Companion planting fact or fiction?

[Two_Sheds]

French marigolds work for me in the greenhouse where I haven't seen whitefly since I started using them.

... I've got no whitefly either (but no F.Marigolds, stinky orrible things)

[Aberdeenplotter]

... I've got no whitefly either (but no F.Marigolds, stinky orrible things)

That's how they work me dear

[solway cropper]

Anything that gets gardeners away from the ridiculous idea that you have to grow all your veg. in straight rows of the same type of plant is to applauded. Just mix and match things, they'll still grow and, as people say, you are more likely to attract beneficial insects and confuse the others.

[bronwen]

I have tried several ideas such as spring onions bordering carrots, marigolds with my tomatoes (all potted into their permanent homes yesterday!) and having nasturtiums.

I think it's too early to tell if the spring onions and marigolds are doing much, but the nasturtiums have a couple of leaves with blackfly, but nothing else does yet *touch wood*... unless there wouldn't be any blackfly at all if there weren't any nasturtiums?!

My main enemies so far are slugs and snails

But I enjoy having the flowers anyway and also interplanting so I'd probably keep doing it even if results weren't proven.

Looking forward to hearing more tips, interesting reading

[mrpaulbradley]

Lions and tigers and bears oh my?
I'd say some of you aren't living in Kansas anymore!

I too tend not to plant too much in rows. Apart from my seed bed of course... Would never work out what was what! But I am a slightly messy person in life, and are just so in gardening too.
By happy happenstance (purely luck) I too have broad beans in among my gooseberries. I'll watch with
interest.
I'm with TS on marigolds, horrible stinky things, BUT, slugs love 'em and I happily let them be the sacrificial lamb to the slaughter.
Lions, tigers,bears and now lambs.... We've become quite a menagerie!

[mrpaulbradley]

Ps on slugs.
I have two worm farms in the garden. The slugs quite happily gather in there to nibble on the veg waste i feed with, enabling me to collect and dispose of with relative ease.
I could also of course be happily providing an excellent breeding environment at the same time.
Ying and yang. Do you see my original thought behind the post? As we create one beneficial environment, do we de-benefit something else?
Fun doing it though.

[Two_Sheds]

the nasturtiums have a couple of leaves with blackfly, but nothing else does yet *touch wood*... unless there wouldn't be any blackfly at all if there weren't any nasturtiums?!

I have (had) loads of blackfly on the broadies & now the chard. I sacrificed the broadies (picked the beans first) and bunged the whole lot in the daleks. The chard I'm saving for seed, so I'll be planting sacrificial nasturtiums out next to them today, to divert the attention of the blackfly

My main enemies so far are slugs and snails

I've tried everything over the years. What works best for me now are my upturned pop bottles (that I use for watering into).
The snails gather in them overnight, nice & tidy and just waiting for me to scoop them out and throw them to the chickens.

Slugs like to gather underneath anything left on the ground: paving slabs, bits of wood panel, sheets of plastic. Again, gather them all up in the morning and chuck to the birds

[womble]

Same as others, F Marigolds in greenhouse with toms work perfectly and I know there is a difference, because I had problems before I started using them. Now none, no aphids, no whitefly.
They don't work outside to keep away whitefly, but act as a decent sacrificial plant and bring in benificial insects.

I've not really found that the ones not meant to grow together makes any difference.