Plants You Can Intercrop With Tomatoes To Maximize Yield & Protect Soil Health
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- čas přidán 24. 06. 2019
- Intercropping has many benefits. But the big one is protecting the soil and growing more food in less space. As a high intensity organic gardener this can be a huge asset to us. These are the plants you can plant with tomatoes that make excellent intercropping choices. Check out our new clothing line! http:www.freshpickedapparel.com
Great episode! companion planting is ages old and practiced by Native Americans, so awesome job here on a very important gardening practice, it even works in bucket and large pots (just watch the crowding and plant size when you choose what to put in). In the "Tomato Patch" I like to use herbs between bushes, mixed root veg (we mix our root veg, carrot, turnip, radish, beets all together, not planned rows, grandpa said it reduces pests and fungus, probably because the root length is staggered and varried preventing spore cluster populations and parasite colonies) on the long sides and I put alysum and marigolds in the corners. so a bit of everything! I generally have very few pest issues, I do not bug spray other than vinegar, or baking soda water. I pick my heaviest tomatoes before a rainstorm to prevent splitting (grandma says, lol)...Hope the old-school info helps someone
I would love some examples of what kind of companion planting you do in your buckets/pots! (My potatoes will be in 10-gal grow bags this year, and my lettuce is always in deck boxes! Everything else is in raised beds! Thanks for any info!!
I can't deal with too much order. I am setting up a bed first time with rosemary, basil 2 kinds. Tomato. Sage.peppers. Celery. Parsley shaded by the bigger bushes. I am adding more until its full.
I love this..mixing the root veg.
@@mckbnb 1À
@@beatesetzer2441 11111111aaaaa
Intercrop with tomatoes:
-beans (sun)
-herbs: *thyme, sage, oregano (shade)
-lettuce (shade)
-radishes (shade)
-root vegetables: rutabaga, parsnip, carrot, beets
-flowers: *marigold, viola (shade), lavender (sun)
-onions
Thaaaaaank you!!!
Gosh he's so handsome
Thanks for sharing 👍
👍
Thank you!
My grandma grew the most bountiful 1/3 acre garden and she always grew marigolds at the base if her tomatoes because she said they were natural pest control. Her tomatoes always looked picture perfect.
I do the same thing. Actually I surround my entire garden with tons of marigolds!
Maybe bugs but not fungus.
What it does is attract bugs that eat the pests.
Having marigolds & other annuals also attract pollinators to the garden.
@@TheSunRiseKid
Me too, everywhere! I love them anyway, but beneficial too 👌
What a great video, I just built my raised beds and have been skeptical about putting my tomato plants in the bed. Then the thought that I can put lettuce and onions in with them, I am so excited. I am a new gardener, my husband Steven was the one with the green thumb. He died of small cell lung cancer 5 years ago. I have been playing in the garden since he has been gone! Prayers all the garden will be something that will produce! Hey I had volunteer tomatoes from my little compost bin, should be interesting what they turn out to be. There were three different tomato plants in there, guess I will call them the Lober tomatoes. Thanks again for sharing, always open for new ideas keep me in your prayers.
Sorry to hear of your loss. I'm sure your gardening adventures will keep your husband and his green thumb in your thoughts.
Put carrots around the base of your tomato plants. There's actually a book called " Carrots love Tomatoes "
It's a guide to companion planting
Sorry for your loss Linda.
I imagine your husband is so proud of you. It sounds as if you are standing strong. Keep up the great work.
Sorry for your loss of your husband. I lost my partner of 33 years to stage 4 small cell lung cancer. Less than a year from no idea to passing on, I know how difficult that was and is. I was the gardener and love that you're taking that up, you honor him well. Gardening gives a sense of purpose and nurturing that takes a hit after a huge loss. It's so nice to have something to care for with gardening and it's food for the soul.
Outside area- beans
Inside area- thyme, sage, oregano, basil, lettuce, radishes, parsnips, carrots, beets
Thomas Bogle 👊🏼
Very helpful. Thanks!
