How do I read the companion planting matrix?

Find the row plant on the left and the column plant on top. Where they intersect: green means beneficial, red means incompatible, gray is neutral, and yellow on the diagonal shows spacing for the same plant.

What are planting guilds?

Guilds are groups of plants that work well in a polyculture — like Three Sisters (corn, beans, squash) or the Rongōā Māori Guild of traditional NZ useful plants. Filter by guild in the matrix to focus on one group.

How it works

Companion planting guide

Q: What is companion planting?

Companion planting means growing certain plants together because they help each other — repelling pests, improving flavour, fixing nitrogen, or providing shade. Some combinations should be avoided because they compete or share diseases.

Use the interactive matrix to plan beds where plants support each other — not compete. This page explains the colour key, filters, and NZ-focused tips.

Open the matrix → 📄 Download PDF

What is companion planting?

Some plants grow better near specific neighbours. Basil can improve tomato flavour; marigolds deter nematodes; beans fix nitrogen for heavy feeders. Others should stay apart — alliums near beans, or potatoes near tomatoes (shared blight risk).

The matrix encodes these relationships for 162 plants common in NZ kitchen gardens and food forest understory — including rongōā species and subtropical heat-lovers for warmer regions. Browse the full list on the plants page or download the printable PDF below.

Colour key

Green — beneficial

Plant together. May improve growth, repel pests, or improve flavour.

Red — incompatible

Keep apart. May compete for nutrients or share pests/diseases.

Gray — neutral

No strong interaction documented. Safe to plant nearby.

Yellow — same plant

Diagonal cells show spacing and guild info for one plant.

How to read the grid

Find your first plant on the left row.
Find your second plant on the top column.
Follow row and column until they meet — that cell is the relationship.
Hover or tap any cell for spacing, guild, and Orchard Planner links for perennials.

Filters & search

Guild filter — e.g. Three Sisters, Brassica Guild. Browse all on the guilds page.
Type filter — nightshade, herb, rongoa, root, etc.
Search — type a plant name; use comma-separated names in multi-plant mode.
Compatible / incompatible only — when searching, show only good or bad neighbours.
Shareable URLs — copy the address bar after filtering; links like ?guild=three-sisters work from quiz wiki or Orchard Planner.

NZ pro tips

Start with Three Sisters if you're new to polycultures — corn, beans, pumpkin/kūmara depending on your climate.
Plant marigolds and nasturtiums at bed edges for pest control (Pest Control Guild).
Keep beans away from alliums (onions, garlic) — a common incompatible pairing.
For canopy and perennial layers, cross-check herbs and rongōā in Orchard Planner.
For understory succession, pair with Continuous Harvests.

Ready to plan?

Open the matrix, pick a guild, or search your first crop.

Open matrix → Browse guilds