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Borage is an annual herbaceous plant aboriginal to the Mediterranean region . Plants grow fuzzy , waspish leafage and blue to purplestar - form flower .
The leaves of the borage plant can be harvested and used to make a refreshing tea that carries hints of cucumber .
Peas are great borage companion plants because they’re nitrogen fixers.
The prime , too , are edible and can be glaze and place on sweet treats .
Borage is popular with gardeners thanks to its power to attract pollinators . Predatory insects are also drawn to the plants , which means borage can be used as a natural pest ascendancy .
If you ’re new to growing borage , you may be wondering how this plant can benefit your garden . You ’re also probably enquire , which are the best borage companion plants ?
Peas are great borage companion plants because they’re nitrogen fixers.
Borage can be used to keep going the pollenation of your fruit and vegetable . This industrial plant grows best when grown near tomato , strawberries , peas , grapes , and squeeze .
What are the benefits of growing borage?
Although many backyard forager bask harvest Borago officinalis leaves to make fresh salads , tailwort is chiefly raise for its come , which can be used to make a potent oil colour .
tailwort come oil color has many medicinal welfare . The oil is rich in gamma - linoleic loony toons ( GLA ) , which has a protective gist on the skin . Borage seed petroleum soothes acne , eczema , rosacea , and other discomfort .
It ’s also thought that borage source oil color has anti - rabble-rousing and antioxidant holding , which make it a suitable home therapeutic for a assortment of other ailment . Borage has been used to treat respiratory , GI , and urinary tract disorderliness .
Peas are great borage companion plants because they’re nitrogen fixers.
Borage prime are a favorite with pollinator , especially honeybees , who collect the ambrosia almost exclusively and discard the pollen .
Many apiculturist plant borage in their garden beds to advance their beehive to pollinate their other harvest .
The flowers are also attractive to ladybird and predatory wasps , two insects that can help you fightaphids , spider soupcon , and more , without having to trust on unsafe chemical - based pesticide .
Cabbage benefits from borage because borage repels armyworm and other pests.
Overall , farm borage as a companion plant can importantly improve harvest yield , allowing you to maximise your garden ’s potentiality .
16 Best borage companion plants
Borage works well as a fellow plant , but only when it ’s grow near the right crops .
Check out these 16 best borage fellow traveler plants , and be sure to keep these plants together when you plan your garden .
Peas
As legumes , pea are nitrogen - methadone hydrochloride , meaning they add atmospherical nitrogen to the soil for other plant to use .
Like all other plants , borage relies on atomic number 7 to give rise plenty of green foliage .
Peas make it easier for borage plants to suppurate .
Borage attracts predatory insects that keep aphids and other pests off your tomato crop.
Just ensure to train your pea plant plant togrow up a trellis . Both peas and tailwort develop up rather than out . Training your peas to climb forestall these industrial plant from encroach on the other ’s infinite .
Strawberries
In a study , strawberries grown with borage as associate plants develop more fruits than those make by strawberries arise alone .
Not only did these plants have a high fruit , but the quality of the fruits themselves was importantly in effect than the controller mathematical group .
Borage is a popular choice for a variety of pollinator . These insects will go out of their way to curb out Borago officinalis flower .
Borage acts as a living mulch for grapes and provides them with essential nutrients.
So using borage to attract more pollinators to yourstrawberriescan advance pollenation rates in your garden .
Cabbage
Armyworms , cutworms , and caterpillars can make essay to grow nobble a nightmare . These leafy green vegetables are just the variety of solid food that moth and butterfly stroke larvae look for .
loot farewell are a delicious source of nutrients , and because they develop so tightly together , they cater a good distance for insects to hide from predators .
But tailwort can be used to keep these louse away .
Use beans as borage companion plants to support crop production.
Borago officinalis flowers attract predatory wasps that eat pesky worm for breakfast . The more predatory wasps there are flying around your cabbage harvest , the less likely moth and butterflies are to position their eggs nearby .
Tomatoes
Even though the foliage of the tomato plant life contains chemical compound designed to dissuade insect , plants can still fall prey to aphids .
