Do you want to grow eggplant with some companion plants and don’t know which one is suitable for your garden? Planting the best eggplant companions benefits both plants regarding symbiotic, harmonious relationships. It’s a great way to boost your eggplant production with little effort.
However, with the help of an eggplant companion planting chart you can get the most out of this single plant. The most common companion plants for eggplant include different types of flowers, vegetables, and herbs are discussed throughout this post.
Let’s explore what the best eggplant companions are that you must try to get larger crops and pest protection. And all these are to bring a revolution to your vegetable farming.
Eggplant Companion Planting Chart Explained
Adding different plants like flowers, vegetables, and herbs near eggplant is beneficial in many ways. Some keep off pests, while others attract helpful insects and pollinators. Most importantly, you’ll be able to grow your crops in double to triple amounts if you sow companion plants with eggplant.
Apart from repelling pests and attracting insects, companion plants help improve soil conditions that promote faster growth and better taste. Moreover, they provide good coverage over the ground and essential shades.
Also, companion plants are vital for adding biodiversity to your vegetable garden and are obviously on your plate. However, choosing the right plants for your eggplant is very crucial.
If you add the wrong plants to your garden, they can hinder the growth of one another. As a result, it’ll adversely affect your vegetable production.
Companion Plant Name | Key Benefits |
Mexican Marigold | Repels pests. Attracts bees, pests, and other helpful birds. Deters nibbles and rabbits. Makes eggplant smell well. |
Borage/Oregano | Brings bees, birds & other essential insects. Maintains natural pollination. Keeps caterpillars and worms away. |
Sunflowers | Easy to grow, versatile, and look pretty Bring helpful birds. Make shade like a living fence. Clean polluted soil. |
Nasturtium | Brings and draws wandering insects. Cheap and easy to produce Keeps soil fertile. |
Nightshades | Don’t compete with each other. Have a pungent odor. Attract birds and insects. Produce natural insecticides. |
Bush Beans & Pole Beans | Deter harmful pests and insects. Repelling beetlesAttract wandering pollinators. |
Squash | Maintains soil moisture levels. Doesn’t compete with each other.Wards off raccoons and deer. |
Green Beans | Cheap and easy to grow Keep eggplant away from Colorado beetles. Boost soil’s nitrogen levels. Ensure strong growth of eggplant. |
Broccoli | Helps eggplant to get vital nutrients. Repels pests and insects. Attracts pollinators. It Covers the ground for nutrient and water retention. |
Rosemary | Saves you eggplant from potato bugs. Repels many pests. Ensures bigger & organic eggplants. |
Catnip | Deters pests and insects. Wards off flea beetles.Repels voles and mice. |
Cilantro | Brings good insects. Kills harmful pests. Protects your garden insects. Attracts predators. |
Chamomile | Easy to grow Natural antifungal and antibacterialBrings supportive pollinators and insects. Provides healthy eggplant with bigger fruits. |
So did you get the good companion for eggplant? The range of the best eggplant companions is large enough. We have categorized them into three – flowers, vegetables, and herbs. Here are the details:
Flower Companion Plants For Eggplant
Flowers are very beneficial for eggplant. Some of them spread strong smells to ward off pests and insects. But, many of them attract pollinators.
Mexican Marigold
Eggplant loves the company of Mexican marigolds because of its natural pest-deterring properties. This flowering plant attracts bees and other helpful birds for pollination. Besides, it helps you to repel eggplant-eating ants, flies, aphids, and flea beetles.
The smell of marigolds is very favorable to keeping off rabbits and other nibbles. However, this smell is good for eggplant, which has made marigolds a trusted friend to vegetable gardeners.
Borage (Oregano)
One of the superb eggplant companion flowers, borage, is also known as oregano. It’s not very known like its cousins, but it’s handy for eggplant farming. It works better for most types of plants, including eggplant.
Borage brings bees, birds, and other essential insects into your eggplant garden, which helps you to maintain natural pollination. On the other hand, it keeps your eggplant away from caterpillars and worms that eat eggplant.
Sunflowers
Sunflowers are good choices for the eggplant to add as companion plants. They’re not just easy to grow; they’re versatile and look pretty. Those are not all about sunflowers. You can plant them to attract vital pollinators to your eggplant garden.
Indeed, sunflowers are not as strong as marigolds. But, they bring many birds that eat available pests in the garden to help you produce more crops. Also, they make shade and act like a living fence. Moreover, they help you clean polluted soil for higher growth and taste of your crop.
Nasturtium
Nasturtium works like a trap crop when you grow it near eggplant. It brings insects and draws to its own instead of the eggplant. This flowering plant is cheap and easy to produce, but it’s hard on aphids and other pests that harm your eggplant.
Nasturtium doesn’t require very fertile soil to grow. However, it enriches your garden’s soil after dying and being decomposed. Thus, it makes faster growth of eggplant with more taste. Indeed, planting nasturtium with eggplant will eliminate the need to use any additional fertilizers.
Vegetable Companion Plants For Eggplants
Many vegetables are great as companion plants for eggplant. Similarly, they come with excellent nutritional values and deter pests. Here are some of the best and most commonly used vegetable companion plants for your eggplant farm:
Nightshades
There are many nightshade family members, including tomatoes, potatoes, and peppers. All of them provide good company for eggplant. They require the same things to grow and don’t compete with each other.
