Bok Choy is a fast-grown Asian (China) vegetable that most planters love to grow in the garden. Bok choy, commonly named Chinese cabbage, bok choi, pac choy, pac choi. They belong to the Chinese brassicas family. They are summer-grown plants. The biennial vegetable needs total sun exposure to partial shade. The soil type it requires is rich and well-drained, with pH 6.5 to 7.0, slightly acid to neutral.
Bok choy contains the necessary vitamins and minerals. It mainly contains vitamins C and K. It also includes antioxidants and fiber, an essential nutrient source for overall health. Bok choy even benefits heart health, bone health, and thyroid function.
This article discusses the growing requirements of bok choy and the best and worst bok choy used as pest control companion planting. Further, how to protect bok choy from pests and diseases and suggests a few ways to incorporate it before planting.
Why Does Bok Choy Need Companion Plants?
Companion gardening is an old smart way to practice growing plants diversely for healthy gardening. Practicing friendly companion plants in your garden acts as a pest repellent, soil nutrients, and other needful activities. Bok Choy needs companion plants because they are vulnerable to cabbage worms, maggots, flea beetles, and aphids.
Other factors, such as weather, soil condition, watering, fertilizing, etc., are essential for their survival. However, companion planting is necessary for good propagation, especially for seasoned gardening.
Best Bok Choy Companion Plants
Here are some best bok choy companion plants to consider:
1. Carrot
Carrots are biennial vegetables, a member of the Apiaceae family. They grow in early spring with their fast growth rate harvest within 90 days. They do not flower, but if they do, they are no longer edible. A carrot is a good companion for bok choy.
2. Spinach
An annual, leafy vegetable belonging to the Amaranthaceae family is spinach. Plant spinach in the spring or late winter and again in the summer or early autumn. Within 45 days of seeding, the spinach plant begins to produce leaves due to its quick growth rate. Bok Choy is a good plant companion for spinach since they also have pest-repelling qualities.
3. Peppermint
A perennial herb in the Lamiaceae family, peppermint is a herbaceous plant. It is a fantastic partner because of its strong flavor, which attracts favoring insects like bees and hoverflies, which the bok choy would benefit significantly. They are best grown in spring with full to partial sun.
4. Rosemary
Rosemary is a herb containing fragrance. This evergreen plant is used in various cuisines and has medicinal properties. Rosemary drives off flea beetles and aphids, making it a good companion for bok choy.
5. Onions
Commonly known onions, also known as bulb onions, a vegetable most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium. Onions have a strong smell that chases away numerous garden pests affecting bok choy plants, making them a bonding plant.
Worst Companion Plants For Bok Choy
Some plants to avoid with bok choy are:
1. Dill
Dill is an annual Apiaceae (celery) family plant that draws cabbage worms. When growing dill in your garden, place it far enough away from your bok choy such that it will drive away pests.
2. Strawberries
Bok choy and strawberries have a mutually harmful chemical imbalance. Planting in the same soil will prevent one another from growing. Furthermore, a poorer yield is even anticipated. Wasps are nevertheless likely to be drawn to strawberries, even though they are very beneficial for bok choy protection.
3. Tomatoes
Tomatoes are such a vegetable that are juicy and rich in antioxidants. The plant is a popular superfood that is high in vitamin C. When planted next to bok choy, nightshade plants like tomatoes often kill it. The severe fungal disease verticillium wilt will severely affect bok choy and other brassicas.
4. Broccoli
Broccoli is an edible plant associated with the cabbage family. The typical green vegetable contains fiber, vitamin C, and other minerals. Bok choy and broccoli both draw the same dangerous bugs, which can result in pest infestations. Since both consume a lot of food, they will fight for nutrients.
What Are Bok Choy’s Growing Requirements?
These are the growing requirements of Bok Choy’s:
1. Light
Bok choy needs sufficient sunshine and may even tolerate some shadow, particularly in the summer. Regularly, it requires six to eight hours of bright light.
2. Soil
Bok choy prefers a rich organic matter mixture in wet, well-draining soil. 6.0 to 7.5 is the ideal pH range for boy choy.
3. Water
Bok choy has to be watered once or twice a week, depending on the temperature and moisture content. In the dry autumn months, it has to be watered often.
4. Fertilizer
The bok choy plant prefers soil high in potassium, nitrogen, and phosphorus. While chemical fertilizers shouldn’t be used during propagation, organic feeding must be done at the time of planting.
5. Temperature And Humidity
The Brassica family includes bok choy. It grows best in colder climates; dry and hot temperatures can hasten the early bolting of bok choy. It can withstand extreme temperatures of 27°F (-3°C) and 95°F (35°C).
Grass Diseases And Pests
Here are a few diseases and infestations that occur while planting bok choy plants:
Black spots on bok choy are some common bugs in bok choy gardens that are easy to care plant.
1. Common Bugs
- Aphids
- Diamondback Months
- Cabbage maggots
- Whiteflies
- Cabbageworm larvae
- Slugs
- Flea beetles
- Cabbage loopers
- Cutworms
- Vegetable weevers.
Remove them sooner by hand plucking or using a stream of hose water.
Protect the plants from the start of the season with floating row covers. Spray your plants with pesticides or neem oil to prevent them from returning.
2. Fungi And Bacteria
The most likely diseases to arise when growing bok choy plants are:
- Alternaria leaf spot
- Downy mildew
- Mosaic virus
- Soft rot
- Black Rot
- Damping Off
Ensure adequate airflow between plants and refrain from overwatering them. Unfortunately, excessive wetness promotes rapid bacterial development, which might destroy your vegetable crop. Make your organic fungicides at home for simple treatment. Use baking soda and water as a garden sprayer to water your plants every other week.
Conclusion
Bok choy prefers the whole light and enjoys the companionship of plants with similar growing requirements. Originally from China, bok choy is a cruciferous, leafy green vegetable. It is widely consumed in Asian cuisine. To limit your consumption of myrosinase, a substance that can prevent the absorption of iodine, consider consuming it cooked. If you eat a lot of raw bok choy, this can be a problem. Generally, eating bok choy in standard serving sizes is fine. Boy choy may be used in various dishes, including salads and stir-fries. It is boiled and added to soups.