Gardening Edible Gardening Vegetable Gardening 10 Best Onion Companion Plants to Grow Together For natural pest control and other perks, plant onions beside these top companion plants. By Lauren Landers Lauren Landers Lauren Landers is a freelance writer who focuses on gardening, homesteading, and DIY. Learning from both hands-on experience and a Master Gardener training course, Lauren loves sharing her knowledge about gardening, conscious living, homesteading, backyard food growing, and much more. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process Published on March 29, 2023 Share Tweet Pin Email Onions’ strong scent and low growth habit makes them excellent companion plants for many different vegetables, herbs, and flowers. In fact, onions are so versatile in the garden that it can be difficult to decide where to locate them since they grow well with most other plants. Because onions are so good at repelling pests, often the best place to grow your onions is near the plants that are most vulnerable to pests. Below are some top recommended onion companion plants, but if you have other plants that are prone to pests, you may want to plant onions near those as well. 01 of 10 Cruciferous Vegetables Marty Baldwin Cruciferous vegetables, like broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and kale, are a perfect match for onions. Onions’ strong aroma naturally repels cabbage loopers and other pests that target cruciferous vegetables. Additionally, both onions and cruciferous vegetables are heavy-feeding plants, so they will both benefit from regular fertilizer applications. 02 of 10 Strawberries Stephen Cridland Similarly, strawberries are also prone to pest invasions. Onions help to repel many of the most common strawberry pests. Onions and strawberries are also both low growing plants and they generally won’t compete with each other for sunlight or other necessities. 03 of 10 Beets Bob Stefko Onions repel many of the insects that feed on beets, including flea beetles and aphids. Deer and rabbits also avoid onions, which can help protect your beet greens from these voracious garden visitors. Because beets and onions are both root crops, they also have similar growing needs and prefer deep, loose soil. 04 of 10 Carrots Better Homes and Gardens Onions appear to keep away the destructive carrot fly, a pest that can stunt the growth of carrots and even destroy entire plantings. Because both plants are root vegetables, they have similar growing needs and prefer regular watering and loose, deep soil. What’s more, carrots and onions are both cool season vegetables that can be planted early in the season before many other vegetable types. 05 of 10 Lettuce Kindra Clineff Lettuce is a fast growing vegetable and interplanting it with your onions is a smart way to get the most out of your garden. While you’re waiting for your onion bulbs to fill out, you may be able to get a harvest or two of lettuce in from your garden. Even better, lettuce has very short roots, so it won’t compete with onion bulbs for soil space. 06 of 10 Peppers Bob Stefko Peppers and onions don’t just pair well together in the kitchen, they also make perfect partners in the garden too. Onions’ strong aroma repels many garden pests and can keep deer and rabbits from browsing on your bell peppers. Pepper plants are also taller than onions, leaving plenty of room for onions to grow underneath. 07 of 10 Tomatoes Erica George Dines If you want to make homemade salsa, you definitely need to leave some room in your garden for growing tomatoes and onions. When planted together, onions will help to keep your tomatoes pest-free and tomatoes’ larger leaves can shield the soil around your onions and prevent it from drying out as quickly. Additionally, both plants need plenty of nutrients and they have similar growing needs. 08 of 10 Chamomile Matthew Benson Chamomile is a delicate herb that has small, daisy-like flowers that are frequently used for herbal teas. When planted with onions, chamomile is thought to improve both the flavor and growth of your onion bulbs. Chamomile is also very easy to grow from seed and it’s small-space friendly too. 09 of 10 Leeks Bob Stefko Sowing plants in the same plant family together is generally not recommended as they can be susceptible to the same pests and diseases. However, because leeks and onions are naturally repellant to most pests, these two plants can usually be sown together without any issues. They also have the same growing needs and planting them in the same bed can simplify your gardening tasks. 10 of 10 Summer Savory Jason Donnelly Summer savory is a less commonly used annual herb that tastes a bit like marjoram and thyme. When planted near onions, it can help repel most pests that will affect your onions. Growing summer savory by your onions is also thought to improve the growth of your onion bulbs and may sweeten their flavor too. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit Sources Better Homes & Gardens is committed to using high-quality, reputable sources—including peer-reviewed studies—to support the facts in our articles. Read about our editorial policies and standards to learn more about how we fact check our content for accuracy. https://cals.arizona.edu/cochise/mg/whats-bugging-you-cabbage-looper https://extension.usu.edu/pests/research/flea-beetles-vegetables