Chamomile is known to many gardeners as a medicinal tea herb. You can harvest the blooms fresh or dried and use them to make a tea that is renowned for its mild sedative effects. It has benefits in the garden as well. Chamomile has in the past been referred to as the physician herb because of its ability to revive ailing garden plants. It is used as an all-purpose companion plant that is highly beneficial for most herbs and vegetables in a garden. It is a good border plant because of its attractive blooms and its ability to tolerate poor soil. Below, we look at some of the best plants to grow in the same container with chamomile or the same part of your garden.
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Fruit trees
Chamomile has long had a reputation for being a good companion for fruit trees because of its antifungal properties. Plant next to apple, pear, and peach trees to protect them from both fungi and pests. Chamomile flowers can also attract pollinators that may benefit fruit trees.
Basil
While chamomile is not a good companion for all plants in the Lamiaceae family, it can benefit basil. It helps basil by causing it to produce more of its essential oil, thus enhancing its flavor.
Brassicas
Chamomile is believed to help improve the flavor of certain brassicas like broccoli and cauliflower. It may also help them to grow more vigorously while also attracting predators of the pests that can threaten them.
Carrots
The carrot fly or carrot root fly can ruin your carrot crop. Its larvae can eat into the carrot root. Because carrot flies find carrot plants by scent, you can use a strong-smelling companion plant like chamomile to mask the scent and keep them from detection.
Celery
The flavor of celery is believed to be improved when it is grown near chamomile.
Alliums
Onion and garlic are two members of the Allium family that are believed to see improvements in their growth when planted near chamomile. Chamomile is also believed to make Allium plants less prone to disease, in addition to making them grow faster.
Cucumbers
Chamomile planted nearby may help improve the flavor of cucumbers and keep pests away.
Potatoes
Chamomile can keep Colorado beetles away from potato plants.
Tomatoes
Your tomato plants can get multiple benefits from being in the vicinity of chamomile. Not only does it provide pest control by attracting predators to feed on aphids and other pests, chamomile is believed to help tomato plants grow more quickly, and it may also boost their health. Chamomile will also attract pollinators that can improve your tomato plants’ yield.
What plants should not be planted with chamomile?
Mint should never be planted near chamomile for some of the same reasons that you should not plant it near most other garden plants. The main reason is that it grows rapidly and can take over a garden bed, smothering chamomile plants in the process. It also likes water, which means that to give it enough water, you might overwater your chamomile.
Another problem is the effect that chamomile has on the mint — it causes it to produce less of its scent oil. Less scent oil means less flavor, which makes the mint less useful both as a tea herb and for discouraging garden pests. Chamomile can have this effect on peppermint plants as well.