As a matcher for my human loved ones , I ’ll allow I do n’t do so well . But when it ’s meter to pair okra plant with beneficial companions in my home garden , I have an enviable achiever rate .
Part of the reason is that okra plant , unlike some of the family I ’ve tried to limit up over the years , is well-heeled to get along with .
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Known by the botanical nameAbelmoschus esculentus , okra grows quickly and produces mightily in warm weather .
But even with its slowly - belong nature , okra can profit when you take extra time to plan where it grows – the right way down to selecting the most helpful companion plant to maturate nearby .
If you ’re not familiar with fellow traveler planting , it ’s the practice of pairing certain types of works in the garden , landscape , or even in container in a way that benefits one or both .
Certain familiar pairing help gardener maturate vegetables or flower with less drive or resource , while others promote higher output or deter pests .
Other plants make a honest match just because they look good together , mature at the same sentence of twelvemonth , or have complementary sun or water needs .
We have an insightful guide on thescientific findings that guide on companion planting , and that ’s a practiced place to get the background on this helpful conception .
I ’m also the first to admit that some oft - ingeminate companion planting mind are merely wit and soundness or evenfolklore . The good way to handle this practice is with your own careful trial and mistake .
Okra is not nearly as grouchy about its companions as many luxuriously - producing vegetable crops ( I ’m looking at you , beans andgarlic ) .
Still , it will grow even well if it ’s nigh to sealed highly compatible plants , from native coneflower to aromatic herb like basil to many legume varieties , including peas and beans .
With this guide , I ca n’t guarantee perfection for each pairing , but I can steer you towards 11 veg and flower that are highly potential to gain gumbo , or vice versa .
11 of the Best Companion Plants for Okra
Before we leap into specific suggestions , permit ’s look at some of the factors that set which works are good match for okra and which I ordinarily are n’t .
Okra has a smattering of traits that inform all these familiar planting decisions .
For one affair , it ’s an one-year , so you do n’t necessarily want to develop it too close to perennial .
It develops a farseeing taproot and a couple of feet of sidelong roots , so it can easily take perennial with it when you endeavor to uproot it at the end of the season .
It grow beneficial in full Lord’s Day , which think of plant life that could vie for rays are n’t the best neighbors .
Of of course , its sun - make out nature and quick ontogeny rate also allowA. esculentusto shade smaller plants from abrasive summertime Sunday , which might manoeuver you to plantlettuce , Spinacia oleracea , or mesclun mix beneath its umbrella .
Okra relies on pollinator to fertilize its blooms , so aromatic , open - cross-pollinate flowers are worthy companions – or its own blush might help quarter pollinators to other garden veg embed likezucchini .
It also demands well - run out soil , so there ’s no period planting it with flower that prefer moist or wet soil , likecardinal flowersandswamp sunflowers .
In world-wide , this mallow family member will get by with modal moisture and soil .
If you have space in a veggie plot that ’s been amended with barrels of well - composted manure and has drip mold irrigation , well , okra would grow there .
But it ’s more labor- and price - conscious to save those areas for the plants that take substantial water and are heavy tributary – like acorn squeeze orcorn .
ripe plant can grow four to six foot tall and disperse two or more foot . When choosing their companions , you ’ll want to study space need for both the okra and the other salmagundi of flower or vegetables .
flora growing too close together can bear from circumscribed air circulation and extra humidness , which encourage certain pestilence and diseases .
Okra grows best from seed , but they ’ll fail to bourgeon unless soil temperatures are at least 60 ° atomic number 9 .
That characteristic limit some companion and piss others idealistic . You do n’t need to disturb early spring - bear veggies like , say , broccoliin order to sow gumbo in the same course or container in late bound .
But you could use that relatively previous startle to embed crops like radish near the web site where you intend to grow okra , and then reap them before the raw add-on get so enceinte they ’d be put shade .
While we vegetable gardeners tend to focus most on top yields for edible crop , it ’s authoritative to consider visuals when growing okra as an ornamental or alongside ornamental plants .
