Zucchini with Nasturtium & Radish
Nasturtium works as a trap crop for aphids around hungry zucchini, and radishes are gone before the zucchini needs the room.
Season timeline
- Direct-sow the radishes
- Sow zucchini and nasturtium
- Harvest the radishes
- Clear the radish rows
- Pick nasturtium flowers and leaves
- Harvest zucchini continuously
- Clear the bed
Bed layout
Crops in this bed
Step by step
- Direct-sow the radishesApr
Sow radishes in short rows across the still-empty bed in April.
- Sow zucchini and nasturtiumMay
After the last frost, sow zucchini in the bed centre and nasturtium at the corners.
- Harvest the radishesMay–Jun
Pull the roots as they size up, before they turn sharp and woody.
- Clear the radish rowsJun
Remove the last radishes and any leftovers so the zucchini leaves can spread freely.
- Pick nasturtium flowers and leavesJun–Sep
Both flowers and young leaves are edible with a peppery kick; keep picking and the plants keep blooming.
- Harvest zucchini continuouslyJul–Oct
Cut fruits young every few days; regular harvest keeps the plant setting new ones.
- Clear the bedOct
Remove the frost-blackened plants and compost only healthy foliage.
Harvest calendar
| Crop | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bitter bottle gourd | Bitter bottle gourd: Jul | Bitter bottle gourd: Aug | Bitter bottle gourd: Sep | Bitter bottle gourd: Oct | ||||||||
| Garden nasturtium | Garden nasturtium: Jun | Garden nasturtium: Jul | Garden nasturtium: Aug | Garden nasturtium: Sep | ||||||||
| Chinese radish | Chinese radish: May | Chinese radish: Jun |
The bed over the season
- Bitter bottle gourd · Sowing
- Bitter bottle gourd · Growing
- Bitter bottle gourd · Harvest
- Garden nasturtium · Sowing
- Garden nasturtium · Harvest
- Chinese radish · Sowing
- Chinese radish · Harvest
Why this combination works
Black aphids prefer nasturtium to almost anything else, so the flowers sown at the bed corners work as a trap crop that lures the pests away from the zucchini. The sprawling nasturtium also covers bare soil like a living mulch. Radishes use the empty weeks before the frost-tender zucchini can be sown and are pulled just as the big leaves start to spread. A single zucchini plant then feeds a family, so the bed earns its keep all summer.
Tips
Sow zucchini only when nights stay reliably warm. Water at the base — wet leaves invite powdery mildew. Harvest fruits at 15–20 cm; they double in size within days. If the nasturtium gets covered in aphids, cut the worst shoots off and drop them in soapy water — that is the trap doing its job.