You're doing the Lord's work
You forgot the onions. :-)
And marigolds on the outside
I will be planting beets and carrots all around my tomatos in 2023 season! Great tips!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Really neat that you can plant basically all the nice Italian tomato sauce herbs in with the tomatoes.
I was wondering if that’s why they did it. Most Italians don’t have huge lots.
I found that interesting too maybe there’s more to it.
I love the book " Carrots love Tomatoes " all about companion planting
Skip to 4:30 if you have already decided to intercrop and you want to get straight to the good combinations. 🤠 MIgardener is fantastic!! Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge! You have REALLY boosted my gardening this year.
blueconversechucks 😉
Lol thank you I'm on a short work break and this helped me
Bianca Jordan hope the rest of your week is AWESOME ( and fast !!!)
5:43 if you want to hear what plant's you can plant together.
Intro is way to long.
VERY MUCH THANK YOU. he has a lot of unnecessary words
I have been planting marigolds, Basil and cilantro with my tomatoes for 30 years. Works great!
M Callahan are marigolds good to have to repel bugs? I was reading that it could attract bugs like aphids etc which I don’t want more of. Teetering if I should plant some or not
M Callahan I have basil planted with my tomatoes. I’m still trying to find mozzarella cheese plant starts. 🤔
@@emtjenc They sell those at the free money store.
@@Fattiapples I have not had trouble with marigolds attracting aphids but some people do add plants like this for the sacrifice. Just like in nature with the birds the male is much more colorful, not only to attract the female but stand out more to the prey so the female can sit on her eggs.
FattiApples I have been doing it for 30 years and it works for me!
Hi. I teach ecosystem development and one key feature is companion planting especially in food gardens, but also in pollinator gardens. I look forward to going through your work. People don’t realize this method is simply preindustrial farming 🌻
We definitely need to get back to that.
I planted Marigolds next to tomatoes last year. They were untouched by insects. I’m watching this video for the second time in 2024. Thanks for all you do for us. ❤😊
Gardening teaches kids about life soooo much and should be compulsory at school
Absolutely 💯%. It would actually be something useful, very unlike some other subjects forced on the kids.
Schools teach a lot of very useless subjects, in my opinion.
I plant marigolds and snap dragons around my tomato plants and never have an issue with pests/have giant yields from pollination. They're so helpful! Plus, you'll never need to buy marigold seeds again because they're insanely prolific.
I think you're the best "teacher" on CZcams. You don't just supply tips/advice, you also very clearly explain WHY your advice is good such that we can understand it. Thank you 👍
Had good results with intercropping napa cabbage. The leaves open broadly and mulch the soil under the tomato plant.
Beets unfortunately doesn't work well in our humid hot South East Asian weather.
Marigold and zinnias didn't work so well. Dwarf sunflowers and cockscomb are too large. Still trying different flowers suited to our climate here. Basil worked well so far.
I’ve been consuming your videos voraciously since I started my first garden/plants this March. I really appreciate that you don’t talk down to your audience and really get into the “why” of gardening. It’s very enabling!
I too have been inspired by his videos, but mostly I have been inspired by the Emperor!
@@Arkahm719 Indeed all inspiration that can be drawn from humanity is a gift given to us by our Father atop the Golden Throne. The Emperor protects.
@@GregHMacLean Great, a bunch of Forknife players. NERDS!
Also, rumor has it your Emperor is a DIRTY HERETIC.
Oh no! If that’s true we have to alert the proper authorities! Go tell the ordo hereticus exactly what you just told me!
Same!
2019 I planted nasturtiums and cosmos in-between my tomato plant and dill in between my pepper plants. I didn't have a single bug on my peppers and no horn worms on my tomatoes.
Jill Brown ...Wow! I’m going to try that.
What's more, nasturtium leaves and blossoms are a marvelous salad addition. Yum!
Jill Brown. My nasturtiums grew too tall and wide too fit under our tomato plants. Did it create any moisture problems? Luke said air flow was important, just wondering how big your area was. If we make a raised 3x6 bed how closet to the tomato stems would the nasturtiums go?
