Companion Planting: Basil
Ocimum basilicum
Spacing: 4 per square foot. Mature height: 1-2 ft.
Plant these nearby
- Tomato: Reputed to improve tomato flavor and repel pests, but a multi-year, garden-scale controlled trial found no consistent taste preference in blind tests, and no pest-reduction benefit — treat this as one of companion planting's least-supported popular claims. (source)
- Pepper: Reputed to repel aphids and improve growth nearby, but the same controlled trial that tested basil's tomato pairing found no pest-reduction benefit on a related crop, and even higher pest counts in one case — treat this as unproven. (source)
Keep these apart
No known antagonists recorded for Basil.
Common pairings, answered directly
- Can I plant basil next to tomato?
- Yes. Reputed to improve tomato flavor and repel pests, but a multi-year, garden-scale controlled trial found no consistent taste preference in blind tests, and no pest-reduction benefit — treat this as one of companion planting's least-supported popular claims.
- Can I plant basil next to pepper?
- Yes. Reputed to repel aphids and improve growth nearby, but the same controlled trial that tested basil's tomato pairing found no pest-reduction benefit on a related crop, and even higher pest counts in one case — treat this as unproven.
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Companion planting for Basil: which plants to grow next to it, which to keep apart, and the reason behind each pairing.
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