A member of the mallow family , which also includeshibiscusandhollyhocks , Hibiscus esculentus has beautiful blooms , but usually not until late in the summer .
The red stems or splotchy redness and green leaves of sure varieties like ‘ Red Burgundy ’ can also suck you to plant this tropical as an eatable landscape gardening works .
But that only works if it ’s produce and blooming at the same time as its companion , and if its coloring and leaf shape look good with the other plants that are nearby neighbors .
Phew , that ’s a lot of “ what if ’s . ” But once you see this list of desirable companion , you ’ll quickly pick up on which ones offer the benefits you might be assay . Let ’s take a look .
Here are 11 of the best neighbour for okra plant plants .
1. Basil
Fragrant herbs can help deter certain insect pests , likewhiteflies . And basil ( Ocimum basilicum ) is a fragrant herbaceous plant that will help deter pests that could bother nearby okra .
Many agriculture experts agree that basil repels certain insect pests .
Still , even if that does n’t operate in your garden , basil has the auxiliary benefit of savor great in stews made with okra , andattracting pollinatorsto your vegetable garden if it ’s allowed to bloom .
The ‘ Siam Queen ’ sort typically used in Thai cooking is an supererogatory aromatic choice with a stiff liquorice - anise plant scent and flavor .
‘ Siam Queen ’ Basil
If you opt for an edible bloom window box , think meld a red or short - fuel pod okra plant life with its hibiscus - like blooms and this Thai sweet basil with Battle of Magenta flowers .
‘ Siam Queen ’ is uncommitted in 200 - seed packetsfrom Burpee .
Another advantage of planting basil near okra is that both are annuals and develop only in quick temperature .
That intend you may point sow them at the same clip or start them indoors on the same schedule .
And at time of year ’s ending , you’re able to tear both from the garden patch at about the same prison term , a task that ’s trickier with many perennial herbs .
Learn to grow and care forThaiorsweet basilin our guides .
2. Beans
Like okra , bean , includingPhaseolus vulgarisandP. lunatusspecies , boom in unmediated sun and can maturate in average dirt as long as it drains well . There are two scenarios for arise the two together .
First , you’re able to let the gumbo attain a foot tall and then plantpole beansso they can apply the plant as a living treillage .
Or , you’re able to growbush beansat the metrical unit of the okra plants to do as a experience mulch for the land .
In either scenario , the leguminous plant will get atomic number 7 in the soil , which is beneficial for the crops and whatever vegetables you engraft in that same spot the undermentioned year .
I wish the estimation of establish lima or butter edible bean with okra fellow traveler because they ’re both traditional Southern ingredients .
Because the limas take a while to reach maturity , about 60 to 70 day , they ’ll be quick to glean in late summer and early fall like the okra .
‘ Henderson ’ baby lima plants produce 18 inches grandiloquent and produce larder beans , with four or five per pod , in 60 to 70 days .
‘ Henderson ’ Baby Limas
Find ‘ Henderson ’ seeds available in various bundle size and in bulkfrom Eden Brothers .
If you ’re interested in grow food to stock the freezer , both okra and any variety ofgreen beanor butter bonce are prolific and freeze well .
Learn green beansorlima and butter beansin our guides .
3. Cantaloupe
There are a couple of understanding why cantaloupe ( Cucumis melovar.reticulatus ) make a good comrade for okra and vice versa .
Both are sun - have it away plants that age in around 50 to 70 days , so they can share space in a plot that receives sizable sun . you’re able to irrigate them on the same docket , though the okra wo n’t necessitate quite as much .
While the lady’s-finger grows upright , the cantaloupe can trail along the ground , which will help the soil retain wet and prohibit Mary Jane .
To farm these companions in a small - space garden , raised bed , or gravid container , consider planting ‘ Minnesota Midget ’ Cucumis melo cantalupensis with vine that spread only three feet .
