What goes well with zucchini?

Good neighbors for zucchinis

• Due to the shallow roots of pumpkin plants, root vegetables such as beet, celery and carrots go well next to zucchinis - Onions, leeks and spring onions also fit well in the zucchini bed, as they keep some pests such as aphids, carrot flies and cabbage white butterfly caterpillars away from your bed - If you grow your zucchinis climbing, you can grow ground-covering crops such as lettuce and herbs under the zucchinis. You can also plant corn or sunflowers next to the zucchinis as a climbing aid - Runner beans and field beans also make a good mixed crop with zucchini plants, because as nitrogen fixers they add valuable nutrients to the soil. The highly nutritious zucchini can benefit from this and the soil is not depleted - A traditional mixed crop with zucchinis is the milpa. In a milpa, pumpkin plants, i.e. squash, melon or zucchinis, are grown together with beans and maize. Sunflowers can also be planted instead of corn, as both corn and sunflowers are a natural climbing aid for the beans and possibly climbing zucchini.

Which herbs go well with zucchinis?

• Basil: effective against mildew, whitefly and aphids - Borage: effective against tomato worms and cabbage white butterflies - Marigolds: prevents nematodes and bean aphids - Chamomile: increases yield, has a positive effect on aroma and taste - Parsley: effective against fungal diseases and improves aroma

Bad neighbors

• Radish and potatoes - Cucumber and pumpkin - Lovage and Jerusalem artichoke

Are zucchini and pumpkin or cucumbers good neighbors?

Plants of the same family in the same bed can favor diseases and pests. Some pests that are common to cucurbits include squash flies, aphids, whiteflies, spider mites, cucumber beetles and the larvae of the pumpkin seed weevil. Diseases that often attack pumpkin plants include mildew (powdery and downy), viral infections such as the zucchini yellow mosaic virus, bacterial wilt and various fungal infections such as root rot or Fusarium wilt. However, with sufficient spacing and a diverse mixed culture, you can grow several pumpkin plants in one bed.

Your mixed crop planting plan

In this mixed crop, the zucchini plant is accompanied by root vegetables such as carrots and beet. Winter onions, lettuce and garlic also grow in the bed. The whole thing is rounded off with herbs such as parsley, dill and borage.

Crop rotation

Zucchinis are grown as summer crops in the bed during the warm summer months. You can therefore plan pre- and post-crops to make the best use of the space. Choose cold-tolerant crops such as radishes, spinach, kohlrabi, peas or lettuce. Green manure is also a good idea to give the soil a break.

Crop rotation

After a member of the pumpkin family (pumpkin, cucumber, melon or zucchini) has grown on a bed (or part of a bed), a cultivation break of 4 years should follow until the next pumpkin crop.