Companion Plants for Potatoes

Traditional companions for potatoes include broccoli, Brussels sprouts, bush beans, cabbage, cauliflower, collard greens and 9 more in the table below.

Keep cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, peas, pumpkins, zucchini and summer squash, sunflowers, tomatoes, turnips and winter squash 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 potatoes

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 potatoes
Plant	Kind	Spacing	Season
Broccoli	Vegetable	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Brussels Sprouts	Vegetable	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Bush Beans	Vegetable	9 per sq ft	Warm season
Cabbage	Vegetable	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Cauliflower	Vegetable	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Collard Greens	Vegetable	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Garlic	Vegetable	4 per sq ft	Cool season
Kale	Vegetable	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Kohlrabi	Vegetable	4 per sq ft	Cool season
Pole Beans	Vegetable	8 per sq ft	Warm season
Sweet Corn	Vegetable	1 per sq ft	Warm season
Mint	Herb	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Oregano	Herb	1 per sq ft	Warm season
Parsley	Herb	1 per sq ft	Cool season
Marigolds	Flower	1 per sq ft	Warm season

What not to plant with potatoes

Cherry Tomatoes: in the same family (tomato family), so it shares pests and diseases and belongs in a different bed in the crop rotation.
Cucumbers: usually planted in a different bed.
Peas: usually planted in a different bed.
Pumpkins: usually planted in a different bed.
Zucchini and Summer Squash: usually planted in a different bed.
Sunflowers: usually planted in a different bed.
Tomatoes: in the same family (tomato family), so it shares pests and diseases and belongs in a different bed in the crop rotation.
Turnips: usually planted in a different bed.
Winter Squash: 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.

What reliably helps potatoes: 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 potatoes 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 potatoes

Questions

What can I plant with potatoes?

The traditional companions are broccoli, Brussels sprouts, bush beans, cabbage, cauliflower, collard greens, garlic, kale and 7 more listed above. Plant companions in neighbouring rows or squares rather than in the same hole.

What should not be planted with potatoes?

The guides keep cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, peas, pumpkins, zucchini and summer squash, sunflowers, tomatoes, turnips and winter squash apart from potatoes. Give them a different bed, especially the crops from the same family, which share pests and diseases.

Does companion planting with potatoes work?

Most pairings are tradition rather than tested results: extension services call companion planting promising but largely unproven. None of the pairs for this crop has been tested in a trial we could find. Good spacing, sun, water and rotation do more for a harvest than any single pairing.

How close can marigolds grow to potatoes?

In a raised bed planted by the square foot, give potatoes 1 per sq ft and marigolds 1 per sq ft, in neighbouring squares. In rows, potatoes need 12 in between plants.