So we all want to grow as many plants, fruits, and vegetables as possible right? Me too, but as I am learning and doing my research, I am understanding more and more about planting according to your zone, planting for your space, and what we are talking about today, planting produce with other plants that will yield the best results for everything that you plant.
So just like most of the things that I blog about, this will be my very first time trying companion planting, and I will be sharing what I am doing/not doing so that you can learn along with me. In all of the research that I’ve done, I’ve come across so many different materials saying that tomatoes and basil are great plants to try companion planting with. Over the last couple of years, I have made it my goal to collect as many seed that I can find in the store. As I get new seeds they go into a container that is being stored underneath my desk. Now whether or not this correct…I guess we will find out together in due time. Because of my long time collection I had some heirloom tomatoes and sweet basil that I want to try out companion planting with.
With some pots that I had lying around the house I made some potting mix and added perlite for drainage. Starting with the tomatoes I used the back of a chopstick I made three holes about 1/4 inch deep in the soil mixture and dropped two seeds in each of the hole. I repeated this with all three holes. My thought process with this is that with 6 seeds in total in the pot, I have a higher chance of germination. If I see that all of the seeds germinate in the pot, I can eventually thin them out and put them in other pots. Next I took two more pots and did the same thing with the basil seeds. I then put some plastic wrap on top of the pots to simulate the greenhouse effect since my apartment stays at around 70 degrees and I want to make sure that moisture can stay present around the seeds in between watering.
Now you might be asking yourself, where does the companion planting come in? And why don’t I just plant them together from the start. My honest answer? Spacing. From the research that I did, I lot of resources recommended that if you are starting these plants form seed that it is best to start them indoors. I have some 5 gallon grow bags that I will eventually be transplanting them into, but in my apartment, I simply don’t have the space to plant them together in a spot where they will have 6+ hours of sunlight amongst all of the other plants that I have in my apartment. So eventually, once the plants grow and a hearty enough, I will transplant them into the grow bags and put them outside on my balcony to get the full exposure of the sun and not just the measly 5-6+ hours that they get behind my window.
For now though, thank you for tuning in to my first attempt at companion planting with tomatoes and basil. I’ll be sure to make an updated post when they begin growing and it is time for transplanting.
Until next time, as always, Plant with a Purpose! – BTR
