Zucchini Companion Plant Guide: 11 Plants to Grow With Zucchini

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:

• 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.
• Attract beneficial insects. Pollinators like 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.
• 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 and well-fed.
• Encourage faster growth or 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, leading to quicker and better harvests for home gardeners.
• 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 need it.
• Provide necessary shade. Plants that grow tall and leafy (like zucchini and asparagus) can provide welcome shade for sun-sensitive plants beneath them.
• 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.

Zucchini is one of the three sister vegetables (beans, corn, and squash) meaning that they all grow well together. When planting zucchini and other squash, keep in mind that they are "heavy feeders" and require more nutrients than most plants. Examples of good companion plants to grow well with zucchini plants include:

1. 1. Beans. Beans fix nitrogen levels in soil to balance the pH level.
2. 2. Borage. Borage is a flower that not only attracts beneficial insects like bees, but can deter pest worms from your zucchini.
3. 3. Dill. Dill is an herb that repels pests like cucumber beetles and flea beetles by attracting beneficial insects.
4. 4. Garlic. Garlic possesses strong sulfur compounds, which repels pests like aphids.
5. 5. Marigolds. Marigolds attract pests, like mosquitos, whiteflies, aphids, squash bugs, and squash vine borers. Plant marigolds away from your zucchini crop to help ensure these pests don’t damage your plants.
6. 6. Mint. The aroma of different mint plants (including hyssop and sage) will repel grazing animals like deer.
7. 7. Nasturtiums. Nasturtiums are pretty flowers that attract aphids. While this may seem counterintuitive, many gardeners plant nasturtiums a short distance away from their vegetable garden to attract aphids away from their crops.
8. 8. Oregano. Aromatic herbs like oregano and marjoram repel pest like cabbage moths.
9. 9. Peas. Like beans, peas add nitrogen to soil, which balances its pH level.
10. 10. Phacelia. Phacelia are flowers that promote good pollination in squash vegetables and attract pollinators.
11. 11. Rosemary. Like oregano, rosemary is an aromatic herb that can repel earworms.

Not all vegetables or plants work well as companion plants. These plants include:

1. 1. Potato: Potatoes, like zucchini, are heavy feeders, meaning they monopolize the absorption of nutrients in soil. Avoid planting these next to zucchini as they’ll impact the growth of your squash.
2. 2. Fennel: Fennel attracts beneficial insects, but they are not suitable as a companion plant for almost every vegetable, as they will impede the growth of other plants.
3. 3. Pumpkin. Though pumpkins are in the same family as zucchini, they can negatively affect growth due to cross-pollination.

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