Skip to Content

15 Best Nasturtium Companion Plants To Maximize Benefits

Selecting the ideal companion plants for nasturtiums to optimize their advantages doesn’t have to be overly complicated, but it does involve some careful consideration before sowing.

That’s why we’ve put together a list of the 15 best companion plants for you to consider!

While reading over it, keep in mind several important considerations like the different height and widths, colors, textural contrast, and smells of plants. 

Each plant has it’s own unique benefits to offer, so take your time looking over the information (if you really want the best companion plants), and avoid simply picking a companion plant blindly from the list!

1. Cucumbers

A cucumber hanging from the plant ready to be picked.

One of the very best companion plants for nasturtiums is cucumber. Cucumber plants are extremely beneficial, come in a wide variety, and don’t grow very high.

  • Mature Size: 6 to 8 inches in length and up to an inch wide
  • Benefits Provided: High in nutrients, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals as well as lowers blood sugar and cholesterol
  • Spacing Recommendations: 18 and 36 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Burpless, Bush, Ashley, Dasher, Diva, Fanfare, Earlypride, and Long Green Improved

2. Squash

Yellow straight neck squash growing on plant.

Squash plants are another of the top companion plants to consider for planting with your nasturtiums.

They grow around 3 to 4 feet high and wide though, so you’ll only need to add one or two (depending on the shape and size of your flower beds/garden).

  • Mature Size: 36 to 48 inches high and up to 48 inches wide (or more)
  • Benefits Provided: Good for heart health and weight and increases strength, fitness, and agility
  • Spacing Recommendations: 24 to 40 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Courgettes, Costata Romanesco, Patty Pan, straight neck squash, crookneck squash, Zephyr squash, Tatume squash, and Tromboncino squash

3. Melons

Three cantaloupes growing on the vine, almost ready for harvest.

The melon family of plants are excellent companions for nasturtiums. Melons only grow a couple of feet tall, but they do stretch up to 4 or 5 feet long, so add them to your flower beds sparingly.

  • Mature Size: 16 to 24 inches high, and up to 96 inches wide (or more)
  • Benefits Provided: Rich in nutrients; good for blood sugar, skin, and digestive system as well as reduces blood pressure
  • Spacing Recommendations: 36 to 42 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Cantaloupe, watermelon, and honeydew

4. Pumpkins

A mature pumpkin with the vine growing along the top.

Pumpkins are an amazing blooming and fruiting companion plant for nasturtiums because they don’t get much taller than a foot or so, but they do stretch up to a whopping 20 feet long.

  • Mature Size: 9 to 18 inches tall, 20 or more feet long, and up to 10 feet or more wide
  • Benefits Provided: High in nutrients, antioxidants, and vitamins, and may promote healthy weight loss
  • Spacing Recommendations: 18 to 36 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Casper, Cherokee Bush, Cinderella, Cushaw Green-Striped, Dill’s Atlantic, Fairytale, Jarrahdale, and Musquee De Provence

5. Zucchini

A zucchini with the blossom still attached growing on a healthy plant.

Much like pumpkins and cucumber plants, zucchini are another great companion for your flowers that is extremely beneficial (health wise).

Another of the greatest things about zucchini as a companion plant for nasturtium is that there are so many variety to choose from.

  • Mature Size: 20-inches to 10 feet high and 12 to 48 inches wide
  • Benefits Provided: High in nutrients, antioxidants, and vitamins as well as good for heart health, blood sugar levels, healthy weight loss, and more
  • Spacing Recommendations: 18 to 24 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Black Beauty, Green Machine, Dunja, Spineless Perfection, Spineless Beauty, Easy Pick Gold II, Round Zucchini, and Eight Ball

6. Broccoli

A stalk of broccoli ready to be harvested from the plant.

Speaking of healthy companion plants for your nasturtium, they don’t come much healthier or more beneficial than broccoli.

That said, because they normally reach up to 2 feet tall and 2 feet wide, you won’t need many (unless you have large flower beds or a big garden).

  • Mature Size: 18 to 30 inches high and 12 to 24 inches wide
  • Benefits Provided: Anti-cancer properties; high levels of nutrients; good for heart health, eye health, hormone balance, and the immune system
  • Spacing Recommendations: 18 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Belstar, Calabrese, Destiny, DiCicco, Eastern Magic, Green Magic, Purple Sprouting, and Romanesco

7. Cabbages

A healthy head of cabbage ready for harvest.

The cabbage family of plants are also good companions for your flowers. They are relatively smaller than other items on our list, and once developed, they are attractive to look at as well.

  • Mature Size: 12 to 24 inches high and 12 to 24 inches wide
  • Benefits Provided: High levels of nutrients and vitamins, good for immune system, lowers blood pressure, can improve heart health
  • Spacing Recommendations: 24 to 36 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Brunswick, Earliana, Golden Acre, January King, Late Flat Dutch, Mammoth Red Rock, and Red Acre

8. Cauliflower

A head of cauliflower ready for harvest.

Cauliflower, or white broccoli as it is no doubt referred to by children around the world, is yet another extremely healthy and beneficial companion plant for your consideration.