@@wendyburston3132 I plant nasturtiums around the outside of the beds, Cosmos and dill in between the tomatoes. I plant tomatoes every two feet and keep my tomato plants bare from about 1-1/2’ from the ground.
Oo never thought of cosmos! They're one of my favorites. I bought some nasturtiums this year for the first time! Can't wait to try this
Its not only companion planting but you have the explanation for why you can grow them together which made a lot if not more sense to me now. I will be excited to use this concept around tomatoes particularly.
how did it work out?
A great concept. I would have immediately added purslane or portulaca on the very edge of the of the frame to hang down. It’s edible and goes well with things like scrambled eggs. It’s prolific and I once weeded 30 pounds of it from a 30 foot flower bed when the local health food store was selling it at $7/lb. This is the first video that I’ve ever seen where the comments were as useful as the presentation.
I like to pile the pulled purslane around the potatoes.
czcams.com/video/cYr2hB-KfQM/video.html
Purslane is a great trap crop for horn worms
Gotta give a shout out to the flower Alyssum! SO easy to grow from seed, I've done it both ways - make seedlings and direct sow. Last year I simply spread a bunch of seeds all around my tomato plant, and they bloomed all the way till my first frost. Its a sweet scented, cover spreading flower, that attracts lots of beneficial insects.
Hello Luke. I live in Rotterdam, in the Netherlands and have a little balcony on the 9th floor of an apartment building that I use to grow flowering plants and vegetables. I really enjoy your videos and find the information very straight forward and clear to understand. Many thanks.
I also live in NL and love these practical tips and tricks!
In the early seventies I raised borage on a balcony in Boston.
I know this video is 2 yrs. old, but thank you so much for the information! I have been inter-cropping basil for a few years, and it has worked out tremendously. But I haven't thought about many of the other plants that you have mentioned. Can't wait until next year.
gardening is really a timeless skill and art
One of my favorites is asparagus!! I had planted some asparagus in a (big) pot and gave up thinking it wouldn't sprout. I got impatient and so I planted a late tomato plant on top of it, and then I got my got my first little asparagus, it was a total surprise!!!
It generally takes asparagus two years to grow after being planted 💗
Basil and tomatoes love one another. I always get almost twice the amount of each.
TAC W
Plant a salad! Thx for info 🙏🌱
They love each other in the bowl with some balsamic vinegar too.
@@fkp1692 you must remove the leaves on your tomato plants. Leave only one branch of leaves below your first tomato. I also remove half the leaves on most branches. That is, I remove the tips of the branches. This way you get lots of tomatoes and they ripen because they get more sun. Im assuming you know to remove all the suckers-the leaves that appear in the v where the stem and branch meet. I plant basil all along the row in front of the tomatoes. I pinch it back, so it stays low and bushy and doesn’t interfere with tomatoes. Shades the soil at base of tomatoes so they don’t dry out so quickly. Hope this is helpful.
Basil in my 9b area prefers the shade of tomatoes, actually. Basil doesn’t really do well in 110 degree heat, so that afternoon shade break really helps.
@@lizedur4976 That was VERY well said! Excellent advice! GOD bless
Been Gardening for over 40 years and just learned 5 new epic ideas. Thanks Luke!
I use the big garlic cloves for cooking and put the small garlic cloves in the soil around tomatoes. They grow well.
If you plant Cilantro and radishes around your brassicas you can eliminate aphids.
Don't pull out the radishes and Cilantro until after a heavy frost even though they'll look untidy. If you pull them out before a killing frost, the aphids will come back overnight. (This is what happened to me.)
I've interplanted radishes and Cilantro around my brassicas for several years and they've repelled 100% of the aphids.
Nasturtiums didn't work. In fact, I had beautiful nasturtiums without a single aphid right next to broccoli and cauliflower plants that had so many aphids the plants looked like a green shag rug which made them inedible. There were too many aphids to wash off.