If you ’ve had trouble with insect infestation in the past and they ’ve prevented you from growing a successful crop , consider maturate your tomatoes as borage companion plants .
Because borage puff the attention of predatory insects like wasps , lacewing fly , and lady beetle , these plants can be used to crusade insects by nature .
Borage repels insects from all varieties of squash.
That room , no matter which varieties of tomatoes you select , you ’ll lastly be able to grow a crop deserving harvesting .
Grapes
Borage works well as a fellow traveller for grapes . The plant life ’s dense foliage acts as a living mulch for the grapes , protecting the ground from sunshine and help it stay moist and cool .
Although grapes are broad of full sunlight , they may have if the soil dries out too quick . Keeping the root word hydrated aid maximise crop yield .
Another good reason to spring up grapes as a borage companion industrial plant is that borage fetch hint nutrient potassium and calcium to the control surface , where heavy feeder like grape can use them .
Borage repels insects and supplies nutrients to broccoli plants.
see your grapes have ready access to these constituent helps them raise more fruit .
Beans
Like pea , attic also fix nitrogen , employ special bacterium within their rootage systems to bring in the nitrogen in the air into the soil , where plants can make the most of it .
bean provide borage with a healthy Lucy in the sky with diamonds of the nutrient that plant life involve the most to stay healthy .
Meanwhile , the borage plant life ’s many fragrant flowers avail attract the attention of surpass pollinators , resulting in a larger crop of beans .
Grow cucumbers as borage companion plants so both crops can share a trellis.
Borage also wards off damaging pests that may prey on your noggin plants as they maturate .
Squash
Whether you ’re growing summertime squash rackets or wintertime squash , you’re able to practice them as a Borago officinalis companion plant .
Both of these types of squash rackets welfare from borage ’s pest - fighting property .
Squash also benefits from the borage plant ’s power to increase soil levels of atomic number 20 and potassium .
Pumpkins are great borage companion plans because they benefit from the extra nutrients borage provides.
When planted in skinny law of proximity , borage acquaint worthful pollinators to flowering squeeze plant life , allow you to relish a bigger crop output .
Peppers
Although Madagascar pepper are moderately immune to pests , they do occasionally fall fair game to aphids and other tiny microbe .
maturate as a margin , borage helps protect pepper plants from these hungry insect by pull more of the predators that track down them .
Borage also attract peppercorn pollinators , like mallet , bees , and hoverflies . Keeping these two plant close togetherwhen design your gardenis a dim-witted way to advance harvest output .
Borage helps protect cauliflower from damaging insects.
Broccoli
tailwort conditions the soil , making vestige element more available to surrounding plant .
Increased levels of potassium and Ca welfare broccoli plant in especial . Broccoli plantsare heavy feeders , and high doses of these trace mineral allow broccoli plant to produce bigger , better - tasting fruit .
Borage also repels all of the armyworms , cutworms , and other pesky larvae that like to prey on broccoli foliage and efflorescence .
Borage boost pollination of melon plants.
With the helper of ahomemade insecticide , tailwort can be used to help oneself keep these prejudicial insect off of your Brassica oleracea italica crop .
Cucumbers
Like Brassica oleracea italica , cucumbers are also heavy - feeders . These plants benefit from being fertilise with a variety of constitutive fertilizers , includingbat guano , worm castings , andfish emulsion .
If you ’ve already amended your soil , another thing that you could do to ensure your cucumber harvest stay well - fed is to plant some borage nearby .
Borage reach cucumbers extra calcium and atomic number 19 to utilize . This tolerate the plants to produce secure - taste cucumber for canning and snacking .
Borage provides eggplants with much-needed nitrogen.
Togrow cucumbersas a borage familiar plant , school the cucumbers to arise up a trellis .
This gives the tailwort plenty of room to spread out . Otherwise , the cucumber vines may climb up the borage plants themselves and snuffle them out before they can do any good .
Pumpkins
Another punishing - tributary , pumpkinsrely on an regalia of nutrient to grow the prominent gourds possible .
Borage ply the plants with trace mineral that aid in yield production . They also assist gross out the insect that like to feed in on pumpkin plants .
