Plant Lots of Herbs & Root Crops with Your Spinach

Spinach is one of my favorite leafy greens to grow in the garden. It's super productive, versatile, and packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.

Like pretty much any other leafy green, it's also prone to pest issues. And that's where companion planting comes into play. Growing the right plants nearby your spinach can actually create a healthy little ecosystem that functions to protect your spinach plants from pests, without you having to resort to pesticides.

With that in mind, let's look at the best plants to grow in your garden alongside your spinach plants.

What Is Companion Planting?

Companion planting is a time-tested gardening technique that harnesses the power of beneficial relationships between plants. These relationships can offer several advantages, including organic pest control, improved pollination, and enhanced soil fertility, not to mention maximizing your growing space.

When growing leafy greens like spinach, we're specifically looking for companions that will either repel pests or bring in beneficial insects that will take care of pests for us. Plants that provide some much-needed shade in warmer weather are also great.

How Spinach Grows Best

Part of companion planting is choosing plants that have similar or complementary characteristics. Let's learn a bit more about spinach before we match it up with companions that have all the right growing preferences.

SPINACH TEMPERATURE PREFERENCE

The ideal temperature range for spinach is 45°F to 75°F. Spinach can handle some frost, and that's why you'll often see it growing in cold frames or out alongside other frost-hardy plants well before the last frost date in the spring. You can also continue to grow spinach well after your first frost in the fall.

If you try to grow spinach when it's too warm outside, your plants will bolt, or go to seed. They'll start getting really tall, and the leaves will lose their nice flavor.

SPINACH SUNLIGHT NEEDS

Spinach grows in full sun or part shade. It really only needs about 4 to 6 hours of sunlight a day to produce leaves. When you're planning out your garden beds, you don't need to stress about putting spinach plants somewhere they might be shaded by taller plants. The spinach may actually prefer it, especially if it's still a little warm out.

SPINACH WATERING PREFERENCES

Spinach seeds need a lot of water to sprout and grow. After that, spinach plants like to be watered consistently. The soil should stay moist and never dry out completely.

SPINACH NUTRIENT NEEDS

I've found that good soil covered in a fresh layer of compost is enough to provide spinach all the nutrients it needs to produce tons of healthy green leaves. If you'd like to apply a fertilizer, look for something high in nitrogen to promote leaf growth.

SPINACH SPACE REQUIREMENTS

Spinach is a small plant. It really just needs a couple inches of space, especially if you commit to harvesting frequently. I like to tuck spinach plants anywhere there's an empty spot in my raised beds.

The 20 Best Spinach Companion Plants

Here's a list of the 20 best plants to grow with your spinach this cool season.

• Arugula
• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Calendula
• Carrots
• Chives
• Cilantro
• Dill
• Garlic
• Lettuce
• Marigolds
• Nasturtiums
• Onions
• Oregano
• Peas
• Radishes
• Rosemary
• Sage
• Swiss chard
• Thyme

Now, let's look at how these plants make great companions.

The Best Herbs to Grow with Spinach Plants

I recommend planting lots of aromatic herbs in each and every raised bed where you plan to grow leafy greens like spinach. Not only will you be able to harvest from these herbs weekly, they'll also help you control pests that want to munch on your spinach leaves. Some herbs outright repel pests with their strong scents. Others simply mask the smell of spinach so pests have trouble locating their next meal.

Oregano, Rosemary, Sage, & Thyme

These are perennial herbs in the Lamiaceae family. I like to plant oregano, rosemary, sage, and thyme around the border of my raised beds, where they act like little bouncers to keep pests from entering my salad club. These herbs can handle some frost and will repel everything from aphids to flea beetles to slugs.

Cilantro & Dill

Cilantro and dill are annual herbs in the Apiaceae family. These herbs also have strong scents that either repel pests or help to camouflage your spinach from pests. Some gardeners swear that growing dill near spinach plants makes their leafy greens more robust.

As you come to the end of your cool season, cilantro and dill will bolt, or start flowering in preparation for seed production, in the warming weather. Beneficial insects love these umbel-shaped flowers and will swarm to your garden to help you take care of pests that are drawn to your now stressed-out spinach plants.

The Best Leafy Greens to Grow with Spinach

Even though other leafy greens might not help you reduce pest pressure on your spinach plants, they have similar growing preferences. The cool season is really your prime time to grow as many delicious greens for your salad bowl as possible.

Lettuce

I love interplanting all different types of lettuce with spinach because you can treat them exactly the same in the garden. Lettuce isn't quite as frost hardy as spinach, so you'll wait a little bit to sow your lettuce seeds in the spring, but you can really pack these plants in together and take so many leaf harvests. Your lettuce plants will grow about as big as your spinach, and they'll be perfectly happy to share the same space.

Kale

I love growing spinach and kale together in the cool season. They're both super cold-tolerant greens, perfect for early spring or late fall.

Each kale plant will grow up like a little tree, so you can tuck lots of spinach around its base. The spinach will provide ground cover to keep the soil nice and cool, help retain moisture, and prevent weeds. In turn, the kale will give the spinach some shade to prevent bolting in warmer weather. (And just think of all the delicious leaf harvests!)

In addition to kale, you can also grow cabbage, arugula, and broccoli by your spinach. These plants are all brassicas, and because they're not in the same family as spinach, they typically won't attract the same pests. Arugula can be direct sown with your spinach, but kale, cabbage, and broccoli are best transplanted into your space.

