What Grows Well With Spinach? 8 Proven Companion Plants and a Simple Planting Plan
Introduction: Why companion planting matters for spinach
Want healthier, faster-growing spinach and fewer pests in your beds? If you’ve ever asked, what grows well with spinach, the secret is companion planting. The right neighbors suppress pests, improve flavor, slow bolting, and boost yields.
Use garlic or chives to repel aphids and leaf miners, sow radishes to loosen compact soil and create quick harvests between spinach rows, tuck lettuce or arugula in for ground cover and succession planting, and plant peas to fix nitrogen and feed spinach indirectly. These are practical, low-cost pairings that work in raised beds, containers, and rows.
Below you will find eight proven companion plants, a simple planting plan with spacing and timing, pot-friendly options, and quick fixes for common problems like bolting and pests. Follow the plan and harvest more spinach with less fuss.
Quick answer: The top companions for spinach
If you want a quick answer to what grows well with spinach, here are eight top companions.
- Peas fix nitrogen, plant them early and trellis behind spinach to share space.
- Radishes mature fast, sow between rows to loosen soil and harvest quickly.
- Loose leaf lettuce benefits from partial shade under spinach and fits the same row.
- Carrots use deeper roots, sow at the same time to maximize vertical space.
- Onions or chives repel aphids, plant in clumps around spinach edges for protection.
- Strawberries act as living mulch, suppress weeds and retain soil moisture.
- French marigolds deter pests and attract beneficial insects when interplanted.
- Cilantro draws hoverflies and parasitic wasps, lowering spinach pest pressure.
Best companion plants for spinach and why they work
If you ask what grows well with spinach? start with peas. Peas fix nitrogen, feeding leafy growth; plant them on the north side so tall vines do not shade spinach, and sow seed 2 to 3 inches apart. Lettuce is another top partner, it shares cool weather and provides light shade that slows spinach bolting; space lettuce 6 to 8 inches from spinach and succession sow every two weeks. Radishes mature fast, breaking compacted soil and marking rows; sow radish seed between spinach rows, harvest in three to four weeks. Carrots have similar soil needs, and deep roots do not compete with shallow spinach roots; thin carrots to 2 inches to avoid crowding. Onions and garlic help deter aphids and some fungal issues; plant sets or cloves between spinach beds, especially garlic in fall for spring protection. Strawberries act as a living mulch, suppressing weeds and conserving moisture; leave about 12 inches between crowns to prevent competition. Herbs add both pollinator attraction and pest control, for example dill and cilantro draw beneficial wasps, while chives repel aphids and can improve flavor when grown nearby. These pairings make planting plans simple and productive.
Plants to avoid near spinach and why
If you’ve searched for what grows well with spinach, also learn what to avoid. Tall, shading plants steal light and bolt spinach fast. Examples: corn, sunflowers, and pole beans. Give spinach at least three feet of clear air or plant it before those tall crops reach full height.
Allelopathic plants release chemicals that stunt seedlings. Most notorious is black walnut, its juglone inhibits many vegetables including spinach. Fennel is another plant you should never neighbor with spinach, it suppresses germination and growth.
Heavy feeders compete for nutrients and water, slowing leafy growth. Avoid planting tomatoes, potatoes, squash, and pumpkins nearby. These crops demand lots of nitrogen and moisture, which reduces spinach vigor and flavor.
Also avoid tight crowding with sprawling vines such as cucumber or melon, they shade lower leaves and encourage mildew. If you need proximity, stagger planting times so spinach matures before larger crops take over. These simple separations will improve yields and answer the question of what grows well with spinach by eliminating the wrong neighbors.
How to design your spinach bed: spacing, timing, and layout
Start with a simple template you can repeat. Example: a 4 by 8 foot bed, three 12 inch wide rows running north to south. Place a trellis along the north edge for peas or pole beans, so they do not shade the spinach.
Step 1, spacing. For baby-leaf harvest, sow spinach every 1 inch and thin to 2 inches. For full-size heads, sow 3 inches apart and thin to 6 inches between plants. Keep rows about 12 inches apart so lettuce and radishes fit between.
Step 2, timing. Spinach is a cool-season crop, sow first in early spring, then again every two weeks for six weeks for continuous harvest. Plant peas with the first spinach sowing. Start a second wave of lettuce and radishes four weeks later as spinach bolts.
Step 3, companion layout. Plant peas on the north trellis, spinach in the center rows, lettuce interplanted in the same row and radishes scattered as markers and soil looseners. Put onions or chives along the bed edges to deter pests and fit strawberries in a corner if space allows.
Step 4, succession plan. Harvest outer leaves, let center plants grow, and replace bolting spinach with summer greens or a fall spinach crop. This answers what grows well with spinach in a compact, productive layout.
Pest and disease benefits from smart companions
Think about companions as living pest control. Plant garlic or chives near spinach rows to mask the scent that attracts aphids and reduce fungal pressure, because allium compounds are natural repellents. Sow nasturtiums on the edge of the bed as a trap crop, they draw aphids away from spinach so you can remove the nasturtiums instead of treating the spinach.
Use herbs like dill and cilantro to bring in predators, ladybugs and lacewings, which cut aphid populations fast. For soil pests, tuck marigolds into the bed, they suppress some nematodes and reduce root stress. Give spinach good airflow and space to lower leaf wetness; wetter leaves invite downy mildew and other fungi.
Quick tactics you can apply this week, based on what grows well with spinach? 1) Plant a garlic/chive row; 2) Scatter nasturtiums around the perimeter; 3) Interplant dill or cilantro to attract beneficials. These small moves cut pest and disease risk without pesticides.
A simple companion planting checklist and 4 week planting plan
Quick checklist, then a 4 week plan you can follow.
Checklist
- Soil, loosen to 8 inches, mix in 2 inches of compost, aim for pH 6.0 to 7.0.
- Drainage, use raised beds or well-drained soil.
- Seeds or seedlings, choose bolt-resistant varieties for heat.
- Companions, plant peas, lettuce, radishes, and chives nearby.
- Tools, mulch, row cover, and a gentle liquid fertilizer.
4 week planting plan
Week 1: Soil prep and sowing. Work compost in, sow spinach seeds 1 inch apart in rows or scatter for baby leaves.
Week 2: Thin to 3 inches for full heads, sow fast companions like radish between rows.
Week 3: Mulch to retain moisture, install a low row cover if slugs or cold nights are a problem.
Week 4: Start light feeding with compost tea, check for pests, and succession sow every 2 weeks for continuous harvest.
If you ask what grows well with spinach? Use cool season friends and staggered sowing for best results.
Conclusion: Quick next steps to try in your garden
You now know which companions boost growth, which repel pests, and which suit cool weather. Quick plan to test in your garden this week:
- Pick one combo, for example spinach with lettuce and radish, and set up a 3 by 3 foot test bed.
- Plant spinach seed 1/2 inch deep, thin to 3 inches, sow radish between rows every inch, and space lettuce 4 inches apart.
- Mulch, water deeply twice a week, and cover with a floating row cover if flea beetles are a problem.
- Track results for four weeks, noting bolting, pests, and yield.
If you asked "what grows well with spinach?", start small, measure changes, and scale the mix that gives you better yield and fewer pests.