Besides, they have a pungent odor that’s nice to ward off pests. But, they attract some necessary birds and insects for natural pollination. Moreover, tomatoes are well-known as solanine producers. This natural insecticide helps you repel pests from eggplant.
Bush Beans & Pole Beans
Bush beans are good at repelling beetles like pole beans. Planting these beans is a simple solution if you have trouble with these beetles that are eating your eggplant foliage.
They naturally deter many more harmful pests and insects. Also, they have the capability of cross-pollination that attracts wandering pollinators for eggplants. As a result, you’ll get higher eggplant production.
Squash
Squash is another eggplant-friendly plant, both like full sun. They produce bigger fruits when they get about 6 hours of sunlight daily. But, they’re not competitors for each other.
Squash keeps weeds away and helps you maintain the correct soil moisture levels. As it comes with prickly foliage, it wards off raccoons and deer from raiding your eggplant’s ears.
Green Beans
Green beans are not just the best friend for eggplant; they’re also cheap and easy to grow. They’re very profitable because of their propagation for every growing season. Planting green beans will help you keep eggplant away from Colorado beetles.
As green beans are legumes, they boost soil’s nitrogen levels and provide vital nutrients for eggplant. It ensures the strong growth of eggplant, which results in healthy and extensive crops. Thus, green beans are one of the critical choices for gardeners and farmers for their eggplant.
Broccoli
Broccoli is an excellent choice for eggplant. As eggplant is a heavy feeder that needs more nitrogen, broccoli helps eggplant get some vital nutrients from the soil.
Aside from improving soil quality, broccoli repels pests and insects, attracts pollinators, and covers the ground for nutrient and water retention. Therefore, broccoli is a great companion plant for eggplant.
Herb Companion Plants For Eggplant
More pungent smells of eggplant companion herbs help you repel harmful pests and insects to boost plant health and production. Below we discussed some effective herbs that are very eggplant friendly:
Rosemary
Rosemary is an excellent companion herb for eggplant. It’s good to save your eggplant from potato bug attacks very effectively. The more potent aroma of this herb is the right choice to repel many types of pests and insects from your eggplant garden.
Besides, rosemary increases eggplant flavor with its odor and assists you in maintaining a healthy garden. Thus, it ensures bigger, hundred percent organic eggplants without applying any hazardous chemical fertilizers or pesticides.
Catnip
Catnip is one of the most scented herbs that are great eggplant companions. It deters pests and insects with its more pungent smell and makes your eggplant healthy with bigger crops. But, you must avoid planting other legumes like peas and beans near them as they compete for nutrients.
The remaining oil in catnip helps you ward off flea beetles to keep eggplant away from potential damage. Moreover, its powerful scent works excellent to repel voles and mice, two more pests of your eggplant garden. Planting catnip as pests repellent can be a natural way when you want to produce organic eggplants.
Cilantro
Cilantro can be another best friend for your eggplant. It brings good insects that kill harmful pests like beetles and helps you protect your eggplant. Thus, it prevents the eggplant from being beetle and other insects eaten. As it repels pests from your garden, it keeps the garden with a pleasant aroma.
Planting Cilantro with legumes such as green and fava bean protects your garden from aphids, pea leaf weevils, thrips, and many more pests. The flower of this herb attracts predators like hoverflies, ladybugs, and lacewings.
Chamomile
Chamomile is a flowering herb that can easily grow from its seed. It comes with powerful and natural antifungal and antibacterial properties. It’s the perfect companion plant for your eggplant garden to keep it free of fungal infections.
Moreover, Chamomile assists in bringing supportive pollinators and insects to the eggplant garden. Indeed, it attracts insects like ladybugs, honey bees, and wasps, which also eliminate harmful pests. As a result, you’ll get healthy eggplant with bigger fruits.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What Is The Best Companion Plant For Eggplant?
Both hot and sweet peppers are best among other companions for eggplant. They don’t just require similar growing needs with the risks of the same diseases and insects. Also, tomatoes play a vital role as an eggplant companion like potatoes.
What Plants Can You Grow With Eggplant?
You can grow different flowers, vegetables, and herbs with eggplant as companion plants. They include Mexican marigolds, borage (oregano), sunflowers, nightshades, bush beans & pole beans, etc.
Can I Plant Cucumber And Eggplant Together?
You can because eggplant and cucumber are the same nightshade family members. Also, they have similar needs to grow well, and they don’t compete with each other. They just want ample space and some organic or compost material.
Can I Plant Basil With Eggplant?
You can plant basil with eggplant like some other different herbs. Basil is well-known for its more potent aroma that helps you naturally repel harmful pests and insects. Also, it attracts warding pollinators for better growth of eggplant.
Are Tomatoes And Eggplant Companion Plants?
Yes, tomatoes and eggplant are other good examples of companion plants. Cucumbers, tomatoes, and eggplants are also members of the nightshade family. Thus, they have the exact requirements and vulnerability.
Conclusion
Not just the eggplant companion planting chart, we have provided you with much information regarding this concern. Now, you can choose what plants are suitable for your eggplant garden.
Adding companion plants is very helpful in preventing harmful pests and insects. Also, they’re good to be additional sources of essential nitrogen. On the other hand, these companion plants keep the balance of pollination by attracting supportive insects.