Complete Gardening
Companion planting is an age-old gardening practice that involves growing certain plants together to enhance growth, protect against pests, and improve flavor.
When it comes to raspberries, carefully selecting the right companion plants can boost your berry yield and health.
In this guide, we’ll explore 20 plants that make excellent neighbors for your raspberry bushes.
1. Garlic
Garlic is much more than a kitchen staple; it’s a garden’s secret weapon against pests. Positioned near raspberry plants, garlic releases sulfur compounds, warding off pesky Japanese beetles and aphids.
With its robust aroma, garlic also deters fungal infections that threaten raspberry bushes. Its tall, slender stems punctuate the garden, and its white blossoms can add a delicate touch. Whether chopped into dishes or standing guard in your garden, garlic is a powerful ally for your raspberries.
Consider planting garlic bulbs in early spring or fall to get the best deterrent effect.
2. Chives
Chives do more than garnish your soups—they can be your raspberry’s best buddy. These slender green stalks, crowned with purple blossoms, exude a mild onion fragrance that pests find disagreeable.
As a bonus, chives attract pollinators, enhancing the fruiting of your raspberry plants. Their antifungal properties add another layer of protection against common berry diseases.
Easy to grow and maintain, chives fit seamlessly among raspberry rows, bringing beauty and function without fuss. Just snip and sprinkle some in your kitchen for an added culinary delight.
3. Marigolds
Marigolds are the vibrant guardians of the garden, with their fiery hues and pest-repellent prowess. Their scent is unpleasant to nematodes and beetles, making them ideal companions for raspberries.
Beyond pest control, marigolds attract beneficial insects like ladybugs, which feast on aphids and mites. This splash of color not only keeps unwanted visitors at bay but also enlivens your garden with visual appeal.
Planting marigolds alongside raspberries adds both aesthetic and functional benefits, ensuring your berry patch thrives in harmony.
4. Tansy
Tansy might be an uncommon garden pick, but it’s a formidable ally against ants and flying insects that menace berry patches. Its towering stalks and yellow button-like blossoms create a natural barrier.
This plant’s aromatic foliage is known to repel a variety of pests, making it a functional addition to raspberry rows. Tansy also attracts predatory insects that feast on common berry pests, enhancing your garden’s natural pest control system.
Plant tansy with care, as it can spread quickly. Its benefits, however, outweigh the efforts of keeping its growth in check.
5. Basil
Basil, often associated with Italian cuisine, is a surprising defender against garden foes. Its aromatic oils deter aphids, spider mites, and flies that target raspberries.
Planted nearby, basil’s fragrance can subtly enhance the flavor of your berries, adding a unique twist to your harvest. This herb is more than a pest deterrent; it’s a culinary delight that adds freshness to your kitchen creations.
With its lush green leaves and small white flowers, basil complements the raspberry garden aesthetically and functionally, making it a worthwhile companion plant.
6. Yarrow
Yarrow is the unsung hero of the garden, standing tall with its feathery foliage and clusters of white flowers. It attracts ladybugs and parasitic wasps that feed on raspberry pests, acting as a natural pest control service.
Additionally, yarrow improves soil health, enhancing the growth environment for raspberries. Its drought-resistant nature makes it a low-maintenance choice for adding resilience to your berry patch.
Yarrow’s beauty and utility make it a staple for gardeners seeking to create a balanced, thriving ecosystem alongside their raspberries.
7. Chamomile
Chamomile, with its calming reputation, extends its soothing presence to the garden. Known for improving soil health, chamomile supports raspberry growth by enhancing nutrient availability.
The dainty, daisy-like flowers attract pollinators and beneficial insects, boosting the overall health of your berry patch. There’s even a belief that chamomile subtly enhances the flavor of neighboring plants.
Beyond its garden benefits, chamomile can be harvested for its herbal teas, making it a dual-purpose plant worthy of space beside your raspberries.
8. Mint (in containers)
Mint is the refreshingly fragrant plant that can be both friend and foe in the garden. Placed near raspberries, mint repels ants and aphids, safeguarding your berries from these common pests.
However, mint’s vigorous growing nature means it should be contained to prevent it from overwhelming the garden. Using pots or containers ensures it stays where it’s needed, offering protection without the chaos.
The aromatic leaves can also be harvested for culinary uses, providing a bonus beyond its pest-repellent capabilities. Mint is truly a versatile companion plant.
9. Nasturtiums
Nasturtiums are the colorful decoys in your garden, acting as a trap crop for aphids and whiteflies. Their bright red and orange flowers lure these pests away from your precious raspberries, offering them an irresistible alternative.
This natural pest management is complemented by the plant’s ability to attract beneficial insects, boosting your garden’s defense system. Nasturtiums are both beautiful and functional, adding a vibrant splash of color while safeguarding your berries.
Their edible flowers and leaves also provide culinary uses, enhancing salads with both flavor and color.
10. Lavender
Lavender, with its calming aroma, serves as both a pest deterrent and a pollinator magnet. Its strong scent repels insects harmful to raspberries while attracting bees and butterflies, enhancing pollination.
The sight and smell of lavender offer a sensory delight, turning a raspberry patch into a tranquil garden oasis. Beyond its garden benefits, lavender can be harvested for its essential oils and dried flowers.
