When planting any crops on your site, it is important to take into account the rules of crop rotation. If plants that are planted in the neighborhood get along well with each other, this will positively affect their fruiting. In the article, we will consider whether it is possible to plant onions and garlic side by side, and how to do it.
Both cultures belong to the same family. Therefore, they are not recommended to be planted in the same area. If the garden where garlic and onions are grown is large enough, it is better to place such plants away from each other. In a small area, they may well grow together. Such a neighborhood will not harm either onions or garlic.
These plants thrive in light soils. They react poorly to excess and lack of moisture. In the first case, the plants begin to hurt, in the second, they dry out and bear fruit very poorly. Onions and garlic are not recommended to be planted in acidic soil. This leads to infection of plants with downy mildew. To avoid this, the soil is deoxidized before planting using wood ash or lime.
Onions and garlic equally love well-lit places. If the plants get enough sunlight, they develop very well. But you should not expect the appearance of large fruits on the site. Usually, in such conditions, plants are grown in order to always have fresh greens on hand. With proper care, it will be possible to cut it from the bushes several times per season.
In order for plants to grow quickly and develop well, they need to be planted, adhering to certain rules.
The choice of location. First of all, it is important to choose a site on which these crops will grow. Onions are best planted where cucumbers, cabbage or radishes used to grow. Garlic is best planted after potatoes or beets. The soil on which the beds will be located should be fertile and not too soft. Otherwise, the garlic will be too deep underground. This will negatively affect the state of the crop.
Site preparation. To disinfect the beds, the soil is treated with a solution of copper sulfate or potassium permanganate before planting. An important role is played by the correct feeding of the beds. For this, potassium-phosphorus fertilizers are usually used. But fresh organic matter is not recommended to be introduced into the soil. Thus, a person will only harm the plants.
Selection of quality planting material. When planting onions and garlic in the same bed, it is important that these plants are strong enough. To do this, you should choose healthy seeds without traces of mold or rot.
Choice of other neighbors. Strawberries can be planted on the same bed with onions and garlic. Tomatoes and various salads will grow well nearby. But legumes in the area with amaryllis should not be planted. This will lead to a drop in productivity and infection of the site with various diseases. Many gardeners plant flowers such as asters, gladioli or roses on the border with the beds. This neighborhood has a great effect on the condition of the plants. They protect each other from pests and various infections. You can plant flowers not only on the border with the ridge, but also between individual bushes.
Disinfection of planting material. To avoid most diseases, garlic and onions should be dried well before planting, and then placed in a light solution of potassium permanganate for 2-3 hours. Instead, they can be treated with a light solution of copper sulfate. A small amount of wood ash can be added to the furrows before planting.
You need to plant onions next to garlic in the right way. Usually the rows alternate. The distance between them must be at least 20 centimeters. This is necessary so that some plants do not obscure others. Onions and garlic can also be staggered. This planting pattern is popular among many gardeners.
Vegetables need to be planted at a shallow depth. If you place them too deep, the first shoots will have to wait a very long time. When planting, the cloves should not be pressed into the soil too hard. This can damage the roots.
If onions and garlic are planted before winter, the beds should be located on a hill. In this case, in the spring, during the melting of snow, the roots will not be flooded. A couple of days before the onset of frost, the area should be covered with mulch. For plant protection, clean, dry foliage, humus or branches are usually used. When snow falls on the site, it is not worth removing it from the site. It will serve as a kind of “blanket” that protects plants from frost.
Both garlic and onions are considered quite unpretentious plants. Therefore, it takes little time to take care of them. To improve the condition of plants, you need to regularly carry out the following agrotechnical measures.
Loosening. Onions and garlic love loose soil. Therefore, it is recommended to constantly loosen it. Otherwise, it will be too tight. Loosening also helps protect plants from weeds. This only benefits them, because if garlic grows next to onions, it already lacks nutrients.
Watering. These plants do not like highly moist soil. In such conditions, they often get sick and grow very slowly. Therefore, watering onions and garlic is worth it only if the soil in the area is very dry. This usually happens during hot summers. For this, warm and well-settled water is used. If the vegetables were planted before winter, they definitely will not need watering. In the spring, melted snow will provide the plants with the necessary moisture.
Disease protection. For garlic and onions, the same diseases are dangerous. Therefore, when planting these plants nearby, you need to pay special attention to caring for the site. Most often they suffer from diseases such as white or black rot, as well as peronosporosis. To protect the site from these diseases, planting material is always disinfected. But if the site was still infected with one of these diseases, the beds should be treated with high-quality fungicides. Shrubs that are too affected are recommended to be removed from the site.
Pest control. To protect the beds from most common pests, gardeners plant marigolds and various herbs between rows of onions and garlic. This helps repel insects. In autumn, the stems of these plants are buried in the soil. This procedure has a good effect on the condition of the soil. In addition, digging allows you to get rid of eggs and insect larvae.
Once every 2-3 years, the location of these plants must be changed. After onions and garlic on the site, it is best to sow green manure. This is the fastest way to restore the soil and make it more nutritious. It is possible to plant onions and garlic in the previous place of growth no earlier than 5 years after they are harvested. Only in this case they will bear fruit well.
Summing up, we can say that onions and garlic are quite compatible. But in order to get a good harvest and prevent the death of plants, it is still recommended to plant them in different areas, or at least leave a large distance between individual rows. If you follow this rule and take good care of the bushes, there will be no problems with growing amaryllis.
