Companion Plants for Collard Greens

Traditional companions for collard greens include beets, bush beans, cabbage, calendula, celery, chamomile and 22 more in the table below.

Keep cherry tomatoes, strawberries and tomatoes away from them.

These are garden traditions, collected from 13 US extension guides. Few have been tested in trials, so treat them as a starting point: spacing, sun and rotation matter more.

Good companions for collard greens

Spacing is per square foot, for a raised bed planted square by square. Cool-season companions can share the bed before or after a warm-season crop, or grow in its shade.

Traditional companions for collard greens
Plant	Kind	Spacing	Season
Beets	Vegetable	9 per sq ft	Cool season
Bush Beans	Vegetable	9 per sq ft	Warm season
Cabbage	Vegetable	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Celery	Vegetable	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Cucumbers	Vegetable	2 per sq ft	Warm season
Edamame	Vegetable	9 per sq ft	Warm season
Fava Beans	Vegetable	4 per sq ft	Cool season
Garlic	Vegetable	4 per sq ft	Cool season
Green Onions	Vegetable	16 per sq ft	Cool season
Head Lettuce	Vegetable	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Leaf Lettuce	Vegetable	4 per sq ft	Cool season
Leeks	Vegetable	4 per sq ft	Cool season
Mustard Greens	Vegetable	9 per sq ft	Cool season
Onions	Vegetable	9 per sq ft	Cool season
Potatoes	Vegetable	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Radishes	Vegetable	16 per sq ft	Cool season
Romaine Lettuce	Vegetable	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Shallots	Vegetable	4 per sq ft	Cool season
Spinach	Vegetable	9 per sq ft	Cool season
Swiss Chard	Vegetable	4 per sq ft	Cool season
Chamomile	Herb	4 per sq ft	Cool season
Chives	Herb	4 per sq ft	Cool season
Mint	Herb	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Rosemary	Herb	1 per sq ft	Warm season
Sage	Herb	1 per 2 sq ft	Warm season
Thyme	Herb	1 per sq ft	Warm season
Calendula	Flower	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Nasturtiums	Flower	1 per sq ft	Warm season

What not to plant with collard greens

Cherry Tomatoes: usually planted in a different bed.
Strawberries: usually planted in a different bed.
Tomatoes: usually planted in a different bed.

What the evidence says

Companion planting charts come from long garden experience, and most pairs have never been tried in a replicated trial. Several extension services say so directly; one review gives traditional charts more entertainment than scientific value.

Planting calendula with collard greens has some trial support (Penn State Extension).

What reliably helps collard greens: the right planting dates, enough space, and moving crops to a new bed each year (crop rotation).

Plant them side by side

Draw your beds, tap squares to plant collard greens next to their companions, and get every crop's planting dates for your ZIP code. Free, in your browser.

Open the garden planner When to plant collard greens

Questions

What can I plant with collard greens?

The traditional companions are beets, bush beans, cabbage, calendula, celery, chamomile, chives, cucumbers and 20 more listed above. Plant companions in neighbouring rows or squares rather than in the same hole.

What should not be planted with collard greens?

The guides keep cherry tomatoes, strawberries and tomatoes apart from collard greens. Give them a different bed.

Does companion planting with collard greens work?

Most pairings are tradition rather than tested results: extension services call companion planting promising but largely unproven. Planting calendula with collard greens has some trial support (Penn State Extension). Good spacing, sun, water and rotation do more for a harvest than any single pairing.

How close can calendula grow to collard greens?

In a raised bed planted by the square foot, give collard greens 1 per sq ft and calendula 1 per sq ft, in neighbouring squares. In rows, collard greens need 18 in between plants.