Cabbage Companion Planting: 6 Plants to Grow With Cabbage

Companion planting is a time-tested gardening method that enriches and protects vulnerable crops. Farmers and gardeners plant specific crops near each other in order to deter pests, attract beneficial insects, and stimulate growth.

Companion plants will either help a specific crop grow or will grow better beside a specific crop, and can do many support jobs in the garden:

1. 1. Repel insect pests. Cabbage worms, cucumber beetles, Mexican bean beetles, carrot flies, cabbage moths—all kinds of pests can plague vegetable gardens. Many companion plants (like marigold flowers, catnip, and rue) repel specific pests and should be planted near certain crops to keep them pest-free.
2. 2. Attract beneficial insects. Pollinators like honey bees and ladybugs can use a little encouragement to visit vegetable gardens and pollinate the crops. Gardeners often plant attractive plants like borage flowers to encourage pollinators to visit.
3. 3. Improve soil nutrients. When crops grow, they take up valuable nutrients from the soil—leaving the gardener to do a lot of work at the end of the season to renew the soil’s nutrients. However, there are many companion plants (like bush beans and pole beans) that add nutrients like nitrogen back into the soil, helping keep other plants healthy.
4. 4. Encourage faster growth and better taste. Many companion plants (like marjoram, chamomile, and summer savory) release specific chemicals that encourage faster growth or better taste in the plants around them.
5. 5. Provide ground cover. Plants that spread low across the ground (like oregano) serve as a blanket over the soil, protecting it from the sun and keeping it cooler for plants that benefit from lower temperatures.
6. 6. Provide necessary shade. Plants that grow tall and leafy (like zucchini and asparagus) can provide welcome shade for sun-sensitive plants beneath them.
7. 7. Serve as markers. When growing slow-growing plants, it can be difficult to tell where the rows will be while you’re waiting for the seeds to sprout. Gardeners often use fast-growing plants (like radishes) interspersed with the slow growers in their rows to delineate where the slow growers will be.

Cabbage (brassica oleracea) is a biennial, leafy-green vegetable typically grown as an annual. Cabbage is a member of the brassica family, alongside lettuce, spinach, kale, and Brussels sprouts. Like other brassicas, they are cool-season crops and are generally not affected by frost or freezing temperatures.

Growing companion plants provides your garden with natural checks and balances to keep the overall system healthy—without having to resort to chemicals. Examples of good companion plants to grow and harvest with cabbage plants include:

1. 1. Beans. Cabbage and other brassica love a little shade, especially during the hottest parts of the day. Beans and their big, leafy vines can help block the sun if you plant them on the sunny side of your garden.
2. 2. Borage. Borage helps attract beneficial insects like bees and other pollinators.
3. 3. Brassica. Other brassicas like kale, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, swiss chard, and other cabbage family members plant well with cabbage because they require the same basic needs.
4. 4. Celery. One pest specific to cabbage and other brassicas is the cabbage moth. The aroma of celery deters these insects and prevents them from chewing up your crop.
5. 5. Marigold. Marigolds will help get rid of mosquitos, whiteflies, and nematodes. They can also help rid other garden pests like aphids, squash bugs, Japanese beetles, cucumber beetles, and squash vine borers.
6. 6. Aromatic herbs and flowers. Plants like chamomile, wormwood, chives, summer savory, coriander, tansy, yarrow, dill, mint, thyme, hyssop, chervil, geranium, rue, sage, and oregano are all very beneficial companion plants to cabbage. These plants repel insect pests (like cabbage moths and spider mites), attract beneficial insects and pollinators, and add flavor to cabbage with nutrients and vitamins, like calcium and sulfur.

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