Steve Yoder
I'm Steve, a 30-something urban gardener fascinated by companion planting research. Growing up surrounded by greenery sparked my passion for gardening early on. I enjoy transforming my small backyard, experimenting with companion planting techniques and eco-friendly practices. Sustainability matters—I advocate for native plants and composting.
Table of Contents
In most parts of the world, lettuce is a cool season crop that can be produced all year round. It is collected after around 60 days after planting in the spring and fall when its flavor and texture are at their optimum. Although lettuce is mostly farmed for its leaves, it also has edible flowers. Humans have been eating lettuce from the time of ancient Egypt for thousands of years. It is also a very friendly plant. That’s why there are lots of good lettuce companion plants.
Best Lettuce Companion Plants
Basil and Lettuce as Companions
The first member of the best lettuce companion plants is basil. The same beneficial insects that help pollinate1 lettuce are drawn to basil, and it deters pests like aphids and whiteflies. You may grow basil as a border or even around your lettuce patch in your yard.
Basil also has many other companions:
Beans as Lettuce Companion Plants
Lettuce loves the presence of beans! While growing close to your lettuce plants, beans, which fix nitrogen in the soil, help restore soil nutrients. These lettuce companion plants are providing some shade for their leafy neighbor when the sun is at its strongest in the early morning or late afternoon. Also, beans planted close together can help reduce the requirement for water and fertilizer.
For more information about beans companion plants:
Broccoli with Lettuce
What does lettuce have to do with broccoli, you might be thinking. It seems that some plants can benefit from one another’s growth. They will grow more healthily and resist pests longer if planted together. Let’s look at how this functions now! By luring helpful insects like aphids, who will eat the pests rather than your lettuce, broccoli helps protect2 lettuce from pests. This is advantageous for your garden since, if possible, you should avoid applying pesticides to your crops.
Due to its insect repellant properties, lettuce also benefits broccoli. In your garden, the healthier the plants are (like lettuce), the less probable it is that pests will attack them all at once.
For more information about broccoli companion plants:
Cabbage and Lettuce
The next member of the best lettuce companion plants on our list is cabbage. Plant your cabbage in the same area of your bed with your lettuce. With the help of each other, they will grow better and faster. The reason for this is that both plants don’t compete against each other. The fact that cabbage is a very friendly plant makes it a great companion. Check out its list of companion plants:
Carrot & Lettuce
Lettuce and carrots go well together. You may grow them together in the same bed by sprinkling carrot seeds or seedlings between rows of lettuce seeds. Like that they promote each other’s growth3. This will provide you with a tasty crop at the end of the season and help keep your lettuce’s soil moist, prevent weeds from developing around it, and keep pests away from it.
Other companion plants for carrots:
Cauliflowers as Lettuce Companion Plants
Companion planting cauliflower and lettuce is a fantastic strategy to keep bugs out of your garden. This will provide you with a beautiful harvest at the end of the season. Although both species perform well when planted separately, they can work well together in big areas.
Plan to plant them next to one another so that you may begin picking cauliflower before lettuce because it can be harvested early. This will allow your lettuce plant to develop unmolested by pests or weeds until it is time to harvest that as well after your cauliflower has done growing and been picked.
Both lettuce and cauliflower are noted for their fresh aroma when eaten raw, so you don’t have to worry about either plant emitting any bad smells.
Make sure to check out the best cauliflower companion plants:
Dill and Lettuce
To continue our list of the best lettuce companion plants we must consider dill! To deter pests, grow dill next to your lettuce in the garden. It’s a wonderful ally for plants like carrots, cabbage, tomatoes, and beans since it helps keep the soil wet and discourages the growth of other plants.
Other good dill companion plants:
Parsley planted with Lettuce
Since it helps draw beneficial insects to the garden, parsley is a fantastic plant to grow with lettuce. One of the most practical herbs for your garden is parsley, which can be grown alongside practically any produce or flower. It’s an annual herb, so it will disappear after one growing season, but it’s simple to cultivate from seed, so you can quickly plant more the next year.
Pepper with Lettuce
Another good member of the best lettuce companion plants is pepper. Although they still need to have adequate drainage when grown with lettuce, peppers do well in hot, dry regions. Pollinators are drawn to the pepper’s blooms and will return to pollinate your lettuce crop. This makes pepper to another member of the best lettuce companion plants!
Pepper companion plants:
Thyme as Lettuce Companion
Thyme and lettuce work well together. Aphids and other hazardous insects are repelled by thyme. Bees and other useful insects are drawn to thyme. If you want to keep pests away from your lettuce while also reaping the advantages of having a natural insecticide nearby, grow thyme in the same bed as your lettuce.
Thyme also goes well with other plants in your garden:
Tomato & Lettuce
A great lettuce companion plant is tomato. Your lettuce plants may even be protected from some illnesses by the tomato plant, which will help keep pests away from them.
You may grow lettuce and tomatoes either in succession or after one another. Anytime during the growing season, as long as the lettuce receives enough daylight to thrive, tomatoes can be planted alongside lettuce.
What Not to Plant with Lettuce
Fennel X Lettuce
One bad member of bad lettuce companion plants is fennel. A chemical that prevents lettuce from growing is secreted by fennel at the roots. Many other garden plants such as lettuce are impacted by this secretion as well.
On the other hand, fennel has many other good companion plants:
Corn X Lettuce
The lettuce fruit worm and the corn earworm are the same. It might be disastrous and destroy the garden to grow plants close together that are vulnerable to the same bug. So, make sure you plant both plants far away from each other.
References
- Pennisi, G., Pistillo, A., Orsini, F., Cellini, A., Spinelli, F., Nicola, S., … & Marcelis, L. F. (2020). Optimal light intensity for sustainable water and energy use in indoor cultivation of lettuce and basil under red and blue LEDs. Scientia Horticulturae, 272, 109508.
- Zokaei, M., Sepehri, M., Rezvani, M., & Zarei, A. (2018). Comparison of the concentration of heavy metals in some vegetables (celery, broccoli and lettuce). Amazonia Investiga, 7(16), 324-334.
- SILVA, R. C. P. D., BEZERRA NETO, F. R. A. N. C. I. S. C. O., SILVA, M. L. D., Barros Junior, A. P., ALMEIDA, A. E. D. S., & Vieira, F. D. A. (2018). Effect of rooster tree green manure on carrot and lettuce intercropping system. Revista Caatinga, 31, 551-559.