Kohlrabi is a vegetable with a swollen bulb that resembles a dragon fruit. It is found in purple and light green skinned colors. It is from a member of the Brassica family that flavors as sweet turnips. The cool weather crop is edible along with its leaves.
Kohlrabi is good in taste that contains lots of nutritious value. They are high in water, fiber, energy, calcium, magnesium, phosphorous, potassium, and vitamins C and A.
In this article, you will find Kohlrabi’s best and worst companion planting. You will also find the growing requirements. Further, giving the insight to protect the plant from grass pests and diseases with necessary safeguards.
Why Does Kohlrabi Need Companion Plants?
Companion planting is a polyculture that involves the practice of growing various plants. Such pairing of plants close together benefits each other in numerous ways. Benefits include covering the ground, attracting pollinators, deterring pests, soil minerals, and nutrient needs, suppressing weeds, allowing shade, etc.
To maintain the good health of your garden plants, it is necessary to understand that companion planting gives life to the garden space. So do Kohlrabi plants need to deter severe pests and diseases, benefiting each other and improving the plant’s growth.
Further, you will learn the best companions for Kohlrabi plants and those to be avoided.
Best Kohlrabi Companion Plants
Let us know the best neighboring plants for Kohlrabi, which could be as follows:
1. Beets
Beet nutritional requirements are less calcium than Kohlrabis, so placing them together aids both with dietary needs.
Both aid in high nutritional demands and improve immunity.
Beets help loosen the soil for proper air circulation.
Planting them together will fetch visually attractive to the garden visitors.
2. Celery
Planting Celery with Kohlrabi makes them good neighboring plants as celery does not spread quickly, giving space for other plants to grow.
Both Celery and Kohlrabi harvesting times are in winter. Cropping them alongside is a better idea.
Kohlrabi and Celery’s water and soil requirements are also similar. They both need cool and moist soil with rich and organic soil.
3. Cucumber
Keeping Cucumber and Kohlrabi together will keep certain animals, such as deer, away.
Cucumbers are an excellent companion plant, providing adequate shade when planted with other plants.
Both have similar soil and water requirements that grows best in well-drained soil rich in organic matter.
4. Lettuce
Lettuce is a good companion with Kohlrabi as both have similar soil status that requires a ground cover that helps keep the soil moist.
Together Lettuce with Kohlrabi provides an organic mulch that conserves moisture, keeps the temperatures cool, and suppresses weeds.
Both are edible vegetables and are used for culinary purposes.
5. Dill
The aromatic fragrance of dill attracts beneficial insects such as wasps and hoverflies that dive away insects such as aphids and cabbage worms found in Kohlrabi.
Both Kohlrabi and dill harvest time are similar. They are planted in early spring.
6. Sweet Alyssum
When planted, sweet alyssum with Kohlrabi, it helps cover up the garden’s bare space, reducing weeds and thereby retaining moisture.
At about the same time in early spring, cool-season veggies need pollinators and beneficial insects to visit them. These plants benefits when planted together.
Worst Companion Plants For Kohlrabi
The worst companion plants for Kohlrabi that need to be watched are:
1. Beans
Beans, when planted with Kohlrabi, are not good companion plants. Planting them together can slow down Kohlrabi’s growth, further disturbing their propagation. Try to avoid planting Kohlrabi and bear in close proximity.
2. Fennel
Fennel and Kohlrabi are bad companions when planted together. Planting them together will stunt the growth of Kohlrani. Fennel releases a harmful chemical that harms other neighboring plants.
3. Parsley
Parsley cannot be planted near Kohlrabi as they are not a good choice for the garden. They are bad companions because they require similar soil requirements that can further compete for nutrition, reducing the yield.
4. Tomatoes
Tomatoes are not a good companion plant for Kohlrabi. It inhibits the growth of the Kohlrabi, which affects in stunting the growth of the plant. So it is best to avoid planting Kohlrabi with tomatoes parallelly.
What Are Kohlrabi’s Growing Requirements?
As every living being has specific growing requirements, so do plants. It is necessary to understand the growth requirements of particular plants if you plan to root them in your garden.
Let us have a look at what the Kohlrabi plant’s requirements are:
- Season: It is grown both during Spring and Winter.
- Sunlight: The sunlight requirement is six hours of full sun.
- Temperature and Humidity: They require a temperature between 45°F and 75°F with low humidity.
- Soil Type: Fertile, well-drained, moist soil.
- Water: An even supply of water is required.
- Fertilizer: Mulch with compost, ground leaves, or ground bark to keep the soil cool and moist.
- Propagation: Fast growth.
- Space: Space the Kohlrabi plant 12 inches apart.
Grass Diseases And Pests
Commonly, you may encounter some detrimental diseases and pests affecting your garden plants. To address plant health affected by different factors, let’s look at them.
1. Kohlrabi Pests
The Kohlrabi pests include aphids, cutworms, Flea beetles, cabbage loopers, Powdery mildew, Thrips, and imported cabbage worms.
Protect the Kohlrabi plant against the formation of pests by placing the collars around the stem. It will protect the seedling in the plant.
2. Kohlrabi Diseases
The Kohlrabi diseases include black rot, cabbage yellows, Downy mildew, clubroot, and downy mildew.
Removing the infected Kohlrabi plant by uprooting it is best suggested.
Conclusion
Kohlrabi is a delicious vegetable edible along with leaves. Including it in your dish is good as it has many nutritional properties. In the article, you will find six companion plants and four harmful companion plants for Kohlrabi. You will also learn the Kohlrabis growing requirements. You can try out what best suits the garden. Every gardener worries about diseases and pests that can disturb the other garden plants. You will know the pests and diseases that harm the plant, and the ways to overcome them have been addressed further.