One of the many tips when working on organic gardening, is companion planting. This can range from the types of crops that you plant in the same row, to different flowers that you can inter plant with your food crops. There are many good reasons for companion planting ranging from the types of nutrients that different crops add to the soil which can benefit one another to natural forms pest control.
We add no chemicals in any way to our garden and are religious about tracking what crops we grow in what row, so that we can rotate rows from year to year. But, in the past have made only basic attempts at companion planting. We have done some easy stuff. Onions tend to be a good plant to have around lots of other plants, and we are careful not to plant crops in the same row that negatively impact one another. We have been so overwhelmed by all of the structural work in the garden over the last couple of years, that we just did not have the energy to do more.
This year it feels like we have made it over the proverbial hump. Even though we are still expanding, it feels like we have as much or more completed than we have left to do. There are enough beds and areas that are permanent that we can add some bling. We may also be spurred on a little by the fact that our garden will be on a community tour this August.
