A successful mixed culture has many advantages. Find out what you need to know to plant the right plants in the bed here.
Mixed farming was invented on farms in the early 19th century. Unlike what the “cottage garden” conveys to us in many botanical gardens, before the 20th century cottage gardens were by no means neatly divided by boxwood hedges, sorted according to aesthetic aspects and properly maintained. Rather, it was about fields on which useful plants for humans and animals grew together without being separated and thus formed a diverse community. In this way, positive influences of the plants were used on each other and space, water and fertilizer were saved. Overall, the yield of the area was increased, while the expenses for the resulting food and fodder remained low. In return, such an area had to be looked after and cared for more intensively so that it did not become completely overgrown. Today, this type of cultivation is called "mixed culture" and can be found in ecological cultivation guidelines, e.g. in Demeter cultivation. We will introduce you to the mysterious world of mixed plants.
What are the advantages of intercropping?
No wonder that nature is also a mixed culture. Highly efficient ecosystems develop in nature through competition and selection. If you look around in untouched nature, you will not discover any pure or monocultures. In fact, mixed cultures abound, because the more diverse a system, the better use can be made of every available resource. Introducing mixed cultures into your own garden offers a lot of advantages:
- The total yield per area increases: With mixed crops, plants are planted next to each other that have different requirements. A tall, sun-loving tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) can be planted under a small, shade-tolerant lettuce (Lactuca sativa), making optimal use of the space and the shadowing of the higher species favors the other. Incidentally, this principle is also used inagroforestry systems used. For example, sun-loving banana trees are grown between more shade-loving coffee plants. However, one should not only consider the above-ground form, but also the root. While some species root deeply and thus obtain their nutrients from deeper layers of the soil, others tend to stay close to the surface. Planting them next to each other has the advantage that they don't compete with each other. The space can thus be optimally utilized in all directions.
- The susceptibility to pests is reduced: Mixed cultures are no longer limited to the space requirements and the demands of the plants, but also use the plants' defense strategies. Many plants smell particularly intense, for example cabbage (Brassica), rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) or sage (Salvia ). These smells come from ingredients in the plants that are supposed to ward off pests and pathogens. Essential oils from herbs are nothing more than plant defenses. If you now combine certain plants with each other, you can use this ingenious development of the plants. An effective combination here is, for example, tomato with basil (Ocimum basilicum) or strawberries (Fragaria) with garlic (Allium sativum). ) against powdery mildew or even rose (Rosa) with lavender (Lavandula) to reduce aphid infestation. In addition, pests are attracted less by mixed cultures and more beneficial insects are encouraged by more diverse habitats.
- The vegetables taste better: In fact, with the right combination, those additional ingredients that often serve to protect against plants can have an effect on the taste of fruit. There is no general explanation as to why this is the case. What is certain, however, is that, for example, savory (Satureja) has a positive effect on the taste of haricot beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) when it grows underneath.
- Less fertilizer is needed: Because there is less bare soil in a closely planted mixed culture and this is also interspersed with a dense network of plant roots at different depths, the fertilizer losses are significant much lower. Nutrients washed out downwards can be absorbed by deeper roots. There is hardly any "outgassing" of nutrients because those compounds that could volatilizebe included immediately. In addition, all plant species have different strategies of nutrient acquisition. This means that they have different tactics to extract nutrient s alts from the soil and make them available. If plants now grow together with different tactics, this also increases the use of fertilizer. This is because each individual plant has a much larger arsenal of ways to extract nutrients from the soil, so to speak.
- More diversity of species: A greater variety of crop plants and better mixing not only benefit the plants themselves. Numerous animals also benefit from this, because this way they have many more habitats and food sources.
- Improved soil activity: Due to the new variety of plants and the resulting increased diversity of plant remains, the soil is not supplied with organic material one-sidedly. What one-sided organic residues can have as a result in extreme cases becomes clear in pure coniferous forests, where the soil acidifies due to the countless needles. In a mixed forest, however, accumulating needles are not a problem. The multiple remnants balance each other out in their extremes. This not only has a positive effect from a chemical point of view, but also increases the biodiversity of soil organisms, since there are more food sources. Due to the increased three-dimensionality and density of the plants, the space directly on the ground is also better used and thus the ground cover is increased. As a result, erosion is reduced and the soil stays moist, which also promotes soil life, ultimately leading to higher soil fertility.
What do you have to consider with the mixed culture?
Because mixed cultures are an incredibly complex system, because plants influence each other in a variety of ways - positively as well as negatively - it seems difficult to see through the whole thing at first. Luckily, through centuries of experience, we humans have figured out which plants go best together. There are planting charts that show how well one plant goes with the other. Sticking to these is therefore a good way for you to orientate yourself. The following can be said for the basic structure:
- The three-dimensional structure of the space should be used optimally, so tall and sun-loving species should be mixed with smaller and shade-tolerant onesbe combined. The same applies to the combination of deep and shallow rooted species.
- Plants with an intense smell - such as various herbs, bulbous plants, but also, for example, marigolds (Tagetes) - usually have a deterrent effect on various pests and pathogens. These species can be combined with vulnerable species.
The selected combinations should be compared with the planting tables to rule out possible incompatibilities between the plants.
Which plants go together?
Plants can affect each other both positively and negatively. We'll tell you which plants benefit each other as neighbors and which ones you shouldn't plant next to each other.
Defensive Plants
Some plants can protect neighboring plants from pests and pathogens through intensively smelling ingredients. In the following table we have put together some favorable combinations for you.
| Effect against / protection against | Cultivation affected | Effective Art |
|---|---|---|
| Aphids | General | Marine, garden cress, parsley, mint |
| Salad and Cabbage | Chervil | |
| Roses | Lavender and Sage | |
| Beans | Savory | |
| Cabbage White | Cabbage | Celery, Sage, Rosemary, Thyme |
| Nematodes | Potatoes, Cabbage | marigold |
| Miscellaneous | Potatoes, Cabbage, Tomatoes, Strawberries | Tags |
| Snails | Border planting with hyssop, tansy, chervil | |
| Bacteria and fungi | Garlic and other leeks | Strawberries, Roses |
| Mildew | Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Cabbage | Basil |
| Column Grate | Currants and jostaberries | Vermouth |
| Monilia | Cherry and peach trees | Horseradish |
Good neighbors, bad neighbors
In the following overview you can find out which plants have positive effects on each other and which combinations have a negative effect.
Expert tip: As already explained, mixed cultures require less fertilizer, but you shouldn't do without fertilization entirely. The reason for this is that when growing vegetables,many nutrients are removed from the soil. A high-quality fertilizer such as the Plantura organic universal fertilizer is ideal for your bed.
A special kind of mixed culture is the Milpa bed, in which corn, beans and pumpkin are grown together. We will explain how to create and care for a Milpa bed.