When radishes bolt they fill up with seed pods which are a very tasty treat. like a fresh peapod with slight spice 🤗
twolilfish turnips, kale, and all the brassicas make similarly tasty little spicy green bean pods, I love using em in stir frys!
@@HaveYouSeenMyGardens looking at wild edibles i noticed that the hairy bittercress also has these pods, but they are so tiny its hard to see them..but yes, very good to eat especially if you like a bit of spice[or bitter]!
I love radish pods. I grow the radish just for them, don't even care about the root.
Cool info! Thanks
I don't like the taste of radishes or the pods but I grow them for the pretty flowers!
Love your series. I wanted to share a happy finding of ours...I've grown tomatoes all my life, but found out just last year a wonderful plant to use as a companion plant--purple (Thai) basil. This stuff is very weedy, mind you, but last year I never saw even ONE tomato hornworm, and almost no other pest, either.
Any type of basil is a great choice with tomatoes, both for growing and for eating.
I just planted some purple basil with my tomatoes... hoping this helps.
Choose crops that are NOT heavy feeders so that they don't compete w/🍅 for nutrients
5:36 ☀️ loving crops (beans)
6:00 Shade/cool loving plants (herbs: thyme, sage, oregano, basil, lettuce, radishes, carrots, root crops), flowers like lavender, marigold and other edible flowers.
Onion, garlic, etc
NOT heavy hydrogen feeders like spinach, broccoli, etc.
I plan to plant herbs in the shady areas around my home. I made a big mistake planting cilantro in the full hot sun and it disintegrated a week later! Lesson learned- shady areas for these herbs.
@@GuitarsAndSynths Of all the herbs, Cilantro is the most delicate. I would no only plant in mostly shade and that it doesn't get any direct sunlight after 10 am. And given the chance, I would actually start it from seed; transplanting also shocks it.
Almost 50 years ago my daughter made a booklet for 4-H and entered it in the state fair. She got a blue ribbon. It covered companion planting. People should be listening to you..we. always had great crops..and these crops also won many blue ribbons.
Last year I had a 3' x 5' raised bed that I planted mini sweet corn, 10 early anne tomato plants, 2 Algonquin Pumpkin plants, 2 mandant banquet squash, 2 doe hill sweet pepper plants, zinnias and callundra. I was experimenting to see how far I could push production in a small plot. We only have 90 frost free days here. Nights are in the 50s and days are in the high 80s in July and August. We had a period of drought last summer as well. Everything grew all over everything else. The only thing that didn't make it was the mini sweet peppers. Some times you just have to throw the rules out the window to find what works for you!
Kathryn Gagne amazing!
@@californianorma876 Success is quite shocking sometimes , like when I grew Brussel sprouts the first time .
wow
Peppers need nights warmer than 50s to set fruit :(
That's great! The last few years I think I had bunched things up too much. This year, I have things to spaced out. It's great to know you can inter-crop like he explains to maximize yields.
I work in a well known gardening center in MN and I recommend your channel to all of my new growers all of the time. Best gardening channel on YT!
What place? Just moved to MN so looking for good gardening places.
I Would like to know as well
must be bachmans
Joe Loveless what part of MN? I love a lot of local places. Tonkadale is my favorite in the Minnetonka area if you haven’t found one yet
Look up Edible Acres. He is significantly better for my style of gardening and my projects. For general information and tips MIgardener is amazing too but not things like huge chicken compost systems
Weirdly, this same guy also did a video where he said, "I don't promote companion planting!" But he also went on in that video to retrace some of the same info here. By far, this is the better of the 2 videos. Guess everyone has an odd day once in a while. Still subscribed to this good guy's channel.
Excellent advice. I have also read that nasturtiums are excellent to plant among tomatoes. They offer insect protection, and you can eat all parts of the plants!
Nasturtium is another great flower that companion plant well with tomatoes. Calendula is another. Plus, they are edible.
