Corn companion plants deliver chief advantages to your golden kernels. This league of garden maestros is a living barricade against any pest’s potential invasion and, at the same time, attracts natural enemies that feed on them and provide essential nutrients to the main crop. With this line of indirect and direct strategies, expect more chunky and juicier corn knobs! So, without further fuss, join us in the showroom of these companion plants!
Is Corn a Great Companion Plant?
Before answering the question "What grows well with corn?", is it even an excellent companion when paired with others? Depending on the gardener you ask, it varies a lot, especially if you have contrasting goals and opinions. To objectively respond to the question, they are proven to perform synchronously with a substantial number of plants, according to years of rigorous scientific research.
Benefits of Companion Planting for Corn
There are many benefits to companion planting with corn:
- Boost harvest potential;
- Increase pest and disease resistance;
- Create a safe haven for crop-friendly insects and local fauna;
- Smart utilization of space;
- Efficient water usage;
- Reduce the use of fertilizers.
List of Popular Corn Companion Plants
Corn companion plants include an endless list of crops, and it is really a challenge to settle on one! To help you answer this gardening conundrum, we encourage you to refer to the list below:
Vegetables
Are you in the mood for vegetables? If so, we have selected the best of the best in the following:
Squash
Squash is a creeping plant compatible with corn. Planted in early summer, this cucurbit matures around the late summer to fall-maturing crop and helps corn regulate soil moisture and weeds during the summer. Also, this is nothing new in the world of companion planting. Native Americans have been practicing this planting system for ages!
USDA Zone: 3-10
Benefits: Extends cropping season, prevents weed growth and water loss
Beans
Whether you opt for pole or bush bean variety, it’s a match! Corns welcome any cultivar with its leaves wide open as beans have the ability to deliver extra nitrogen–thanks to its symbiotic partner, a soil bacteria that lives rent-free within the bean’s root nodules.
USDA Zone: 9-10
Benefits: Free nitrogen fertilizer, conserves water
Herbs
Nothing beats the smell of fragrant herbs not only in your dish but also in your garden with maize! Our best picks are as follows:
Dill
Dills belong to the carrot family and have a social ability in your garden, growing harmoniously with corn! Its leggy, branched flowers are a favorite resting spot for pollinators like swallow-tail butterflies.
USDA Zone: 2-11
Benefits: Prevents pest infestation, good soil conditioner
Onion
Onions would make a good union with your corn. Almost no other crop would say no to being with this kitchen staple! Moreover, this versatile bulbous herb is great for gardens where space is a concern, as it can thrive in a plant distance of just about 2-5 inches (5-13 cm)!
USDA Zone: 3-9
Benefits: Non-aggressive, thrives in tight spaces, repels insects
Other Plants
Companion planting for corn also does not exclude non-conventional species or non-food crops, such as the following:
Perennial Grasses
Perennial or everlasting grasses like Guinea and palisade grass can be incorporated if you practice no-till systems, which is one of the practices in tropical agriculture. According to a study, the scheme presents no significant effect on corn growth. The herbage can be used as feed for animals.
USDA Zone: 6-11
Benefits: Preserved soil structure, increased yield, better use of nutrients
Alfalfa is another crop belonging to the grass family, Poaceae that has a neutral coexistence with corn. This plant is usually grown as animal feed although some nutritionists recommend its human consumption as it can lower cholesterol counts. Moreover, alfalfa sprouts are great from garnishing meat dishes.
USDA Zone: 2-9
Benefits: Best for regions with less rain, environment-friendly system
Best Sweet Corn Companion Plants
Whether you are sifting through some information about companion plants for corn or sweet corn, everything will go off without a hitch given the following excellent crops:
Sweet pea
Being a natural symbiont of nitrogen-fixing bacteria, sweet peas can aid corn’s vegetative development. Strips with sweet peas in between corn rows can provide a promising growth rate of about twice that of monocropped ones. In China, farmers have already implemented this planting system to create a more profitable corn field.
Sweet potato
Sweet potato and corn tandem have been an economically advantageous cropping system, proven in different trials held around the world. As sweet potatoes have a trailing habit, they stay glued to the soil as they grow, preventing weed growth, moisture loss, and nutrient leaching compared to exposed soil. Enjoy bigger cobs and sweet potato tubers at the end of the season!
