Plant Partners - by Jessica Walliser (Paperback)

About the Book

Reflecting the latest research on how plants influence and communicate with each other, Jessica Walliser offers a research-based guide to companion planting--a gardening method that uses strategic plant partnerships to improve crop yields and outsmart pests.

Book Synopsis

2021 AHS Book Award Winner

Companion planting has a long history of use by gardeners, but the explanation of why it works has been filled with folklore and conjecture. Plant Partners delivers a research-based rationale for this ever-popular growing technique, offering dozens of ways you can use scientifically tested plant partnerships to benefit your whole garden. Through an enhanced understanding of how plants interact with and influence each other, this guide suggests specific plant combinations that improve soil health and weed control, decrease pest damage, and increase biodiversity, resulting in real and measurable impacts in the garden.

From the Back Cover

Companion planting gets a science-based reboot!

Intentionally growing certain plants together to benefit the whole garden now has science to explain its success. Jessica Walliser's new vision of an old tradition is built around a modern understanding of the marvelous web of connections happening in the garden and how to use them to create real and measurable results.

Discover dozens of well-studied partnerships that offer fresh strategies to:
- Break up heavy soils
- Combat weeds and disease
- Lure pests away
- Attract specific beneficial insects
- Improve pollination

Review Quotes

"[Plant Partners] takes a new look at a popular subject that has long relied on folklore and conjecture rather than research." -- Margaret Roach, The New York Times

"Plant Partners offers more than just specific plant pairings; it encourages us to think about the relationships between plants, so that we can grow our best garden ever."
-- Jeff Gillman, PhD, Director of the UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens and best-selling author of The Truth about GardenRemedies and Decoding Gardening Advice

"Finally, a science-based book that addresses the 'companion planting' concept of how and why plants can - and really do - play a tangible role in helping to create healthier, more productive vegetable gardens. Plant Partners is a fun and fascinating read. It is well-researched and Jessica Walliser's ability to pack so much useful information into this book just adds to the experience. I enthusiastically recommend this book!"
-- Joe Lamp'l, executive producer and host of Growing a Greener World

"Plant Partners takes the age-old concept of companion planting and adds a modern, scientific rigor. You'll better understand the true reasons to companion plant and why certain combinations work on a scientific basis. I guarantee you'll learn something you never knew within the first 10 pages of the book."
-- Kevin Espiritu, author and founder of Epic Gardening

"Those who know what to expect from Jessica Walliser's previous work will not be disappointed in this important book. Here, in easy-to-understand language, is the science-based knowledge vegetable gardeners need to make informed choices when combining plants. Who knew I should be planting nasturtiums with my summer squash? This book can turn your favorite hobby into a way to make the planet a better place."
-- James Baggett, senior editor, Garden Gate magazine

"For over a decade, Jessica Walliser has been my go-to resource for information on beneficial insects, pollinators, and companion planting. Plant Partners is a fresh look at a traditional topic. It approaches the subject of companion planting through the eyes of science and is an approachable, fascinating read. As you learn the many, many benefits to pairing plants, you'll look at your garden in a whole new way. Plant Partners is set to become a new garden classic."
-- Niki Jabbour, author of The Year-Round Vegetable Gardener and Growing Under Cover

"A well-supported and helpful look at the practice of plant partnering... Walliser's lively guide will aid many a horticulturally minded reader."
-- Publisher's Weekly

About the Author

Jessica Walliser is a horticulturalist and the author of several gardening books, including Plant Partners and Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden. In addition to cohosting The Organic Gardeners, an award-winning radio program in Pennsylvania, she is the co-owner of the popular gardening website SavvyGardening.com and a regular contributor to Fine Gardening, Urban Farm, and Hobby Farms, and the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Walliser is the recipient of an American Horticultural Society Book Award.

Jeff Gillman, PhD is director of the UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens and best-selling author of The Truth about Garden Remedies and Decoding Gardening Advice.