What plants can be planted next to potatoes to increase yields?

It is possible to increase the productivity of vegetables and improve their taste thanks to correctly selected companion plants. When planning the joint placement of crops on the site, you need to know what is best to plant next to the potatoes. Proper distribution of plants will help to significantly save space on the site, improve the soil and stimulate the growth of garden crops.

Neighbors for potatoes

Potatoes usually occupy a significant portion of the cultivated land. This leaves enough space near the furrows that can be used effectively. When choosing neighbors for a vegetable, it is necessary to take into account the basic requirements for the growing conditions of each of the crops:

• lighting;
• watering;
• top dressing;
• soil composition.

The most important condition for joint landings is plant compatibility.

• Legumes enrich the soil with oxygen and are considered the healthiest neighbors for potatoes. The seeds are planted at the same time. A potato is thrown into one hole along with a pea or bean. Planting together eliminates damage to legumes during the hilling process. The legumes are harvested first, then the potatoes are dug out.
• A similar effect is exerted on this vegetable by bush beans planted along the edge of potato furrows. In addition, this plant is capable of repelling various harmful insects.
• The free space between the rows can be used to plant different types of cabbage. The neighborhood with cauliflower and kohlrabi is most favorable for potatoes.
• It is convenient to use free plots of land next to potatoes for growing various greenery. During the summer season, you can get spinach leaves and all kinds of salad to the table. A good option is a joint planting with radishes.
• Protect potatoes from late blight can the garlic planted next door. And onions are capable of scaring off the Colorado potato beetle.
• Carrots and beets planted nearby will not harm the nightshade family. They can be placed on the sides of the bed.
• For potatoes grown in warm regions of the country, it will be useful to be adjacent to crops such as corn and grapes.
• Some gardeners use the free space next to the potatoes to grow zucchini, pumpkin and eggplant.
• Planting horseradish on the same territory with vegetables, it must be remembered that the plant is actively growing and it is very difficult to remove it from the garden.
• Once sown in a potato field, dill will yield a harvest every year - dill umbrellas can be used for conservation during the summer season.

Advice

Tomatoes and peppers are prone to the same diseases as potatoes. In addition, these crops are affected by the same pests. It is not recommended to place such plants nearby.

It is undesirable to arrange potato plantings in the immediate vicinity of apple and cherry trees. Sunflower and mountain ash are considered unsuitable neighbors for a vegetable.

Savior flowers

They will be useful in growing vegetables of the nightshade family and at the same time decorate the summer cottage with flower crops:

• calendula will provide protection against the Colorado potato beetle;
• marigolds will save you from a bear and a nematode;
• tansy will scare off ants;
• nasturtium will protect from whiteflies and whiteflies;
• chamomile pyrethrum will protect against aphids and rodents.

Advice

It is recommended to use calendula as a green manure, embedding it in the ground in the fall in the place of future potato beds.

The benefits of crop rotation for plants

Getting a good harvest depends not only on a well-planned neighborhood, but also on compliance with crop rotation. Plants that have been growing in one place for many years become more vulnerable to pests. Planting the same crop annually depletes the soil. Potatoes actively consume phosphorus and potassium from the soil, therefore, when preparing a site for the next planting season, it is necessary to enrich the land with these microelements. It will not be superfluous to apply nitrogen fertilizers.

In order for vegetables to receive a sufficient amount of nutrients from the ground, it is recommended to change the planting site every 2-3 years. Owners of small land plots can place garden crops in small ridges. The location should be planned so that the cultivation of vegetables alternates every year.

The plot on which the potatoes have been grown for 5 years, it is necessary to arrange a rest - to leave the land unseeded for the season. If this is not possible, then the soil is enriched by fertilizing or growing useful plants on the site.

Green manure plants

Planting green manure in the vacated potato beds improves soil fertility. Sowing crops like peas, mustard, oats, rye, phacelia or rapeseed, subsequently, when digging, they are embedded in the soil. In the process of decomposition, green plants enrich the earth with phosphorus and potassium.

1. In the fall, after harvesting, it is recommended to sow mustard on the site. This will help saturate the soil with nitrogen.
2. On the beds freed from vegetables, many gardeners plant rye before winter to improve and enrich the land. In the spring, the site is plowed along with young green shoots.
3. Phacelia can be planted throughout the season. Green spaces are buried in the ground no later than a week after the beginning of flowering. Thanks to this plant, the soil is enriched with the necessary nutrients.
4. Oats planted after harvesting early potatoes are mowed in autumn. Before the next planting season, the garden is plowed. An overripe plant saturates the soil with nutrients.
5. The green mass of rape, sent to the soil, in the process of decomposition, gives as much minerals as the mullein.

Under the influence of green manure, the earth becomes loose and light.

Advice

To speed up the process of converting green manure crops into organic fertilizer, green plants must be crushed and embedded in the soil.

What to plant after potatoes

In order to obtain good yields from a plot of land where vegetables of the Solanaceae family used to grow, various garden crops are planted in the enriched and restored soil in spring.

1. It is good to alternate the annual planting of potatoes with zucchini, pumpkin and cabbage.
2. You can arrange onion beds in the former potato area, or grow salads, spinach or radishes.
3. After nightshades, table beets will feel comfortable.
4. A good harvest of turnips and radishes will grow.

Next to vegetables planted on potato beds, it is useful to plant nasturtium, calendula or marigold.

The annual change of garden crops on the same plot of land contributes to the restoration of useful trace elements in the soil.

It is not difficult to find suitable partners for potatoes and plan the placement of crops that are beneficial to each other in the same or adjacent beds. It is equally important to follow the rules of plant rotation to improve soil fertility. This will help save space on the site and get a rich harvest of vegetables.