Melons
If you fancy switching one of the three sisters, melon can be planted in lieu of squash. Because it is a cucurbit, it has almost the exact requirements as squash! It is also known to improve the soil microorganism’s activity. When they are happy, so are your plant’s roots, benefiting resistance against the bad root rot pathogens.
Cucumber
Another cucurbit member that seamlessly matches your corn patch is cucumber. This refreshing summer vegetable helps the main crop defend itself from a variety of pests, like fruit borers, and simultaneously the yield potential. In return, it also acquires a living stake to climb on and a free pest-repulsing effect with the corn’s presence.
Best Green Corn Companion Plants
Selecting the best companion plant for corn, particularly green corn, is a struggle to come to a decision, given the limited studies on it. To help you smooth out the process, here’s our suggestion:
Zucchini
The Zucchini and corn cropping system is actually patented by the Chinese. However, anyone can use this for small-scale, non-commercial farming, which helps save water and fertilizer application! This planting system employs 50 cm-distance (20 in) of zucchini and corn strips, whereas each plant is spaced about 25 cm/ 10 cm (corn) and 100 cm / 40 in (Zucchini).
Basil
Basil is a garden basic! And you don’t want to leave it behind unpaired to harness its full potential! It is compatible with gardens with tight spaces. Moreover, this method helps improve the quality and quantity of the essential oils found in its cells, consequently increasing its ability to defend your vegetable part from nuisance creatures.
Lettuce
Let us, or let-tuce open or green corn patch for lettuce! These fast growing salad veggies will thrive with no problem when cultivated next to corn. Fresh and abundant lettuce heads can be harvested after 42 days without affecting the maize’s agronomic characteristics like leaf number, size, and ear density.
With the help of a beneficial microbe – arbuscular mycorrhiza – phosphorus availability is not a thing to be worried about when chili pepper is planted next to corn! Peppers can grow bigger fruits while the sweet corn biomass remains unaffected. This system also helps pepper plants to avoid becoming victims of Phytophthora rot.
The Three Sisters Planting Method
What to plant next to corn is not only limited to one species! The three sisters method is an indigenous American practice where corn, squash, and beans are cropped simultaneously. Competition is not a thing to this trio, rather they maintain a mutualistic benefit. Corn and squash indulge with the extra nitrogen fixed by the bean's partner bacteria. In return, corn provides structural support for beans, while squash helps prevent weed growth and water loss.
What Corn Is Best for Three Sisters?
There are a myriad of varieties you can choose from. For example, sweet or green corn are your best picks if you are longing for a ready-to-eat cob with just one boil! According to Cornell University, dent, flint, or flour cultivars, which are often industrial or feed varieties, are also suited to this planting scheme.
Other Companion Planting Ideas
The three sisters' idea may only be adaptable to certain conditions. However, you can still follow the scheme with some modifications and tips below:
- Variety to cultivate – Whether you choose a sweet or green corn companion plant, consider what fits your climate and a non-rival one. Locally bought varieties of corn or heirloom cultivars are ideal. To complete the three sisters, avoid using the bushy kind; pick one with ground-carpeting habits like Spaghetti squash, Crown Prince, or Futsu Black. As for beans, select the trailing kind with one-time harvesting like Borlotto Lamon, although you can choose French beans if you prefer a continuous harvest.
- Planting rules – Usually, various circular soil mounds–previously mixed with decomposed chicken or cow manure–are built, measuring 45 cm (18 in) across and 10 cm (4 in) high. Depending on the garden size, you can heap up as many as you want, provided that some alleyways are allotted in between for easy access. In drier areas, depressions are made. Next is to plant the trio simultaneously, ensuring that no plant is adjacent to its kind.
- Garden maintenance – As the beans grow, let them cling on to the supposedly 30-cm-long (12 in) corn after 2-3 weeks to assist in their growth. When squash fruits begin to form, have them sit over a tile or a pile of grass straw, preventing ground animals and soil-borne pathogens from taking advantage of their susceptibility. You also want to cut the tips when 3 fruits are already taking shape simultaneously.
- Harvesting and storage – From the sowing date, sweet corn is ready to be picked for around 60-100 days. Have your pot ready as the sweetness may not last if cooked a few days later! Meanwhile squash can last even until the next season, stored in a room condition. Beans can be picked when they're young if you want to eat the pods or let them dry for seed harvesting, which can later be stored and frozen until ready to be consumed as soup or stir-fries!
