8 Plants You Should Always Grow Next to Beets for a Fresh, Flavorful Harvest

Swiss Chard

Swiss chard can be a well-suited neighbor for beets. "Beets grow in well-spaced [gardens next to plants] that allow plenty of light to reach [their] leaves," says Brooke Edmunds, a professor and horticulturist at Oregon State University Extension.

And, since both of these plants are fall vegetables, beets and chard can be harvested at the same time. This will make it easier for gardeners to keep track of their growth cycles.

• Zones: 9 to 10 year-round
• Size: 24 inches tall x 12 to 18 inches wide
• Care requirements: Full sun; well-draining, fertile soils; medium watering

Radishes

Radishes are another cool-weather crop you can grow next to beets. Since they're a smaller root vegetable that usually only grows a few inches in diameter, and their leaves generally stay about a foot tall, they likely won't outcompete your beets.

Space the two crops apart and allow enough sunlight for each—that way, you can grow and harvest these two plants simultaneously. "Beets do best with crops that also tolerate the same amount and type of watering," adds Edmunds.

• Zones: 9 to 10 year-round
• Size: 12 inches tall x 4 to 6 inches wide
• Care requirements: Full sun; well-draining, fertile soils

Dill

Dill can grow to a height of 4 feet, but its structure makes it a good contender for a beet companion plant.

"I love growing dill with my beets, because their greenery is open and airy," says Laura Irish-Hanson, horticulture educator at the University of Minnesota Extension. "The beets are going to get a lot of sun exposure, so [they] can be grown together successfully."

If you need to thin out the dill leaves, the sprigs can easily be tossed into a salad for a tangy flavor.

• Zones: 2 to 12
• Size: 4 feet tall x 3 feet wide
• Care requirements: Full sun; slightly acidic, well-draining, fertile soils
  

Tomatoes

During the summer months, you can grow beets with tomatoes, as long as you can keep the tomatoes pruned.

They're also a particularly good crop to grow between beets in the spring and fall. "You'd have to offset the tomatoes from the beets—about eight inches from each other," says Irish-Hanson.

• Zones: 10 to 13 year-round
• Size: 5 feet tall x 3 feet wide (depends on variety)
• Care requirements: Full sun; well-draining, fertile soils; consistent watering; balanced fertilizer
  

Scallions

Scallions are another crop to consider. "[They] have roots that don't get very big, and you have those big, nice, linear leaves," says Irish-Hanson. "You can interplant those together."

Green onions are fairly vertical plants and don't have much spread to them, so you'll have more space for your beets to settle in. There's also some research that suggests scallions can deter pests from some crops.

• Zones: 6 to 9
• Size: 8 to 12 inches tall x .5 inches wide
• Care requirements: Full sun; well-draining, fertile soils; medium watering
  

Alyssum

Some flowering plants, like alyssum, can attract predator insects. While that may sound scary, it can be beneficial for beets.

"There's not much hard science to back this, but bees and predatory wasps can destroy the larvae of a whole bunch of different pests," says Irish-Hanson. Lady beetles and lacewings, which also eat pests, are attracted to alyssum too.

Alyssum is also low-growing and can be easily trimmed back, so you can plant beets nearby without having to worry about their leaves competing for light.

• Zones: 9 to 11 year-round, will reseed itself liberally
• Size: 3 to 9 inches tall x 20 inches wide
• Care requirements: Full sun; well-draining, fertile soils
  

Nasturtium

In containers, beets and nasturtiums can be planted next to each other. "[Trailing] nasturtiums shade the top of the soil," says Irish-Hanson. This shade may help keep the soil moist for longer, reducing the chance of the container drying out too quickly.

• Zones: 9 to 11
• Size: 12 inches tall x 24 inches wide
• Care requirements: Full sun; sandy, well-draining, fertile soils; keep moist
  

Clover

Clover is an easy-to-grow ground cover and weed suppressor that pairs well with beets.

"I let Dutch white clover go all over my yard because it's fixing nitrogen, and I have really sandy soils—so it creeps next to my beets," says Irish-Hanson. This nitrogen-fixing quality may help the beets take up more nutrients.

Just be mindful that when you go to harvest the beets, you may be pulling up some of the clover, as it tends to get tangled in the beet stems.

• Zones: 3 to 10, depending on species
• Size: 3 to 6 inches tall x 12 to 24 inches wide
• Care requirements: Full sun; sandy, well-draining, moist soils