Ans taste great if you like a bit of spice
Was coming here to say just this, nasturiums and candula and borage
Calendula and Marigolds the same thing?💐
Yes! Borage is another great one. It has a nice cucumber taste.
Calendula and marigold are in the same family. 🙂👍
Dry calendula flowers, soak in oil, and make salves for skin abrasions. Amazing stuff
I like Luke's intros. He establishes a personal, friendly vibe that gives the feel of chatting with a neighbor, rather than a textbook. Keep up the good work, Luke! 🌻
Oh - I interplant basil, marigolds, and radishes with my tomatoes. Going to try some bush beans and see what happens!
try snap peas instead.. the bush will take over the area and shade out the others... snap peas will add nitrogen and they grow great up the tomato plants
Its been a year what happened? ;)
@@augustpriest6945 I plant snap peas with my tomatoes and it works great. 😁 I have lots of peas and tomatoes. I’ve been doing this for years as my garden space is very limited.
@@sheilawilcox4133 good idea, I'll try that
@@sheilawilcox4133 would Kentucky Wonder climbing snap beans be ok to plant right @ tomatoes?
Planted basil nearby. The flowering basil brought in huge numbers of pollinating bees 🐝. “Hey, check out these yellow tomato flowers over here.”
Don't have a food garden yet but have a learned many things just by watching 2 of his videos. Thanks!
Thyme also has a LOT flavor! Not to mention can be dried easily or frozen in ice cube trays with butter or olive oil for winter 💕
Central florida here, I have pineapple sage planted next to my tomatoes. The bees love it and I allow it to Bush out to bring in the lizards who eat the army worms and hornworms.
Why not just grow pineapples? Then have a nice pineapple lizard fricassee.
@@practicalgardensolutions4971 Welllll okay thennnn. 🤭
Pineapple Sage! I've never heard of that but it sounds amazing!
Sage Greens It smells so delicious!!! I bought two pineapple sage plants and I am propagating them for more plants because I love the smell!!!
TheSunRiseKid how do you use your pineapple sage? I have one that comes back every year, but I’ve never used it in any meals.
Last year my tomatoes were surrounded by marigolds - i had no worms - amazing - the marigolds held up the vines and completely shaded the soil - the best year for me so far as an intermediate beginner lol! I had supports, but the vines got long and some just escaped and they produced tomatoes among the marigolds until late September.
Efficiency is key in everything we do.
This is such a great video. I work at a feed store and I’ll tell everyone about your channel. People NEED these videos now more than ever.
4:50 is when he starts talking about what plants you can plant with tomatoes. Great info to have.
Agree with recommendations. Live in SE Washington and grew a good winter cover crop (winter peas, vetch, broccoli, radish, triticale) in tomato space. Rather than turning under or removing as the cover crop went dormant in spring, I trimmed it and planted tomatoes in holes through it.
I plant this way as well, I learned it back in the 70s. It's called French Intensive Gardening. Thanks so much for the video!!
THANK YOU!!! You just DOUBLED the size of my garden!!! Awesome
I really hope this channel reaches one million subscribers, best gardening content on CZcams hands down. Thank you
Luke, You shared lots of wonderful info in this video. When I was young my mother had a large garden and we ate very well from it. She canned many things so we were able to enjoy the produce in the winter also. Last year was my first garden in a very long time. It was small. lm 65 and finally have the time. This year I plan on making it bigger with more variety. I can now plan on more growing in less space. I have learned a lot from your videos, and I thank you very much. Great video !😊🌿🍓🌶️🥕🥦🥒🍅🥬🫑🍆🧄I love you channel.
D Frost, I'm 71 and the garden gets better every year thanks to Luke and others on CZcams. My secret is easy: hire the local Mexican folks to help with the heavy lifting and preserve my back. That way I can keep going...and going....and going...
Grandma always grew flowers and herbs with her food plants and had very little pest infestation and bountiful food crops.
0:00 Introduction and discussion of why you shouldn't leave the ground bare. 4:44 Discussion of things to interplant.
