

Your idea of sowing the flowery companions in rows should get round the problem

[derbex]

I think Phil has hit the nail on the head. I plant Fr. Marigolds with my veg. but I sow them in modules or pots first -partly so that they're ready when I want them- and that seems to work well.

I did broadcast some Phacellia onto a bed this year -but then forgot and hoed it when I put the first veg in  ???
a few have escaped and, now they're big enough to recognise, I can hoe around them. Not ideal but I was thinking I'd let a couple go and save the seed.

Never really had any luck with poached egg plamt.

Jeremy

[kingkano]

Cheers.  Makes sense when I think about it.  I better get some marigolds into cells then ready for the bean sowing ;)

Actually, brings me to, anyone tried sweet peas with your beans?  SWMBO would like the flowers, and I heard it helps the beans in pollination terms....?

Any other recomended companions?

[ptennisnet]

I read recently that sunflowers increase the yeild with maize.  I then remember going for a walk last year and coming across a farmers field of maize and sunflowers so thought there may be something in it.  We're going to give it a go this year.  We've also got some marigolds for the toms but I think the poached egg plant may have been hoed as we don't remember where we planted them

[derbex]

I have tried sweet peas and runners together -although it was just for decoration. I don't have much luck with runners and last year was no exception -the sweet peas looked lovely though :)

It may be worth planting nasturtiums nearby -the balck fly love them and it might attract them away from the veg -as well as encouraging things that eat aphids. Or it might bring every blackfly in 100miles to your veg. patch!

[campanula]

i am planting flowers with all my veg - either in rows alongside or in clumps at edge of bed or as borders to beds - so far, have lots of poached egg, calendulas, nasturtiums, sweet peas, cornflowers, incarvillea, larkspur, poppies, sunflowers, echinacea, anchusa, delphiniums and so on. Mostly, i planted them in modules apart from californian poppies and shirley poppies and nigella which i just braodcast around edges. I have got sweet peas, morning glories, cobaens and tall nasturtiums which I will set to climb with the beans and cukes and corn. I guess it will look good even if hoeing is a bit hit and miss.
Go for it - flowers are good for the soul.

[philcooper]

I have a 20 x 10yd allotment split into 24 4' x 5yd beds.

One bed near the middle is permanent herbs, wild flowers such as teasels and self sowing annuals.

I have at least one bed down to Phacelia as a green manure (but let it flower)

Every other year I have one bed of sunflowers.

The allotment has lots of wild life - I feel mean each year about now as I pull back the carpets which I cover some beds over winter and remove the slow worms' homes - luckily I'm at the edge of the site and at least one carpet is placed on the grass under the hedge to provide summer shelter - but it's not as sunny as the middle of the plot.

I keep the true companion planting for the greenhouse where, having tried tagetes and French marigolds I now use Mexican marigolds to remove whitefly and it works - I wish there were something similar for greenfly!!

[kingkano]

cheers - all good info :)

definitely am doing the sunflowers with sweetcorn and squashes thing.  Interesting to see how it works out, I am going for about 70 corn and various (melons, pumpkin and courgette) around with sunflowers randomly lol.  fingers crossed.  if any of my sunflowers ever come up that is!!!

I'll look into the rest, and didnt even think about with the cuces etc, sounds a good idea!

[The gardener]

This theory has always intrigued me! I see it as a bit of the chicken and the egg scenario

What is there to say that the companion plant did not attract aphids to the area, which otherwise may not have been affected had the companion plant not been there  ???

Pardon the pun but have I opened up a hornets nest?

ps I never use companion planting.

[Multiveg]

One year, my dad planted french beans, they were covered in blackfly. The following year, I planted some nasturtiums near the french beans - no blackfly on the beans,  but loads on the nasturtiums.
Last year, in the side border by the house, I had nasturtiums covered in caterpillars.