‘ Minnesota Midget ’ Cantaloupe
Find ‘ Minnesota Midget ’ seeds in various parcel sizesfrom Eden Brothers .
You ’ll desire to design so the melon vine can obtain sunup sun and so you have room to get to both works to urine and harvest home .
You do n’t have to plant the okra in the same fertile filth you employ for the cantaloup , though – it does n’t call for as much nutrition .
To keep the melon vine vines from taking over before the okra gets started , consider starting the seeds indoors before planting them out .
Our template to grow okraexplains this propagation method acting in item .
If you ’re already considering marigolds and oregano as companions , which we ’ll describe in more item below , they ’re also worthy neighbors for cantaloupe , so that ’s a win - win situation .
Find out how to mature and guardianship forC. meloin ourguide to cultivating cantaloupe .
4. Cayenne Peppers
A yoke of pepper plants within the veg mend may detercabbage worms , which feast on okra plant in addition to their many brassica victim .
I care to plant cayenne pepper peppers ( genus Capsicum annuum ) so I can harvest both of the ingredient needed for live pickled okra at the same time .
Cayenne is ready to pick about 80 days from transplant , so give it a school principal start on other garden veggies by sowing seeds indoors eight calendar week ahead of your mediocre last frost and then transplanting them out .
Cayenne Pepper
Capsicum annuum longum black pepper is available in 20 - seminal fluid packetsfrom Burpee .
common pepper also love warm temperatures and need moderate watering , so you’re able to incline to them at the same time as Hibiscus esculentus when rain does n’t furnish sufficient wet in summer ’s estrus .
see to develop and worry for cayenne pepper Piper nigrum in our pathfinder .
5. Coneflowers
improbable aboriginal plants and wildflower will attract airborne pollinator to all vegetable industrial plant , not just okra !
coneflower ( Echinaceaspp . ) are one of the just for that function .
The classic ‘ Magnus ’ variety ofE. purpureawith its pink - purple heyday also looks appealing next to the yellow prime of an okra plant industrial plant .
‘ Magnus ’ Coneflower
Live ‘ Magnus ’ coneflowers are available in # 1 containersfrom Nature Hills Nursery .
When you grow an herbaceous perennial like the coneflower near an one-year vegetable , leave enough space between the two so you may uproot the yearly at the season ’s remainder .
If you overleap to clean industrial plant rubble in the crepuscule , sure worm pests can overwinter and re-emerge next springtime to pulverise that year ’s crop .
If it ’s too complicated to divide the two once they ’ve stopped blooming and producing , grow one or both varieties in container so you could move and toss the plant at will .
teach and like for coneflowers in our guide .
6. Cucumbers
Like their vining cantaloup relatives , cucumber ( Cucumis sativus ) make near companions because they also like full sun .
The cucumber plants can either suppress weed as trailing vines or use the tall plant as a de facto trellis .
I care to develop ‘ Homemade Pickles ’ because it only reach four or five feet long even though it ’s a vining variety , so your lady’s-finger plant will volunteer sufficient support .
‘ Homemade Pickles ’ Cucumber
Find ‘ Homemade Pickles ’ cuke in 42 - cum packetsfrom Botanical Interests .
Cucumbers are even more valuable as a companion than melon because they produce bushels of high - timber yield if you keep them picked .
Time the crop for both using your gardening calendar , and you’re able to keep the two varieties picked for flower production throughout the summer and into early spill .
And the two veg make delicious canned pickle if you end up with a bumper crop of one or both .
Learn how to grow and care for cucumber vine in this guide .
7. Marigolds
shortsighted annual flush are a just match because the efflorescence are attractive , the plants grow and flower in the summertime , and they attract pollinators .
They ’re also ready to draw out of the garden at about the same time .
Marigolds ( Tagetesspp . ) are a good example . They repel sure garden pests , including theroot - nautical mile nematodesthat sometimes harm crop .
The fast - growing annual flowers also move as a “ living mulch ” that inhibits weeds and retains moisture when planted nearby .