Excited to plant my beets, turnips, & radishes with my tomato’s this year. All ordered from the awesome MIgardener store!!! Love the price of the seeds!
Living mulch…love it. Some things cause “ah-ha” moments, that was one of them for me. 🌱
Greetings from Windermere, Florida zone 9b USA 🇺🇸
Excellent info Luke. I just planted my Tomatoes and Marigold Seedlings and have Onions and Carrots and greens growing nearby. in Florida we really have to stay on top of confusing the Pests.
Congratulations on 1 Mil🎉 I've remember when you started out and reach the thousands milestone 👏
We call it companion planting in Australia. Thanks, good vid.
I put radishes around my tomatoes this year and they were wonderful! Big, plentiful, and tasty! Next year I’ll try onions and carrots too. Thanks for this video!
Geraniums are best friends to tomatoes also. Makes the garden pretty at the same time.
Love this, I put in a mix of carrots, onions, salsify, nasturtium, basil, marigolds & puslane in with my tomatoes
Carrots love tomatoes....
That's also the title of a good book.
Steven Gonzalez True. And I have it. And I’ve been using it. But I am sure that they did not provide as many companions for tomatoes as he does.
I have that book!!!
YES. Love that book!! I have all my mint and basil hanging out with my tomatoes and peppers
@@mjfamula Do you plant these herbs from seeds, will that work?
@@MommaCrissa I have done it with Basil seeds before. Works great!
Grow big or grow home I love this phrase!
I've had great success growing spinach and potatoes in Spring. I plant potatoes about 8" deep. Then I will seed spinach a 1/2" deep on top of where I planted spinach. Because I have an animal pest problem here: rabbits, squirrels and groundhogs, I'll put wire cloches, plastic laundry baskets secured with earth staples or rocks, or roll out fencing on top of my growing area to deter them. It rains a lot in my area at this time but if not I'll water frequently and remove cloches, baskets and roll out fencing once potato plants are a few inches high. The animals can't seem to find my spinach this way and the spinach finishes up before it's time to harvest potatoes. Works amazingly!
Thank you for sharing information on preventing your living soil from getting baked and solarized. Soil science and polyculture is the sustainable future, especially to save the bees.
Intercropping is an excellent way to expand your harvest. I have onions, parsley, beets, basil, marigolds, cilantro, and even kale planted around my tomato and pepper plants!
Onions and garlic stunt parsley
@@lizedur4976 I don't plant onions and garlic around parsley or parsley around onions and garlic.
Im a southeast gardener...thank you so much for touching on the importance of air flow! It is so important in the humidity down here!!! Peppers, Carrots and basil are my go to companions with tomatoes (peppers to the outside for sun). Okra and beans companion very well with my cucumbers on trellises. I find that by the time my first round of cucumbers are ready to come down and the new second plantings are ready to go in...the pole beans fill in the gap between crops. But I plant probably 10 times the green beans as most gardners...my kids won't leave them alone. I also do three sisters mounds every year...corn and sunflowers to stalk up more pole beans and various melons, pumpkins and squashes as a low cover. But my summer squash and zucchini I grow separate in stawbales for pest control. If I get a squash borer infestation I can incinerate the bales and avoid the issue the following year....hopefully! I swear I think a local farmer must be baiting them in somehow....maybe fish emulsion?
My mom grew her tomatoes in her strawberry bed and my grandpa had excellent crops of tomatoes and bell peppers when intercropped.
Best peppers I ever grew were mixed in with my tomato plants. The tomatoes took over and hid the peppers. I forgot about them until harvest. They protected the peppers from the wind but still had lots of heat to grow.
Also by covering your soil you avoid rain hitting your bare soil and causing compaction. Thanks for all you do
We have planted marigolds chives and petunias as companions to our tomatoes and we have had massive success and very few invasive bugs
Hurray you turn another hundred. Thank you so much for all you do for us. I have learned how to garden watching you.
