Companion planting: fennel and tomato

I have been puzzled over my tomatoes this year. Great that I have got so many ripening but why as many rotten ones?

I finally found the answer this evening…. We had been tidying up the garden, including pruning the blackberry bush. The fennel, close by, had got knocked, so I was concerned that, if the roots had been disturbed, it might bolt. I therefore did an internet search to see how likely this might be.

Well, I didn’t find the answer to that question. But on my cybertravels I did learn about fennel having a negative effect on tomatoes. In other words, as my book on companion planting confirmed, the former should not be planted next to the latter.

Incidentally, fennel appears to be bad companion for beans and coriander, too. That might explain why I have had no luck with coriander this year and why the broadbeans produced less than expected.

That said, at least I will have plenty of fennel tea this winter. And the tomatoes I do have are delicious 🙂