What grows well with asparagus you ask? Well, as a gardener, one thing you must know is that there are plants that grow well together resulting in each plant significantly benefiting from the other.
This type of mixed cropping based on the symbiotic relationship between the crops is also termed as companion planting.
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What Is Companion Planting?
Companion Planting is basically a gardening technique that pairs plants together to create a beneficial symbiotic relationship. By planting companion plants together, you can encourage each other to grow and flourish well.
One of the best ways to get started with companion planting is to identify the plants in your garden that are in need of help. Once you know what needs attention, you can begin planting around them to create a symbiotic relationship.
Some of the benefits of companion planting include:
-Improved soil fertility
-Reduced weed growth
-More vibrant plants
-Aesthetically pleasing gardens etc.
What grows well with asparagus plant?
Just like most vegetables, there are companion plants, that may be either vegetables, fruits or herbs. These vegetables, fruits or herbs when planted in the same space or garden with asparagus will result in both plants doing well by benefitting off each other.
What grows well with Asparagus – Vegetables
Below is a list of vegetables and their benefits to the asparagus making them great asparagus companion plants.
- Tomatoes – Repels asparagus beetles and other nuisance bugs.
- Eggplant – They also help in keeping asparagus beetles away.
- Lettuce – Serves as ground covers to retain moisture in the soil, keeps weed from growing and also keeps the soil temperature low.
- Rhubarb – Repels whiteflies, caterpillars, aphids, beetles, thrips.
- Horseradish – Deters aphids, caterpillars, blister beetles, whiteflies, Colorado potato beetles etc.
- Spinach – Just like lettuce, spinach minimizes growth of weeds between asparagus plant rows when planted there.
- Beet or Beetroot – Doesn’t take too much space and is a great way to maximize garden or farm space when planted in between the asparagus row.
- Pepper – Deters cabbage looper, spiders, spider mites etc. from attacking your asparagus plants.
What grows well with Asparagus – Fruits
There are fruits that do well together with asparagus as companion plants. These fruits include strawberries.
- Strawberries can be planted between the rows between asparagus plants. Planting the strawberries in between the rows help minimize growth of weeds there.
What grows well with Asparagus – Flowers
We all know that flowers help beautify our environment. Most flowers because of their bright colours and nectar, it attracts insects that result in pollination.
So, apart from vegetables and fruits, there are some flowers that are also great companion plants to asparagus. Below is a few of these flowers.
- Marigold – Helps get rid of most flies, white flies, and root-knot nematodes, asparagus beetles etc.
- Asters (e.g. sunflowers, coneflowers) – Repels most nuisance insects.
- Nasturtium – It deters pests such as aphids and also helps to shade out weeds in the garden.
What grows well with Asparagus – Herbs
Certainly enough, there are some herbs that grow well when planted as companion plants for asparagus. A list of these herbs that do well with asparagus is presented below.
- Sage – The herb sage is a good companion plants because it also helps prevent bean beetles, carrot fly and cabbage moths from invading your garden and causing damage to your asparagus.
- Dill – The dill plant also deters squash bugs, aphids and spider mites from attacking your asparagus or other companion plants.
- Parsley – This herb when planted in the same space with asparagus deters asparagus beetles from attacking your asparagus plant.
- Basil – Deters carrot fly, mosquitos, asparagus beetle, flies, whiteflies. Having basil plant in your garden where you have your asparagus plants means those bugs and insect will not bother you asparagus plants.
There are some other herbs that are grow well with the asparagus plant. You can read about them on The Green Pinky website.
Why Asparagus Companion Plants?
As earlier stated, companion planting improves soil fertility as the different plants will release into the soil as a by product some soil nutrients the other plants requires to grow well.
Secondly, some plants repel destructive plant insects and having asparagus companion plants that repels those insects such as aphids, asparagus beetles, carrot fly and spider mites among others would help prevent losing your asparagus.
Some herbs are shade loving plants and good companion plants for asparagus. While the herbs are enjoying the shade of the asparagus plant, the asparagus is getting its needed soil nutrient and also benefits from most of them being soil covers preventing or minimizing weed growth.
The above listed companion plants also benefit by virtue of being planted together with asparagus because asparagus deters nematodes which usually attack and destroy vegetables such as tomatoes and many other plants.
Final Words
When the available space provides, always try to have some of the companion plants listed above planted together with your asparagus because they ten to grow with with asparagus.
FAQ – What Grows well with Asparagus?
There are some frequently asked about asparagus companion plants. Hope these answers provided to them satisfy what you are looking for.