Positioning lavender near raspberries seamlessly blends utility with beauty, creating a harmonious environment where both plants thrive together.
11. Onions
Onions are the understated workhorses of companion planting. Their strong scent and sulfur compounds naturally deter pests, such as aphids and beetles, that plague raspberry plants.
Despite their pest-repelling prowess, onions compete minimally with raspberries for resources, making them ideal partners. Their tall green stalks add a vertical element to the garden, enhancing its structure.
Onions’ pest control abilities, coupled with their culinary utility, make them a multifunctional addition to any raspberry patch, ensuring your berries grow pest-free and robust.
12. Thyme
Thyme is the understated, fragrant herb that serves as more than just groundcover. Known for its pest-deterring properties, thyme helps keep the raspberry patch free from unwanted insect visitors.
The herb’s tiny purple flowers attract pollinators, fostering a healthy, vibrant garden. Its low-growing nature makes it a perfect fit for filling spaces between raspberry plants, providing both aesthetic and functional benefits.
Thyme’s versatility extends beyond the garden, offering culinary uses that enhance your dishes with its distinctive flavor, embodying form and function in one plant.
13. Rue
Rue is a somewhat mysterious plant, known for its ability to repel many garden pests. Its bluish-green foliage and yellow flowers create a unique visual contrast, while its distinct aroma keeps Japanese beetles and cucumber beetles at bay.
While rue adds a touch of intrigue to the garden, it also needs careful handling as it can irritate the skin. Planted near raspberries, rue provides a protective barrier against common threats, enhancing plant health.
In addition to its utility, rue brings an old-world charm to your raspberry patch, balancing beauty with practicality.
14. Cilantro
Cilantro, often found in kitchens, holds a special place in the garden as well. Its feathery leaves and delicate white flowers attract beneficial insects such as hoverflies and lacewings, which prey on raspberry pests.
This aromatic herb not only enhances garden biodiversity but also enriches dishes with its distinct flavor. Cilantro’s ability to draw in predators makes it a strategic addition to any raspberry patch, bolstering natural pest control.
Its dual purpose of culinary and garden use makes cilantro a versatile choice, marrying functionality with flavor.
15. Fennel (plant with caution)
Fennel is a fascinating yet somewhat contentious companion plant. Its tall, feathery fronds attract beneficial predators that help control raspberry pests. However, fennel can compete with other plants for nutrients, requiring careful placement.
Its anise-flavored seeds and foliage are a culinary delight, adding a distinct flavor to dishes. In the garden, fennel’s towering presence adds vertical interest and biodiversity.
Plant fennel with caution, ensuring it doesn’t overshadow its neighbors, and enjoy the benefits it brings to both garden and kitchen.
16. Calendula
Calendula, known for its cheerful, sun-like flowers, brings more than just color to the garden. This plant is a favorite of pollinators, drawing them to the raspberry patch, while also repelling many harmful insects.
Its bright blossoms can be harvested for culinary and medicinal uses, making calendula a multifunctional plant.
By planting calendula alongside raspberries, you create a dynamic garden ecosystem that supports berry health with beauty and biodiversity. This sunny companion is both a protector and a provider, enhancing your gardening experience.
17. Bee Balm (Monarda)
Bee balm, or Monarda, is the vibrant life of the garden party. With its striking pink flowers, it attracts hummingbirds and bees, enhancing raspberry pollination and overall garden vitality.
This colorful plant is more than just eye candy; its aromatic leaves can be used in herbal teas, adding a soothing aspect to its garden benefits.
Growing bee balm near raspberries not only supports berry production but also enriches the garden with visual and ecological diversity, creating a win-win situation for plants and pollinators alike.
18. Sage
Sage, with its silvery leaves and purple blooms, is an aromatic powerhouse in pest prevention. It repels carrot flies, beetles, and cabbage moths, protecting the raspberry patch with its strong scent.
Beyond its pest-repelling abilities, sage offers culinary delights, enhancing dishes with its earthy flavor. Its visual appeal and aromatic benefits make it a favorite among gardeners seeking to balance beauty and function.
Planting sage near raspberries enriches the garden environment, promoting a healthy, pest-free harvest season after season.
19. Borage
Borage is the garden’s pretty and practical partner. With star-shaped blue flowers, it attracts bees, boosting raspberry pollination and fruit yield. This charming plant is also said to improve the resilience of neighboring plants, adding to its allure.
Borage can be used in salads and teas, offering culinary benefits alongside its garden roles. Known for its hardiness, borage thrives with minimal care, making it an easy choice for enhancing raspberry growth.
This plant’s combination of beauty and utility makes it an invaluable companion in any berry patch.
20. Strawberries
Strawberries and raspberries share more than just their berry status; they thrive under similar conditions, making them perfect partners. Both plants enjoy well-drained soil and ample sunlight, allowing them to coexist harmoniously.
Strawberries act as ground cover, suppressing weeds that could otherwise compete with raspberries for resources. This natural weed barrier is complemented by the shared pollinators that benefit both berry types.
Growing these fruits together can lead to a more productive garden, providing a bountiful harvest of sweet, juicy berries all season long, proving they are indeed berry good neighbors.