What Companions to Plant for the Nutritional Needs of Corn?
Certain companion crops tend to support the main crops, which disqualifies them from being on the list of what not to plant with corn due to their unconditional benefits! To learn some of them, here’s a guide to start with:
Peanut
Peanuts host countless Azospirillum bacteria within their root nodules to gain extra nitrogen to boost their protein content. However, scientists found that growing peanuts with corn can also be beneficial for both crops – corn also has some spare nitrogen, which can be assimilated for its growth.
With its 3-in-1 package, your garlic is ready to play in the garden arena! Not only does it help make nitrogen available to corn’s roots, but it also helps potassium and phosphorus. In return, garlic roots are free to get calcium and magnesium needed for the development of bulbs. If the deal is not good enough, garlic sprouts suppress weed growth.
Soybean can alter not only the chemical characteristics but also the soil microbial community. If you consider planting this with corn, go ahead! Soybean strips intercalated with corn can increase the beneficial soil microbiota and the available phosphorus and potassium, essential nutrients for cob development.
Never close your gardens to unfamiliar plants. Instead, open sesame! This herbaceous, seed and oil crop provides unmatched benefits in terms of delivering free nutrients–it facilitates uptake of phosphorus in maize, which is necessary in root and shoot growth. Research also indicates that it can make the soil more conducive for beneficial microbes to thrive, putting pressure to the bad ones like nematodes. Dealing with deer problems? They, too, are resistant!
Corn Companion Planting for Repelling
While sweet corn companion plants are good enough to discourage pests from roosting, they are not exempted from the crawlies’ intrusion! For this reason, knowing thy enemy will give you an edge:
Pests
- Nasturtium
- Onion chives
- Leeks
- Rosemary
- Parsely
Raccoons
- Cucumbers
- Rosebush
- Pumpkin
- Habanero chilies
- Globe thistles
Deers
- Lavender
- Sage
- Marigold
- Daffodil
- Bee balm
- Verbena
Bad Companion Plants for Corn
What to plant with corn includes some of your favorite garden vegetables. However, they should be planted with precaution and close pest monitoring due to some compromises:
Tomatoes
The contrasting information about tomato compatibility is debatable, but it depends on the soil characteristics and cultivation method. Some scientists argue about their ability to stay neutral or produce yield, but this is only true when other plants are present, specifically legumes. An extensive study revealed that nitrogen competition can occur 41 days after sowing and is directly related to the density and corn-tomato ratio. Tomatoes also share the same pest, such as tomato fruitworm, which can wreak havoc on your corn ears.
Brassicas
Members of the Brassicaceae family like cabbage, cauliflower, and broccoli may significantly be affected by the corn's presence. Cabbage heads can reduce in size if planted too close due to competition. For this reason, scientists recommend planting cabbage and maize in 7 and 4 rows, respectively, to optimize the land use compatible with machinery maneuvering.
While sunflowers are recommended flowering plants to lure beneficial insects, including vertebrate pollinators like birds, they can outgrow corn’s space by stealing some resources. When the density is over 70%, there is a great chance that they can aggressively grow and compete with the plant’s nutrients and space. In fact, supplemental nitrogen is advised in parts where rain occurs frequently.
FAQ
What’s the Closest You Can Plant Corns Together?
The distance between rows highly varies between plants. However, we would not plant a crop that is not closer than a meter (approx 3 feet). Observing proper spacing will guarantee efficient utilization of space without the risk of light, water, and nutrient competition.
Is Corn a Good Companion Plant for Tomatoes?
Not really, although according to studies, it promotes better use of water and land resources, it may compete with the available potassium. Both plants have a humongous appetite for potassium which is needed in fruit development.
What Vegetables Should Not Be Planted Next to Corn?
Corn plants are versatile plants to pair with other crops! The most classic corn companions, proven by rigorous agronomic studies, are beans and squash. Called the “three sisters” planting system, this triad promotes pest resilience, efficient water use, and sustainable gardening.
What Do Corn Plants Eat?
Corn plants are autotrophs–capable of producing their own carbohydrates through photosynthesis–unlike autotrophic animals that assimilate food by consuming something. Besides solar energy as a “food” source, they also need other major elements supplied through fertilizers and are “eaten” by the roots.
