Best and Worst Companion Plants for Basil

Easy to grow, Basil is an excellent addition to the herb garden and a valuable addition to the vegetable garden. Its sweet aroma and strong flavor make it popular in various cuisines. Sweet Basil is the quintessential Italian culinary herb, most famous for its use in pesto. Basil leaves are also used fresh or dried to flavor meats, fish, salads, and sauces.

Use Basil as a companion plant in your garden to help attract beneficial insects for your other crops or enhance their flavor.

What Is Companion Planting?

Companion planting is an organic method of preventing or protecting plants from pests and diseases, attracting the right types of insects for pollination, enhancing nutrient uptake, and increasing crop production simply by growing specific plants near each other. In essence, companion planting helps bring a balanced ecosystem to your landscape, allowing nature to do its job.

Benefits of Companion Planting

1. Organic Pest Control
Some plants can emit scents that either repel insects, attract them, or confuse insects or disease organisms in search of their favorite host plants. They make insects less likely to land on your garden vegetables.

Basil naturally repels asparagus beetle, aphids, tomato hornworm, mosquitoes, fruit flies, and thrips. 

2. Attracts Beneficial Insects
Some plants help attract beneficial insects, such as ladybugs, bees, and butterflies, that pollinate and help control harmful bugs. Beneficial insects feed on common garden pests like aphids and caterpillars.

3. Provides Necessary Shade
Tall sun-loving plants offer shade to smaller shade-loving plants. This results in better products and can also potentially provide pest control. A good example is The Three Sisters Garden. Practiced by Native Americans thousands of years ago, this garden includes corn, beans, and squash. The tall corn provides shade for the lower squash but also stops the squash vine borer beetle.

4. Shelters Plants
Some plants can provide windbreaks and prevent soil erosion. Strong winds can damage gardens by removing mulch, topsoil, and eroding beds and hillsides. Rain can also cause severe damage by beating down young seedlings. By carefully selecting the right ground cover, you can help prevent soil erosion.

5. Provides Natural Supports
Some companion plants can physically support each other, reducing the need for staking. The example of planting corn, beans, and squash together applies here again. Corn provides tall stalks for the beans to climb so that they are not out-competed by sprawling squash vines.

6. Saves Space
Interplanting different crops greatly maximizes space and improves productivity in small gardens.

7. Enhances Flavors
Some plants can subtly enhance the flavor of other plants. Most herbs have been found to enhance the flavor of fruits and vegetables grown nearby, and basil grown beside tomatoes is an excellent example. Similarly, chamomile has an aromatic scent that is believed to improve the growth and flavor of cabbage, cucumbers, and onions when grown beside them.

8. Better Soil Quality and Fertility
Some crops help fix nitrogen from the atmosphere and reduce fertilizer needs. Similarly, planting plants with different root structures together can aerate the soil and allow plants to pull nutrients from different parts of the soil. Not only can companion planting help your plants to grow better, but it also makes the vegetable garden more attractive, thanks to the addition of colorful flowers that help or hinder nearby vegetables. Companion planting combines beauty and purpose to create an enjoyable, healthy environment.

Best Basil Companion Plants

	Asparagus Basil and asparagus support each other well. Basil repels asparagus beetles and mosquitoes, while asparagus provides shelter from wind and attracts beneficial insects.
	Beets Basil’s aromatic foliage helps repel pests, while also enhancing beet flavor and growth.
	Borage Borage attracts pollinators and beneficial insects, while its deep roots bring up minerals that enhance basil’s growth and flavor.
	Chamomile Chamomile boosts basil’s essential oil content, enhancing flavor and pest-repelling ability.
	Chives Chives enhance basil’s flavor and essential oil production while helping deter aphids and common garden pests.
	Garlic Garlic and basil are a pest-repelling duo, warding off spider mites, aphids, and whiteflies. They may also improve each other’s flavor.
	Grapes Basil helps protect grapes by deterring unwanted insect pests and encouraging pollinators.
	Marigolds This classic pair naturally repels aphids, beetles, nematodes, and slugs, offering color and pest control in tandem.
	Nasturtium Acts as a trap crop by attracting aphids and pests away from basil. Edible flowers bring vibrant color to the garden.
	Oregano Oregano boosts basil’s essential oil content and may attract pollinators when in bloom.
	Parsley Basil and parsley thrive in similar growing conditions and make excellent companions for attracting beneficial insects.
	Peppers Basil boosts pepper flavor and growth while repelling pests like aphids, thrips, and flies.
	Petunias Petunias repel aphids, tomato worms, and beetles, while adding vibrant blooms that pair beautifully with basil.
	Radishes Radishes benefit from basil’s pest-repelling traits and can serve as handy row markers for basil planting.
	Tomatoes A classic pairing: basil enhances tomato growth and flavor, repels insects like hornworms and aphids, and boosts pollination by attracting bees and butterflies.

Worst Basil Companion Plants

	Cucumbers Aromatic herbs like basil are believed to affect the flavor of cucumbers. While not harmful, it’s best to keep them separate if you’re concerned about taste.
	Sage Sage and other drought-tolerant herbs prefer dry soil, which conflicts with basil’s moisture needs. Grown together, they may stunt each other’s growth.
	Rue Rue and basil are considered antagonistic companion plants. Rue’s strong bitterness may interfere with basil’s growth, so they are best kept apart.
	Fennel Fennel releases compounds that inhibit the growth of nearby plants, including basil. It’s best planted far from other herbs or vegetables.
	Thyme While both are aromatic herbs, thyme prefers dry, sandy soil, while basil thrives in moist, fertile conditions. Their growing needs are incompatible.