I plant basil in and around my toms 👍🏼🏴
Here's a story; I was politely "judged" by a lady who is all about her "personal empowerment." When the healthscare of 2020 began, I asked if she would be gardening again.(she had a fabulous one the previous year) "Ugh!" She said, "who has the time- I'm not putting my energy into that this year." I smiled, thinking - this is exactly when one should invest her energy! Closing in on the growing season- I'm ready to feed my family this summer and beyond!
Right? This is the most important garden of our lifetime!
We have a family of 6 and we're struggling to buy food. However we were blessed with a lot of seeds this year so we are planting over 700sq ft of garden and are trying to use some of your methods. We are growing in ground with hummus added and using rabbit fertilizer too. Any tips would be greatly appreciated!!!!! I'm going to try the broccoli and cabbage together too!!! Thank you for your knowledge ❤️🌱🍅!!!!
Please keep in mind that Luke's climate is probably quite different from yours. Do you live in the higher elevations or in a more arid lower elevation? As a new gardener I highly recommend using something like "The Old Farmer's Almanac " or "Clyde's Garden Planner" to get a better idea of when to plant particular crops.
Keep in mind that it can take a few years to build your soil up. I hope everything goes well for you.
@@PatricesProjects most definitely!!! Thank you so much 💕😊🌱
@@fallenangelwi25
Google Terra Preta
And how to make Terra Preta.
@@stephenolan5539 thank you
Try using more emoji's so we can eventually eliminate the written language altogether!
Not trying to be negative, but he took advice really well. The year before this one he did a video about "why companion plants don't exist" and this one panders to his viewers a lot more than just being a rant. Total props 👁👄👁
This is a under rated video !
Grate job lots of amazing information
Thank you very much I’m now following your channel .
Oh God bless you! I am building my first raised bed this spring 2020. This is so helpful
The year I accidentally planted cherry tomatoes with my lemon Thyme was the best crop of tomatoes I got . Possibly from the waste nutrients from the lemon Thyme helped the tomato plants produce more tomatoes then the ones that weren't planted with the thyme.
I suspect that the strong smell of the thyme was repelling pests. Thyme doesn't fix nitrogen nor drop much biomass.
I grew cherry tomatoes my first year in my small garden. Out of 5 plants I must’ve gotten 1000 or more cherry tomatoes. I grew eggplant beside the tomatoes but they didn’t fair too well as something ate the leaves of the eggplants and I only got a few flowers and nothing more.
This is such a great video, I had to rewatch it this year too. What a big difference in the garden doing this and using mulch instead of weed barriers
I planted so many yellow marigolds last year that people thought I’d decided to extend my flower gardens into the veggie beds. Apparently they didn’t see the big red tomatoes and peppers right next to the flowers! I will try the onions idea. Thank you Luke for one more great vid!
I am watching this video during the COVID-19 social distancing and want to thank you for your “what is going on?!” welcome script... it fits every mood and your positive attitude is infectious. Much love from zone 7b!
This is a great list of Tips/Suggestions, I grew some basil under a trellised tomato and it was fine in the early stages. Once the basil took off it grew into the tomato and I started having disease issues when i couldnt keep it trimmed back. I really want to continue interplanting and I think the companion lists online don't often take the vertical growing and airflow of later stages into account so this more in depth look is really great! The root crop option sounds like the best fit for what we use in our kitchen more so I'll try that instead of basil (we don't use it much/at all).
Some varieties of basil get huge, others are more manageable. Look for compact varieties, and also don't be afraid to succession plant and cut out the old ones.
i've dropped the ball on this issue, this video helped me realize all the space i'd been wasting; thanks, still learning at 67.
Nasturtium is a nice crop to intersperse between. Luke said beans, herbs, lettuces, (not spinach) pollinating flowers, onions, root veg to name most.
That point about masking the scent for pests makes s much sense! I can't wait to use these this upcoming growing season!
Just learned that this year. Too late for my zucchini, but everything else is looking good.
We actually did celery between our carrots and tomatoes this year. really crowded the bed and it's the healthiest area of the garden!