‘ Vanilla’African marigoldsgrow to 18 inches and have creamy blooms that complement red okra fuel pod or the xanthous bloom in an cosmetic seam or an edible container garden .
‘ Vanilla ’ African Marigolds
‘ vanilla extract ’ seed areavailable from True Leaf Market .
Other variety grow anywhere from six to 24 inches tall , with none that get so high they ’ll shade okra from the sun .
But you do ask to be deliberate to institute marigolds where other crops wo n’t shade them too much , either .
Learn to grow marigolds in our usher .
8. Mesclun
SometimesA. esculentusis more benefactor than beneficiary of our companion survival .
Just so with mesclun . This portmanteau of babe folio green and herbaceous plant is sow in and harvested in a spring mix , and it ’s one of the first vegetable to appear in the spring garden .
If you plant it while temperatures are above freeze but below 50 ° F , the mesclun is ready to start harvest home in 30 days .
Here ’s where okra comes in . By the clock time temperature are in the 60s and it ’s warm enough to transpose or inseminate , it ’s starting to get too hot for mesclun .
But if you sow in the gumbo indoors four to six weeks ahead of embed it out , you’re able to send the seedlings where they ’ll mature to fill in the mesclun in progressively hot weather , thereby extending the spring mixture harvest for a duet of calendar week or maybe more .
Mesclun Spring Mix
Find mesclun mix in 750 - seed packetsfrom High Mowing Organic Seeds .
get word togrow mesclun bound mixture in our guide .
If you ’re a rooter of growing vegetables in containers , you could sow a more compact mixed bag of gumbo with mesclun sown in the same pot around the base of the larger flora .
That way , you could expand the growing season for one or both by moving the container indoors if it ’s too cold for the okra or too quick for the mesclun .
‘ Baby Bubba ’
Find ‘ Baby Bubba , ’ a compact cultivar , in 60 - seminal fluid packetsavailable from Burpee .
9. Oregano
Like many redolent herbs , marjoram will discourage pests and attract flying pollinators .
It ’s also handy as a companion if you embed a mounding or spreading variety , likesweet marjoram ( Origanum genus Majorana ) .
It will trail over the primer coat below as a last mulch , suppressing weed and serve to keep moisture in the soil .
Sweet Marjoram
Find sweet oregano in 480 - seminal fluid packetsfrom Botanical Interests .
Oregano is a perennial , and you might bump it unmanageable to pull gumbo at the time of year ’s remnant without destroy the herb at the same metre .
you could work around that issue by potting up the oregano to winterize ahead of net the large vegetable plants , establish so much oregano you do n’t miss a few if they ’re unexpectedly eliminated , or engraft the oregano in containers you set near your raised bottom – though that robs you of the ground cover welfare .
Learn to grow and handle for oregano here .
10. Radishes
Planting radishes ( Raphanus sativus ) is a metre - respect way to attain an early harvest and save blank in the vegetable patch .
Planted ahead of or beneath okra , radish will weaken up the dirt to ease the way for the bigger plants ’ origin .
They ’ll still be ready to glean a match of weeks before the okra plant grow large enough to compete for place or water .
One of my preferred radishes for this purpose is ‘ Cherry Belle , ’ a rotund red variety that ’s quick to reap 22 days , give or take , from seed .
‘ Cherry Belle ’ Radish
ceremonious and organic ‘ Cherry Belle ’ seeds are useable in various package sizesfrom Burpee .
At the rate radishes mature , you may have enough sentence tosuccessively plantthree or four crop before the weather gets too warm for them or the okra plant steals their Dominicus .
Learn more about maturate radish in our usher .
11. Snap Peas
Theedible cod peasknown as snap pea plant , Pisum sativumvar.macrocarpum , will also raise well in full Sunday and can thrive in mediocre territory .
As companions , you ’ll want to grow them for a fall harvest . That way , they can make nitrogen in the grunge alongside the okra , which only grow when the ground has warmed to a consistent 60 ° degree Fahrenheit .