Swiss chard

Even though spinach and Swiss chard are in the same plant family (Amaranthaceae), they make really good garden companions. These plants don't really seem to compete with each other for nutrients, and Swiss chard isn't prone to pest issues. Like kale, Swiss chard is a biennial plant that'll grow much taller than your spinach, so you can pack smaller leafy greens around the base. The Swiss chard will provide lots of shade as the weather warms. Even though you'll direct sow spinach seeds, it's best to bring chard in as a transplant.

The Best Alliums to Grow with Spinach

So far we've got lots of leaves to grow with our spinach. Now let's add in some bulbs. Alliums like chives, garlic, onions, leeks, and shallots all have a super strong odor that repels pests like aphids. That's why they're my go-to companion plants for, well, pretty much anything I grow in my vegetable garden but especially for leafy greens.

Garlic

Garlic deters common spinach pests like aphids, beetles, and slugs with its strong scent. It grows so well alongside spinach and provides a natural defense without competing for resources. When I plant rounds of spinach in the late fall, I usually tuck a couple garlic cloves in every row. Garlic is so effective that you can spray garlic extract on the leaves of your plants to get rid of pests.

Onions

One whiff of onions growing is enough to repel pests from aphids to cabbage worms. Other pests will have a harder time locating your precious greens. Since onions grow mostly underground, you can plant them right up next to your shallow-rooted spinach plants.

If you don't care about growing a full onion bulb, try planting green onions (scallions).

Chives

Chives are a super hardy perennial herb with all the same benefits as garlic and onion, just minus the large bulb. I love to add chives all down the border of my raised beds for pest control. You'll be able to harvest a ton of leaves to use in your kitchen. Bonus: chives blossoms are edible and attract tons of beneficial insects in the spring.

The Best Root Crops to Grow with Spinach Plants

Root crops and small leafy greens are the perfect pair in the garden. That's because they have completely opposite growing habits. Roots swell underground and send up small leafy tops, while spinach focuses most of its growth aboveground. Interplanting means you can use every square inch of garden space.

Other than their growing habits, they're very similar in preferences. Root crops like nice, cool weather and moist soil.

Carrots

Carrots and spinach make a beneficial duo in your garden. Again, they have complementary growing habits and minimal competition for resources like water and nutrients. Like spinach, carrots are frost-tolerant and are best direct sown in the garden as soon as your soil can be worked and then again once your temps dip in the fall. Since carrots are so slow to germinate, you can even use spinach to mark your planting rows.

Radishes

Radishes are excellent companions for spinach because they deter common spinach pests like aphids and flea beetles. The quick growth of radishes also helps break up compacted soil, making it easier for spinach roots to penetrate and access nutrients.

The Best Fruiting Plant to Grow with Spinach

Most annual fruiting plants grow well with spinach, though they'll only share your garden space during the transition from the cool season to the warm or vice versa. If you're sowing spinach seeds in the fall, it's a great idea to use the leaves of large fruiting plants like cucumbers to cast some shade on your spinach until the weather cools down a bit.

Peas

Legumes like snow peas or sugar snap peas are excellent companions for spinach. They have similar temperature preferences, so you can plant your peas early in the spring. Here's the great thing: Peas enrich the soil by converting atmospheric nitrogen into a form that's readily available for other plants, spinach included. You won't even need to fertilize spinach plants growing near peas at all.

The Best Flowers to Grow with Spinach

Along with herbs and alliums, flowers are the star of any companion planting chart. Flowers attract beneficial insects and cover bare soil. I love to tuck a flower in between each perennial herb around the border of my garden beds.

Frost-tolerant flowers to plant with spinach include calendula, dianthus, chamomile, snapdragons, pansies, and violas. Once you've passed your last frost in the spring, you can add nasturtiums and marigolds.

Calendula

Calendula, aka pot marigold, is a flowering herb, and its scent repels pests like flea beetles and even rabbits. It grows best in cool weather, and its colorful blooms look so cheerful contrasted with all your leafy greens.

Marigolds

Marigolds are popular companion plants for both leafy greens and fruiting plants. Their scent repels aphids, nematodes, and whiteflies, all while attracting tons of beneficial insects. Planting marigolds near your spinach can create a protective barrier, reducing the risk of infestations and disease transmission. I recommend sticking with a smaller variety, like French marigolds, for your raised beds.

Nasturtiums

Nasturtiums are so much more than just a colorful addition to the garden. Like marigolds, they serve as a natural pest repellent, deterring aphids, whiteflies, and squash bugs while attracting beneficial insects like ladybugs and hoverflies, which can help control spinach's pests. I love to grow trailing nasturtium plants over the edge of a raised bed.

Tips for Successful Companion Planting with Spinach

#1: Plan Your Garden Layout

Before planting, create a plan that takes into account the size of the various leaves, roots, and fruit you want to grow with your spinach plants. Start by mapping out your perennial herb and flower border, and then place your largest plants. Fill in around them with medium-size plants. Lastly, place small plants like spinach in all the empty spaces.

#2: Prune Frequently

Make sure you're pruning/harvesting those older, outer spinach leaves frequently so that your plants aren't overcrowded. This goes a long way to maintain proper airflow around your plants, which prevents mold and fungal disease. Remove any diseased or pest-infested plants promptly to prevent the spread of problems to your spinach and its companions.

#3: Add Compost

Add some fresh compost to the top of your soil surface whenever you suspect your plants need a little nutrient boost throughout the growing season.

Fill Your Garden with Leaves, Roots, & Fruit!

I hope this helps you companion plant with spinach in a way that boosts your garden health, deters pests, and maximizes your leaf harvests. Companion planting is so simple yet effective, and it keeps your garden interesting because you can harvest spinach leaves and some herbs while you're waiting on larger plants to produce.

Thanks for being here and helping to make gardening ordinary!