Don’t Grow These 7 Plants With Your Berry Bushes

If you’re adding berry bushes to your garden’s lineup or noticing some adverse outcomes of plants near your existing patch, you may be growing “bad companions” with your berries.

When growing berry bushes in the ground rather than raised beds, you’ll likely encounter unruly raspberry and blackberry canes popping up nearby, obstructing the space of nearby plants and using up vital resources. If you’re considering growing plants nearby, it’s best to know if they’ll pair nicely with your berry bushes. 

Give berries plenty of space to spread out and avoid these seven plants as nearby companions. 

Fennel

Fennel often gets a bad rap as a poor companion. Well, the rumors are true. As much as I love fennel, it doesn’t play nice with many other crops, so your best bet is to plant them in their own raised bed or containers, away from others. 

This interesting vegetable is technically a perennial herb in the carrot family. Fennel contains allelopathic properties that research shows negatively affect plants nearby. Their roots send out a chemical that inhibits the germination and growth of others. I learned this the hard way when I planted fennel in a raised bed with my tomatoes years ago, and I didn’t realize my snafu until it was too late. 

It’s considered somewhat toxic to most nearby plants. If you’re unsure how certain crops will react, research the combination before planting them in the same plot. To be safe, don’t grow fennel with berry bushes.

Asparagus

Asparagus will not tolerate overly acidic soil, which is where berries thrive. Instead, asparagus should be grown in soil with pH levels around 6.5 to 7.0. As you can probably imagine, if you plant asparagus and berries together, one or both crops would suffer, so it’s best to keep them apart. Regarding fertilizing, asparagus requires lots of nitrogen, which would only cause berries to produce lots of foliage but not fruits. 

A caveat is that asparagus may grow well alongside strawberries. Strawberries and their runners suppress weeds as they creep across the soil surface, and weed inhibition is crucial to asparagus success. Strawberries also won’t compete for nutrients the way other berry bushes will, and the shade of low-growing strawberries helps to retain soil moisture.

Eggplant and Peppers  

These nightshades are both heavy feeders, so don’t grow them with your berry bushes. Properly feeding eggplants and peppers will result in overfeeding berries, negatively affecting their production and overall health. They’re also highly susceptible to the fungal diseases verticillium wilt and blight, which blackberries and raspberries can easily catch. These soil-borne diseases may remain in the soil for many years.

Planting eggplant and peppers nearby will leave the crops vulnerable to pests attracted to both, such as Japanese beetles, whiteflies, mites, and cutworms. Once again, the most critical factor is soil pH. Nightshades will perform poorly in acidic soil, which is necessary for successful berry growth. 

Brassicas 

Brassicas, including cabbage, kale, mustard, cauliflower, kohlrabi, Brussels sprouts, and broccoli, thrive in soil with a pH of 6.5 to 7.5, with lots of organic matter. In contrast, most berries prefer acidic conditions, so we recommend that you don’t grow brassicas with berry bushes.

Brassicas are heavy feeders and will compete with berry bushes for nutrients, water, and sunlight. Nutrients and consistent water are crucial to young berry transplants. They won’t thrive if they don’t get what they need, so welcoming competition is not advised. 

When planning companion plants, it’s best to stick with plants with similar soil needs and complementary nutrient needs so that all the plants aren’t taking the same from the soil. Something else to consider, especially in hot, sunny regions, is that some brassicas like kale and broccoli appreciate shade cloth in the summer heat, whereas berries thrive in full sun. Growers can use shade cloth to reduce the risk of premature bolting. 

As mentioned, soil nutrients, sunlight, and watering preferences are essential for successfully growing fruits. Brassicas do not share the same preferences, so it is best to plot them separately. 

Tomatoes 

Like eggplant and peppers, tomatoes are susceptible to blight and verticillium wilt, making berries like raspberries more likely to contract them when planted nearby. Tomatoes prefer a pH between 6.2 and 6.8, whereas berries like their soil much more acidic. 

Berries and tomatoes need different nutrients during various maturity stages that differ in type. Tomatoes will benefit from a boost in nitrogen soon after transplant to help them focus on root development and above-ground growth. The feed should switch to something more potassium-heavy when they begin to flower. Use a general feed or one lower in potassium as the fruit grows.

Berries also need specific fertilizer levels at various growing stages, but they don’t need as much. Placing them near tomatoes may result in over-fertilization, leading to dense foliage and reduced fruit production. 

Growers may consider using berry stalks as a support system for tomatoes, but they should also consider pruning, tying up, and harvesting both. This combo may look neat when plants are young but can quickly turn prickly and painful. To get the highest production and to keep your harvests abundant, it’s best to keep these summer favorites apart. 

Sunflowers 

Sunflowers are another allelopathic crop that can inhibit nearby plants’ healthy growth. It’s best to avoid growing them with your berry bushes. They are deep-rooters that compete with shallow-rooting berry bushes. Plus, large varieties like ‘Mammoth’ and ‘Mongolian Giant’ may shade young berry plants when they need all the sunshine they can get.  

Another thing to note is that sunflowers gone to seed will attract critters and birds to the area, putting your berries at risk. If the fruit is ripe, you might as well kiss it goodbye. 

Planting flowers near your fruit crops is a good idea, as they’ll draw in pollinators and look beautiful; just steer clear of sunflowers. Sow quick-maturing buckwheat to add biomass, make phosphorus available for the next round of crops, and mellow out the soil structure. The tiny white flowers will attract hoverflies, predatory wasps, and ladybugs, all the good guys and gals you want flying around your garden! 

Various Cover Crops

While certain cover crops can serve as a living pathway or green mulch, others will compete with fruiting shrubs, possibly choking them out and causing reduced yields. 

Here are a few you should avoid growing near berry bushes: 

Clover

While clover makes a lovely living pathway or lawn alternative, it may become mat-like growing alongside or underneath berry bushes, making them poor companions.

Fescues

Typically grow very tall and dense, and thousands of seeds fall, blocking native seeds from germinating. Some may become invasive.

Ryegrass

This spreads via rhizomes and forms clumps, making it hard to maintain and control around berry bushes.

Annual grasses

Avoid low-growing grass near berry bushes. Berries have shallow roots and won’t compete well. Grasses may attract berry-loving critters like mice and voles that you want to keep away from your berry patch.

To remove cover crops before adding berries, mow and tarp the area for up to a year to reduce annual weeds germinating. Note that some low-growing fescues, like sheep fescue, can be used successfully as a living pathway for its less aggressive growth habit.  

Try These Plants With Berry Bushes Instead

While a few crops don’t work well with these summer fruits, the good news is that many do! 

• Garlic, onions, and chives
• Marigolds
• Nasturtiums
• Chervil
• Yarrow
• Rhododendrons
• Azaleas
• Basil

These plants need similar soil, water, and sunlight to berry bushes or make good companions by taking the opposite nutrients from the soil. The aromatic scents of many will ward off pests and critters while drawing in pollinators and beneficial insects. Azaleas and rhododendrons have similar soil and pH needs, making them great neighbors.