Bush beans are quite particular about their neighborhoods. They don't get along with some types of vegetables at all, with others they form a harmonious symbiosis. Find out below which neighbors are good for bush beans and which are bad.

French beans go well with tomatoes, savory and other vegetables

Good neighbors for bush beans

French beans go well with many types of vegetables. Some even protect them from disease or pests. Here is a list of the best neighbors for bush beans:

  • Savory: Keeps aphids away, can also be harvested and cooked together
  • Dill: Has a positive effect on the taste
  • strawberries
  • cucumbers
  • Potatoes: Beans keep Colorado potato beetles away
  • cabbages
  • Kohlrabi
  • chard
  • radish
  • Beetroot
  • salad
  • celery
  • tomatoes
  • zucchini

The most important neighbor remains unrecognized

French beans form a symbiosis with bacteria in the soil, which ensure the accumulation of nitrogen at the roots. They supply the rather undemanding beans so well with nitrogen that bush beans actually do not need to be fertilized.

Bad neighbors for bush beans

While good neighbors keep pests away from bush beans, bad neighbors can actually attract them. This is especially true when those neighbors are being consumed by the same pests. Other plants do poorly alongside beans because they do not tolerate high levels of nitrogen, such as onions. You should therefore not plant bush beans together with:

  • peas
  • fennel
  • garlic
  • leek
  • onions

Don't mix too much

If you want to combine your bush beans with several neighboring plants, you should make sure that they get along with each other. Bush beans get along great with strawberries and cabbages, but strawberries and cabbage don’t like each other at all. Dill and savory get along well with everyone. Here is an overview of the tolerance of the good neighbors of bush beans:

strawberries cucumbers potatoes cabbages Kohlrabi radish Beetroot salad celery tomatoes zucchini
strawberries - + + +
cucumbers - + + - + + + -
potatoes - - - -
cabbage + - - + + + +
radish - + + + +
Beetroot + - + + + +
(head) lettuce + + + + - +
celery + - + + + +
tomatoes - - + + - + +
zucchini -

Category:

Vegetable garden