This type of pea plant , though , needs parky temperatures to flourish . If you sow vining snap pea seeds about eight weeks before your first evenfall rime , they can surmount the mature gumbo plant for accompaniment .
I relish the taste and the texture of the ‘ Super Sugar Snap ’ variety , which matures in 64 day and grows 60 to 72 inch tall .
‘ Super Sugar Snap ’
Sow four or five seed two inches apart in a circle at the al-Qaeda of an okra plant that is at least two foot tall already . No cutting is required .
Find ‘ Super Sugar Snap ’ in 300- or 900 - seed packets , available at Burpee .
If you run into an other frost before the peas have constitute pods , harvest the shoots to eat up in salads .
you’re able to learn to arise click pea here .
Bad Companions
Okra is such an conformable veg to grow in the habitation garden that when I talk about “ bad ” companion for it , I should really say “ less ideal . ”
It does n’t have any known foes , though veteran gardeners will tell you not to plant it before or after sweet white potato or squash , since all three are highly susceptible to theme - knot nematodes .
Also avoid planting anything that does n’t share standardized raise requirements nearby – any plants that involve more nutrient - deep filth , for exemplar , or more or less water system , or are far more frost tolerant .
It simplifies vegetable develop when you could be given all nearby plant at the same time , whether you ’re watering , fertilizing , or allow for rowing covering fire .
But on the other handwriting , remember that many companions can be planted aboard in containers or separate lift bed while still offer benefits .
Okra also want full sun to yield at its max . So do n’t implant it beneath a tree or perennialornamental vine , or too closemouthed to any annual vegetables or flowers that will quickly grow taller and cast shade .
Certainindeterminate tomatoes , corn , ‘ Mammoth Russian ’ helianthus , and vigorous vine likebirdhouse gourdsall come to heed as potential competitors for the Dominicus .
Because gumbo is planted so late in the spring , even veggies that wo n’t grow taller than it at maturity can deliver a problem if you set them first and they develop chop-chop .
Broadleafmustard greens , lacinato kale , andpotatoesall devolve into this category . They shoot up so quickly they can overwhelm a freshly germinated seedling , or impoverish it of nutrient and urine .
I ’d like to remind you one more time about those monumental tooth root on a mature okra plant , too .
There has been many a grow season that ended with my hubby literally standing and jumping on a hefty garden nigger in his efforts to dig up a long taproot so we could winterise the veggie seam .
This is why it ’s a unsound estimation to set perennial herbs or flowers within range of those roots unless you make contingency plans ( like with pot marjoram , described above ) .
They ’ll suffer root disruption during the cleaning , and while gumbo is delicious and prolific , it ’s not worth give precious perennial .
It ’s convenient to take advantage of its chemical attraction with other works when planning your garden , but be heedful not to plantbrassicas , cucurbit , legumes , ornightshadesin a bottom with lady’s-finger if you plan to grow a swelled crop of those same types of veg the next twelvemonth .
cautiously splay crop prevents all sorting of soilborne ailments from getting show , and also helps build the soil and prevent insect pests .
you could find more tips on garden provision and extra advice forfirst - time vegetable gardenersin our guide .
A-Okay to Grow Together
Okra in the base garden already has decent productiveness and an ornamental appearance going for it . But its wide - ranging compatibility with other vegetable and blossom is a substantial value - add .
I often opt for this flora when I ’m have difficulty apportion space in myraised beds .
Unlike most other veggie , it grow merrily next to nightshades , cucurbits , legume , genus Allium , and herbaceous plant , so it ’s a good fallback when there ’s room next to any one of those plants and the other candidates have a conflict .
And if this coverage has you consider constitute okra plant for the first or the 50th time , delay out these okra guidesfor additional information :
© Ask the Experts , LLC . ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.See our TOSfor more details . Product photos via Botanical Interests , Burpee , Eden Brothers , High Mowing Seeds , and True Leaf Market . Uncredited photos : Shutterstock .
About
Rose Kennedy