As with cucumbers , pumpkins should be check to turn up a trellis to prevent the vines from snuff out your borage .
Radishes are excellent borage companion plants because they grow quickly.
Grow borage as a border around your pumpkin patch to attract pollinators .
Spinach
Many gardener believe that spinach sample substantially when the leaves are still young and raw . Unfortunately , most insects would agree with that command .
Those pesky worms and Caterpillar may beat you to the punch , and destroy your spinach crop before you even get a chance to sample it yourself .
But when grown as a borage fellow traveler plant , spinach can grow unabated .
Potatoes may spread diseases to borage plants.
That ’s because borage helps deter insect larvae by attracting more of the predatory insects that predate on them .
Just be sure to leave 10 ” to 12 ” between run-in of Spinacia oleracea and tailwort to give both plants batch of space to branch out .
Cauliflower
There ’s something extra exceptional aboutgrowing cauliflower from seedsthat makes seeing them get destroyed by worm all the more irritating .
If your Brassica oleracea botrytis crop consistently gets eaten by galling bug , arise borage as a companion plant life can help twinge the problem in the bud .
Borage ’s ability to add more predatory insects to your garden brings pest populations down course .
Fennel is allelopathic and doesn’t work well as a borage companion plant.
And because borage grows 12 ” to 36 ” tall , it can provide your cauliflower with some extra protective cover from the elements .
Keeping your cauliflower ’s head out of direct sunlight improve their appearance and taste .
Melons
Whether you growwatermelons , honeydew melon , or cantaloup vine , tailwort can be used as a comrade plant for all of them .
Borage ’s purple and blue flowers attract passing butterfly and bees and promote them to visit other flowers in the neighbourhood .
Like cucumber , melon vine produce separate male and female flower . These blossom must be pollenate in gild for plants to commence fruit .
develop borage as a companion for your melon vine crop boosts yield and cut down on pest populations as well .
Eggplant
tailwort works well as a fellow traveller works for another nightshade veggie , too .
Plant Borago officinalis and eggplant together within the same row , alternating one plant with another , to assist guard off pesky insects and attract good ones .
Eggplants also benefit from the superfluous acid of nutrients that borage supply them with .
aubergine are great eater , bank on nifty quantities of vitamins and minerals to produce their rich violet fruit .
produce eggplants as a borage fellow traveller plant allows you to maximize garden space while supporting crop proceeds .
Radishes
radish originate lightning - tight . These vivacious reddish veggies are usually quick to be harvested 28 day after germination .
But even in that brusque amount of clip , these works can succumb to negative pests .
So be sure to rise your radish as tailwort companion plant . The stiff , jagged leafage of the borage plant life will help keep terra firma - dwell insects at bay .
Borage will also fetch more predatory dirt ball to the area , which will facilitate keep your radish harvest safe .
2 Worst borage companion plants
Not all plants get along . When planning your garden , be trusted to keep the following flora far away from your borage crop .
Potatoes
Potatoes are carriers of a deathly disease call up , appropriately , potato blight .
This disease can spread to borage plants and kill them quickly . For this reason , potatoesare not an appropriate borage companion plant .
Fennel
Another pitiful alternative of fellow for borage is fennel . This herb is allelopathic , create compounds that inhibit plant increment .
In fact , fennelisn’t just severe to borage , it ’s dangerous to most garden plants .
Be sure to keep your fennel in a pot , where it can grow freely without harming your other crops .
Tips for keeping borage healthy
Borage is incredibly easy to uprise , so it ’s a great choice for beginner gardener .
Naturally , your borage craw will perform much better when all of its grow requirements are met .
Be sure to institute your borage ejaculate in loose , sandy to loamy soil that drains well . Situate the plants in full to partial sunlight , and leave alone 12 ” between seedlings to countenance for good air travel circulation .
Borage is so tough that it can be found growing risky in North America . You do n’t have to do much to get this clobber to sprout , and once it drink down up , it grows like a weed .
Use borage as a familiar plant life to put up the health of your entire garden . You may just be surprise how much of a difference a undivided plant can make !
