Companion planting means putting plants together in the garden that like each other, or help each other out. Companion planting can have a real impact on the health and yield of your plants.
Organic gardeners strive to achieve a balance in their gardens so that they don't require chemicals for pest or disease control.
Companion planting can play a significant role
in assisting with pest control.
Some combinations work because of scents they use to repel insects,
others work because they attract good bugs.
Heirloom seeds are the gardeners choice for seed-saving from year-to-year. Learning to save seeds is easy and fun with these books. Before you harvest, consider which varieties you might want to save seeds from so that your harvesting practice includes plants chosen for seed saving. Be sure to check out our newest seed packs, available now from Heirloom Organics. The Super Food Garden is the most nutrient dense garden you can build and everything you need is right here in one pack. The Genesis Garden s a very popular Bible Garden collection. The Three Sisters Garden was the first example of companion planting in Native American culture. See all of our brand-new seed pack offerings in our store.
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When planning your garden, take some time to think about the layout of your garden to incorporate some of the companion planting ideas. Use the following COMPANION PLANTING MAP as a guideline.
Companion Planting Garden Map
Types of Companion Planting
There are a number of systems and ideas using companion planting. Square foot gardening, for example, attempts to protect plants from many normal gardening problems by packing them as closely together as possible, which is facilitated by using companion plants, which can be closer together than normal.
Another system using companion planting is the forest garden, where companion plants are intermingled to create an actual ecosystem, emulating the interaction of up to seven levels of plants in a forest or woodland.
Organic gardening often depends on companion planting for its best performance, since so many synthetic means of fertilizing, weed reduction, pest control, and other garden needs are forbidden.
Three Sisters: Native American Companion Planting
Companion planting was practiced in various forms by Native Americans prior to the arrival of Europeans. One common system was the planting of corn (maize) and pole beans together. The inclusion of squash with these two plants completes the Three Sisters technique, pioneered by Native American peoples.
Corn provides a natural pole for bean vines to climb. Beans fix nitrogen on their roots, improving the overall fertility of the plot by providing nitrogen to the following years corn. Bean vines also help stabilize the corn plants, making them less vulnerable to blowing over in the wind. Shallow-rooted squash vines become a living mulch, shading emerging weeds and preventing soil moisture from evaporating, thereby improving the overall crops chances of survival in dry years. Spiny squash plants also help discourage predators from approaching the corn and beans. The large amount of crop residue from this planting combination can be incorporated back into the mound at the end of the season, to build up the organic matter in the soil and improve its structure.
Corn, beans and squash also complement each other nutritionally. Corn provides carbohydrates, the dried beans are rich in protein, balancing the lack of necessary amino acids found in corn. Finally, squash yields both vitamins from the fruit and healthful, delicious oil from the seeds.
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The Methods and Techniques of Natural Pest Control
A-Z of Garden Pests: Here are some organic garden pest control alternatives.
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: Here are some Natural Pesticide and Insecticides you can create and mix for yourself.