Thanks 😊 great tip 👍
@MI gardener I am super excited for you to get to one million subscribers. I hope every viewer will like and share your videos
Getting close to 1M subscribers ! You have made great videos for years - thank you for sharing your knowledge.
I LOVE this guy! He's sooo energetic and I learn sooo much from him.
I agree. He’s one of my go-to guys
So I know rotating crops into different beds is important to maintain soil quality, can you do a video on how you rotate your crops each year? I'm fairly new to gardening and would love to learn more about that.
I agree. We don't have separate beds for each crop, we have one rectangular garden. So I'd like to know how to rotate the crops while still giving each crop the sunlight it needs.
@@SS-cb9ub I have an in ground garden as well so some of the info doesn't apply to me. I at some point want some raised beds as well. I love his rationales for why things work and don't work. I've started taking notes on his videos to help me remember all this knowledge
Marigolds and Basel are my favourite!....and the smell is amazing!....but both are great repellents to pest...and for some reason both my tomatoes and Basel do soo well and lush when together....truly complement each other. I also love sticking garlic cloves surrounding my tomatoes that are in containers...another great pest repellent
I planted beans next to my tomatoes last year, and they LOVED it. I got so many harvests from just 2 plants and they grew HUGE.
The following are the notes I took while watching this thing. Please comment if you find things I left out or ones I got wrong.
What to grow with tomatoes
Inter cropping
-helps with pest control
-decreases sun on soil
-do plantings out on the edge
-Thyme covers soil
-For plants that like shade, plant under tomatoes
-decreases soil erosion
-decreases need for weeding
What to plant?
-Plants that don’t need a lot of nitrogen to grow their “fruit”
-Plant under shade near tomatoes
Lettuce
Radishes
Those that Love shade vs sun lovers
-Plant out in sunlight
-Plant stuff with skinny or wispy leaves
Beans
Herbs
-thyme, sage, oregano, basil
-Lettuce likes shade, bolts in sun
No spinach because it is a nitrogen feeder
Radishes love shade
Root crops which use phosphorous while tomatoes which uses nitrogens for leaves
Carrots
Beets low foliage
Potatoes?
Sweet Potatoes?
Parsnips
Rutabaga
More food, less space
No broccoli, Brussels sprouts. These use nitrogen(which tomatoes need) bk they produce huge leaves
Flowers
Marigolds: act as insect repellent,
reduce aphids, tomato hornworm, nematodes
Violas don’t like bright sun, plant under tomatoes
Lavender
Other edible flowers
Onions
Don’t restrict air flow
No
Tania L. Williamson no
Tania L. Williamson no
Sorry trying to get rid of reply
Awesome notes
This was the first year I planted marigolds in my garden, and I wasn't even aware of how much they could do for pests! I was told they would repel deer, mostly. But they add a nice pop of color to the garden and now I know why those plants don't have the pest problems my others do!
You did not lose me at all! With you all the way. One day I'll take time for a longer message to tell you about my grandmother's and where my plans and feelings are rooted from! Love you! Feel your passion and still, I'm cheering you on every day!!!! Much love!!!
We use welded wire fencing as a trellus and grow tomatoes, beans, and cucumbers all together and they do great!
Luke, just call it what it is... COMPANION PLANTING!! LOL
The Bearded Grunt Hahahahaha!
@@GrowingWithNick Nope!
Literally my first thought haha
lol!
Nice pepper plants! subbed.
"Intercropping" is the term that commercial growers tend to use. Companion Planting is the term that home growers tend to use. (I was an agriculture student in high school.)
I have watched many of your videos and this one is by far one of my favorite. Thank you for making all the informational videos for us!!
I planted basil and peppers around my tomato plants
Last year my husband put BUG ZAPPERS at both ends of our tomato rows. We checked to see what bugs other than mosquitos it zapped. The moths that lays the HORN WORMS!
We had hardly any horn worms. Except in the area that had no ZAPPERS.
Happy Gardening in 2023
Rhonda from TN
👩🌾💚👩🌾
The chickens were sad though. No treats. Lol
💚