Eggplant is a scrumptious vegetable that grows simply in many various climates. It thrives in scorching, humid summers, and may produce dozens of kilos of eggplants in a single season. The fruit is typically vulnerable to pest assaults, so it’s a superb candidate to make use of companion plant strategies on. Let’s speak extra about eggplant companion vegetation that can assist it develop higher.
There are a lot of completely different advantages from planting completely different crops close to eggplant. Some herbs can repel pests, whereas different vegetation profit from the identical care as eggplant. By attracting pollinators, it’s possible you’ll get extra fruit. Rising eggplant is simple while you let companion vegetation assist you.
Let’s discover the advantages of companion planting, and which vegetation you may wish to plant or keep away from planting round your eggplant!
What Is Companion Planting?
Companion planting within the backyard is each an historic artwork kind and a contemporary science. Some vegetation emit chemical substances or alerts which will intrude with or enhance the expansion of their neighbor. Others act as “entice” crops, drawing in pests to feed on their leaves, whereas defending your principal plant. Some companion vegetation will help enhance the well being or taste of the vegetation by releasing pure chemical substances into the soil.
Different causes for companion planting embrace low mendacity or groundcover vegetation that cut back weeds and nutrient competitors and shade the soil, vegetation that use different vegetation as a trellis to develop on, and tall vegetation that may present shade for different extra tender vegetation. Particular vegetation like legumes are recognized for fixing nitrogen within the soil, and are useful companions to heavy feeders.
Some companion vegetation can appeal to pollinators that assist pollinate the vegetation within the backyard. This creates a greater habitat that helps crops produce extra fruit. It additionally conserves area and helps maximize manufacturing. As science continues to reveal why companion planting works, many of those advantages proceed to help gardeners in rising their greatest harvests.
Good Eggplant Companion Vegetation
Now let’s discuss which vegetation make good companion vegetation for eggplant!
First, there are herbs which may enhance the flavour of eggplant and shield it from pests. Oregano can repel aphids, cabbage moths, and spider mites as a result of it has a powerful scent. It additionally attracts useful bugs like bees and ladybugs. You need to plant thyme to discourage backyard moths with its scent, and shield your eggplant from aphids. French tarragon will draw away pests that can in any other case assault eggplant.
Many strongly scented herbs will repel insect assaults and make nice companions for eggplant, together with rosemary, chamomile, lavender, sage, dill, marjoram, and catnip. When planting catnip with eggplant, be sure you keep away from planting it by peas and inexperienced beans, since catnip negatively impacts their progress and growth.
Mints like peppermint and spearmint are each good companion plant varieties to plant round eggplants as a result of they cut back the numbers of flea beetles. Simply keep in mind that all mints can quickly turn into invasive if not stored in test!
Flowers can be useful companions to eggplant. Marigolds appeal to many pollinators, and their scent can deter some dangerous pests, equivalent to flea beetles. Marigolds, nasturtium, snapdragons, and sunflowers will all deter aphids, white flies, flea beetles, and ants, whereas including magnificence to your backyard.
Nasturtium could be planted round eggplant each as a groundcover to dam weeds from germinating, and as a entice crop, since it may be sacrificed to the bugs as an alternative of the eggplant itself. Aphids love nasturtiums, so rising nasturtium flowers along with your eggplants can appeal to aphids away out of your eggplant and in the direction of the Nasturtiums. One other flower, borage, is a helpful companion plant that draws useful bugs and deters worms.
Many leafy greens make glorious companion vegetation for eggplant, since eggplants are tall vegetation that may present shade throughout scorching days. Spinach will profit from the shade of eggplant and may create a groundcover to assist retain soil moisture and suppress weeds.
Edible floor cowl is one other approach to develop extra crops in a smaller area. Kohlrabi can deter aphids, flea and cabbage beetles. Swiss chard and most low-growing leafy greens, like radishes, could be planted close to eggplants as a companion vegetable.
Amaranth additionally makes an awesome eggplant companion as a result of they’ve comparable rising situations, however be sure that to present them loads of area to develop and keep away from casting shade on one another. Eggplant wants full solar for optimum progress and flowering.
Rising cabbage with eggplant will appeal to the flea beetle to the cabbage, since they like the style of the leaves over eggplants.
Legumes like pole beans and bush beans could be vastly useful to eggplant by taking nitrogen from the air and including it to the soil. This will increase the fertility of the soil.
Along with including fertility to your backyard soil, planting inexperienced beans (both bush beans or pole, your alternative) within the backyard can repel Colorado potato beetles. Colorado potato beetles can feed on the leaves of your eggplant and make it tough to develop. The potato beetle may turn into tolerant of pesticides, so vegetation that assist deter this pest could make your eggplant crop extra profitable. Simply ensure that your inexperienced beans received’t shade out the eggplant, which requires full solar, since pole beans can turn into fairly tall.
Lentils and peas are additionally useful to develop with eggplants, as they’re members of the legume household with comparable nutrient-fixing abilities as beans. All nitrogen improvers are good companions to your N-loving eggplants!
Eggplant is a member of the nightshade household, and can be planted with different nightshades, since they’ve comparable necessities. Common nightshades to develop with eggplant embrace peppers, tomatoes, and potatoes. It doesn’t matter in the event that they’re scorching peppers or gentle peppers, each can develop close by.
One draw back to rising members of the identical household collectively is that pests attracted to 1 member of the household will doubtless assault all different family members as nicely, so vegetation could also be extra weak to an insect assault when planted with different members of the identical household within the backyard. Vegetation of the identical household, equivalent to tomatoes, may even require comparable vitamins from the soil, so be sure you follow good crop rotation or fertilize repeatedly so that you don’t deplete your soil over time.
What Not To Plant With Eggplant
Don’t plant fennel close to your eggplant. Fennel inhibits progress in lots of vegetation, together with eggplant.
Geraniums can host illnesses that additionally have an effect on eggplant equivalent to leaf blight and root rot, so it’s best to keep away from planting them with eggplant.
You also needs to keep away from heavy feeding vegetation that can compete with eggplant for vitamins. For instance, corn and eggplant are each greens that want plenty of fertilizer. Corn is just not particularly dangerous to eggplant, however you won’t wish to deplete the soil close to your eggplant.
Moreover, keep away from planting eggplant close to allelopathic bushes, equivalent to black walnut, which inhibits progress and germination beneath it.
Regularly Requested Questions
Q: Can I plant tomatoes and eggplant collectively?
A: Sure! Tomatoes and eggplant are each members of the nightshade household and have comparable rising necessities. Simply be sure you give them each loads of room, and plenty of compost or natural matter.
Q: Can I plant zucchini and eggplant collectively?
A: No. Eggplant and zucchini are heavy feeders, and can compete for vitamins within the soil. Though zucchini isn’t a particularly dangerous vegetable, it might shade out the plant and isn’t the only option.
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