  • Mature Size: 12 to 30 inches high and 12 to 24 inches wide
  • Benefits Provided: High amounts of fiber, antioxidants, and vitamins; promotes good heart health and healthy weight loss
  • Spacing Recommendations: 18 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Attribute Hybrid, Cheddar Hybrid, Depurple Hybrid, Fioretto 85, Flame Star Hybrid, Graffiti Hybrid, Snowball, Self-Blanching Snowball, Sicilian Violet, Veronica Romanesco Hybrid, White Corona Hybrid, Early White Hybrid

9. Kale

Healthy kale plants in a garden.

Kale are great companions for nasturtium as they don’t typically get much larger than 1 or 2 feet tall and wide, and with all the varieties available, they add an interesting bit of aesthetics to your flower beds or garden.

  • Mature Size: 12 to 24 inches high and 12 to 24 inches wide
  • Benefits Provided: High in nutrients and vitamins, promotes healthy heart, eye sight, and bone health
  • Spacing Recommendations: 18 to 24 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Black Magic, Dazzling Blue, Dwarf Siberian, Premier, Prizm Hybrid, Redbor, and Red Russian

10. Radishes

Radish Plant in Sandy Soil

These little guys are some of the best root veggies for using as companion plants. They are take up plenty of nutrients from the soil, which is okay with nasturtium (which don’t do so well in richer soils).

  • Mature Size: 6 to 8 inches high and an inch or so wide
  • Benefits Provided: High in nutrients, calcium, potassium, and antioxidants as well as promotes good heart health and lower blood pressure
  • Spacing Recommendations: 4 to 6 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: French Breakfast, Ilka, Mirabeau, Stela, Plum Purple, Rougette, Scarlet Globe, and Tarzan

11. Tomatoes

Several healthy, staked tomato plants laden with fruit in various stages of ripening.

Tomatoes are one of the most widely grown plants in all of the world, and yes, they make amazing companion plants for most of your flowers and garden variety plants.

That said, if you don’t want them to dwarf your nasturtium, you’ll want to plant them very sparingly.

  • Mature Size: 4 to 20 feet high and wide
  • Benefits Provided: High levels of vitamins, minerals, potassium, and anti-cancer properties as well as promotes heart health
  • Spacing Recommendations: 24 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Big Beef, Big Boy, Celebrity, Early Girl, Grape, Independence Day, Jersey, and Juliet

12. Potatoes

A single potato plant in a home garden.

These 2 to 4 feet tall and 1 to 2 feet wide bushy plants make great companions for nasturtium in gardens and beds that you plan to turn over at the end of the season.

Otherwise, you may opt to plant just one or two potato plants around the very outer edges of your beds.

  • Mature Size: 24 to 48 inches tall and 12 to 24 inches wide
  • Benefits Provided: Lowers blood sugar and cholesterol as well as prevents disease and promotes good heart health
  • Spacing Recommendations: 24 to 36 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Arran Pilot, Cara, Charlotte, Pink Fir Apple, Sarpo Mira, Maris Piper, Rooster, and Maris Peer

13. Beans

Green beans on the plant ready for harvest.

Beans can make a good companion plant in a pinch, especially when a trellis is involved.

Without something to support the beans and plenty of space to climb, beans can quickly take over, so you’ll need to keep up with them and harvest them often.

Try bush varieties if you don’t have an available trellis.

  • Mature Size: 2 to 15 feet tall and 2 to 3 feet wide
  • Benefits Provided: High in protein, folate, antioxidants, increases heart health, reduces risk of cancer and diabetes, and helps control appetite 
  • Spacing Recommendations: 24 to 48 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: snap bush beans, snap-pole beans, bush yellow beans, lima beans, soy beans, and shell beans

14. Onions

Several onion plants growing in a garden.

Onions are almost always a great companion plant for flowers in gardens and flower beds. They are small, don’t take up much room or nutrients, and they work as natural pest repellent.

  • Mature Size: 3 to 4 inches tall and wide
  • Benefits Provided: High levels of nutrients, antioxidants, and antibacterial and anti-cancer properties as well as promotes heart health and bone density
  • Spacing Recommendations: 12 to 15 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Ailsa Craig, Italian Torpedo, Red Burgundy (also known as simply Red or Purple), Utah Yellow Sweet Spanish, Walla Walla, White Grano, and White Sweet Spanish

15. Spinach

Mature leaves on spinach plant ready to be harvested.

Out of all the leafy greens you can grow as a companion plant with your flowers, spinach is definitely one of the best.

It is available in tons of variety, has loads of health benefits, and is super easy to grow.

  • Mature Size: 6 to 12 inches tall and 12 to 36 inches wide
  • Benefits Provided: High in vitamins, minerals, calcium, iron, folate, as well as promotes better eye sight, boosts hydration, and strengthens the immune system
  • Spacing Recommendations: 8 to 12 inches apart
  • Popular Varieties: Acadia, Baby’s Leaf, Bloomsdale, Butterfly, Carmel, Corvair, Emperor, Flamingo, Galilee, Giant Noble, Hammerhead, Harmony, Kolibri, and Viroflay

Conclusion 

Now that you know the top 15 best nasturtium companion plants, you can maximize benefits! Not only can you have organic pest control, but you’ll have extra crops to enjoy as well.

So, what are you waiting for? It’s time to plan your next planting session with all the new information you learned today!