A lot goes into growing your own vegetable garden, from choosing the right plants to planning their location. However, we often overlook the fact that some plants do not grow well together. Companion planting bell peppers with other veggies and flowers help nature work together to create healthy plants and a bountiful harvest.
There is nothing better than tossing freshly chopped sweet peppers into a salad or pickling them for the pantry. Like tomato plants, pepper plants are a popular choice for the garden. They are reasonably easy to grow and provide you with an abundance of crunchy vegetables with sweet flavor at the end of the growing season.
However, choosing which garden plants to grow together plays a significant role in how well they thrive. Like people, some plants don’t play well with others, while others are the perfect companion. Not only that, but some plants keep destructive insects out of the garden space.
Bell Peppers and Companion Planting
It’s easy to make the mistake of growing the wrong vegetables together, especially if you have limited space and only plan on growing a couple of varieties.
However, this isn’t always a great idea. Knowing what to plant with bell peppers goes a long way in producing a healthy and productive garden.
Not only does pairing your peppers with a good companion create harmony in your garden, these plants often keep out a variety of garden pests while drawing in beneficial insects. Here is everything to know about companion planting for bell peppers.
What is Companion Planting for Bell Pepper Plants?
While learning how to garden and planting your own veggies, you’ve probably come across articles referring to companion planting. What is companion planting for bell pepper plants, and how is it a useful form of gardening?
Companion Planting
Companion planting is a strategy that helps you get the best out of your garden by growing mutually beneficial plants together in the same area. There are many ways plants help each other grow and thrive. Learning what vegetables to plant next to each other is easy.
Some plants provide shade to low-growing, shade-loving plants, while others provide them with natural trellises. This includes when you grow bell peppers in pots as well as other veggies.
Some plants aid in soil fertility and others discourage weeds. Finally, some companion plants protect their partners from harmful pests.
What to Plant with Bell Peppers
Growing veggies in a garden that complement each other on the dinner table is a common practice.
However, some of these plants are not suitable for growing together for a variety of reasons. Here is a list of what to plant with bell peppers and which ones to avoid.
What to plant near peppers in the garden is tomatoes since tomatoes keep the soil free of nematodes. While they are companion plants, make sure to rotate them during the following growing season to prevent overwintering pathogens.
Allium family members, such as onions, chives, and leeks, grow well in proximity to bell peppers and deter aphids. Lettuce, spinach, and chard are great companions since they crowd out weeds, while parsnips and beets keep the dirt moist and cool.
Corn is an excellent sun barrier and windbreak for all kinds of red bell peppers, as well as green ones, while peas and beans fix nitrogen in the ground soil.
Buckwheat attracts pollinators to the garden and serves as green mulch after harvesting. Radishes, squash, cucumbers, cilantro, coriander, and carrots are also ideal companions.
Cabbage, broccoli, and other brassicas family members are not beneficial to bell peppers. Other plants to avoid during companion planting are lima beans, bush beans, soybeans, kohlrabi, squash, and Brussels sprouts. Are butter beans and lima beans the same? In this case, don’t plant either one near your peppers.
Companion Planting Bell Peppers with Herbs and Flowers
When companion planting, we often think about combining the right plants in a vegetable garden. However, many herbs and flowers are also great choices for growing beside peppers to draw in beneficial insects while keeping garden pests away.
The best companion for bell peppers in the herb family is basil. This plant keeps flies, mosquitoes, spider mites, slugs, thrips, and other garden pests away from your peppers.
Other ideal choices are parsley that attracts parasitic wasps and dill that attracts beneficial insects and pollinators. Rosemary, oregano, and marjoram also grow very well alongside pepper plants.
Herbs are not the only plant that are useful companions to peppers. Some flowers are beneficial as well. Geraniums repel Japanese beetles and cabbage worms, and French marigolds deter squash bugs, aphids, nematodes, potato bugs, and beetles.
Petunias are another ideal candidate since they keep tomato worms, asparagus beetles, and leafhoppers off your plants, and nasturtiums repel whiteflies, squash bugs, and other pests. Avoid growing fennel and mustard plants in your pepper garden.
Setting up a Companion Garden
If you love a crispy salad with fresh garden veggies and want to try your hand at gardening, here is an example of how to set up the perfect salad garden with companion planting.
First, decide how many plants you desire and prepare your garden accordingly to ensure it is large enough to accommodate them. Plant cucumbers, tomatoes, and bell peppers in the sunniest part of the garden and give them support with a trellis or cage.
Lettuce is a cool weather plant, so consider planting it behind the tall plants so they get some shade during hot temperatures. And finally, plant basil and French marigolds around the perimeter of the garden to keep out unwanted pests.
After you practice companion planting and care for your peppers, harvesting them is the best part. When do you pick bell peppers? Pick your peppers when they are full-sized and the color you want. Store red bell peppers, as well as orange and green ones in the fridge for the short term.
Growing a garden full of vegetables is both satisfying and rewarding. You spend your time outdoors in nature, and it provides you with fresh veggies at the end of the summer. However, it’s important to know which plants get along and which ones to keep apart.
Companion planting bell peppers with the right vegetables, herbs, and flowers, helps your garden flourish and provides you with a bountiful harvest, so why not share our bell pepper companion plant guide with the gardeners in your life on Facebook and Pinterest?