Gardening Question

[StackedLumber]

In a discussion this evening w/ friends a question arose . . . . . is it a bad idea to plant tomatoes and green peppers next to each other in a garden, or is that an old wives tale. I'm hoping it is b/c it could spell doom for my 12 tomato and 16 pepper plants. thx

 

[webie]

I guess I didnt know anything about that . Thats the way mine have always been planted . What is suppose to be the problem?

 

[begreen]

Peppers and tomatoes grow fine together. But they are both heavy feeders, so keep the soil nutrition up and feed them mid-season. Keep these guys away from potatoes, dill, beets, beans and the brassica family and all should be well.

 

[jimmie ray]

I think tomatoes and peppers have somewhat different soil / nutrients /ph / light preferences, but wouldn't interfere with each other - providing the plants are spaced apart.

 

[StackedLumber]

From what I understood, they are both members of the night shade family and compete w/ each other for similar nutrients and volume of sunlight. What I was told was that they would compete against each other for dominance and grow large plants w/ out producing any produce b/c all the energy was going into growing a bigger/dominant plant. I'm hoping that if I keep the ground well fertilized that they will work. It's not like they are all right on top of each other, but I took two thirty ft. rows and divided both rows in 1/2 and planted peppers and tomatoes on each half of the two rows.

 

[begreen]

Yes, it's not ideal, but shouldn't be a disaster either. The filtered shade from the tomatoes can help the peppers.

This guide may be helpful:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_companion_plants

 

[Gooserider]

Yes, it's not ideal, but shouldn't be a disaster either. The filtered shade from the tomatoes can help the peppers.

This guide may be helpful:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_companion_plants

Interestingly enough though, is that list you point at seems to have peppers and tomatoes down as good for each other... From that list, I'd be inclined to plant peppers, tomatoes and onions together...

Gooserider

 

[bjkjoseph]

peppers and tomatoes worked good for me..but last year i put my peppers next to the radishes,and the radishes grew but no peppers..when i picked the radishes the peppers took off.

 

[Cazimere]

peppers and tomatoes worked good for me..but last year i put my peppers next to the radishes,and the radishes grew but no peppers..when i picked the radishes the peppers took off.

Did you file a missin peppers report ?

 

[jimmie ray]

I read the calcium in eggshells is very good for preventing some sort of tomato blight that ruined entire gardens in this area for the last 2 years. If I have to eat omelettes every other day to save the ingredients to make future omelettes, then so be it....

 

[bjkjoseph]

the missing peppers was a good one..

 

[firefighterjake]

the missing peppers was a good one..

I agree . . . gave me a laugh yesterday.

 

[Adios Pantalones]

They aren't as heavy feeders as many claim. If they are not growing in the same row- then it's not an issue anyway. Otherwise- tomatoes might get taller and shade out peppers- that's the only issue.

Let me add- most issues regarding crop nutrients, need for rotation, etc are due to larger farm practices. Home gardners tend to pump up the love for plants and they get a bit more fertilizer etc, which are more carefully metered by a farmer trying to turn a profit. Micronutrients, etc are also not well supplied by many commercial fertilizers. If you throw in compost or good organic amendments, they seem to better provide the stuff that the plants would compete for. Compost damn near fixes everything, I swear.

Egg shells are sometimes added to prevent blossom end rot (BER), but that is a bull snot cure. BER is caused by poor distribution of calcium in the plant, not a lack of calcium in the soil, and adding eggshells doesn't help. The underlying cause is unequal soil moisture: the plant gets dry with fruit on it, then gets watered heavily- you may get BER. Keep the bed well mulched (shredded leaves etc.), and don't let it get too dry- that will fix it.

 

[jlasserton]

Tomatoes and green peppers have always worked for me. I have some growing near each other in my garden right now. I think if you keep your garden filled with nutrients you won't have a problem.

 

[JustWood]

They aren't as heavy feeders as many claim. If they are not growing in the same row- then it's not an issue anyway. Otherwise- tomatoes might get taller and shade out peppers- that's the only issue.

Egg shells are sometimes added to prevent blossom end rot (BER), but that is a bull snot cure. BER is caused by poor distribution of calcium in the plant, not a lack of calcium in the soil, and adding eggshells doesn't help. The underlying cause is unequal soil moisture: the plant gets dry with fruit on it, then gets watered heavily- you may get BER. Keep the bed well mulched (shredded leaves etc.), and don't let it get too dry- that will fix it.

I wood buy the shade theory. Peppers need full sun .I've heard from the local produce farmers that peppers need to be grown in rows close to each other for polination reasons.

I spread egg shells in open areas in my garden . It attracts swallows which feed on the destructive little bugs that make their way in. I also crush them and place on a dry well cover near garden. It makes for cheap entertainment in the evenings when the swallows swarm the area and squable over shell pieces.

 

[Adios Pantalones]

That sounds like fun!

I grow in soil with a VERY high organic matter content, and can darn near do square foot gardening. The soil will support plants very close together, except that the tops crowd eachother.

I have had years where I literally took a machette to the tomatoes in order to get past the row- 8' plants were attacking me. They over-produce in a big way.

last year's peppers were the exception- a cool summer, and putting them out too early meant they did squat. I got one hot pepper, and my little dog grabbed it when it fell on the floor.