Cabbage

Brassica oleracea var. capitata

Brassicaceae

Pepper

Capsicum annuum

Solanaceae

Can you plant cabbage and peppers together?

It depends. The sources disagree about cabbage and peppers. Cabbage kept pests off peppers in a field trial, but a shared bed gave about 10% less harvest than separate beds in one field trial.

Why it depends

Less harvest from the same bed. In one field trial, a bed with both crops gave about 10% less harvest than the same space split into a cabbage bed and a pepper bed.
Agronomic Performance of Collards under Two Intercrops and Varying Nitrogen Application Levels as Assessed Using Land Equivalent Ratios (Mutiga · 2011)
Fewer pests. In a field trial, cabbage kept pests off peppers.
Pepper weevil, Anthonomus eugenii (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) suppression on jalapeño pepper using non-host insect repellent plants (Adeleye VO · 2022 · Crop Protection)
Better soil and nutrient uptake. In a field trial, cabbage improved the soil or nutrient uptake of peppers.
Influence of Companion Planting on Microbial Compositions and Their Symbiotic Network in Pepper Continuous Cropping Soil. (Gao J · 2023 · Journal of microbiology and biotechnology)
Garden charts advise against it. 1 garden chart entry says to keep them apart. It cites no source. Charts pass on gardening tradition; they are not tests.
List of companion plants (uncited entry) (Wikipedia)

What to plant with cabbage and peppers

Good neighbours of both, best tested first.

CarrotWith cabbage: 19% more harvestWith peppers: 127% more harvest
CilantroWith cabbage: 70% more harvestWith peppers: Fewer pests
DillWith cabbage: 55% more harvestWith peppers: Draws in pest-eating insects
EggplantWith cabbage: 54% more harvestWith peppers: Recommended by garden charts, not tested
OnionWith cabbage: 8% more harvestWith peppers: 20% more harvest

All 9 plants that suit both, with the evidence

What to keep away from cabbage and peppers

KaleWith peppers: Garden charts advise against it, not tested
Brussels sproutsWith peppers: Garden charts advise against it, not tested

The evidence in detail

For readers who want to dig in: every chart entry, study and yield trial behind the answer above, with the numbers.

Tradition, research and yield trials

Tradition

Bad

avoidgood

1 chart entry: 0 recommend, 1 advise against.

0 cited, 1 uncited.

Research

Good

avoidgood

2 papers found: 2 positive, 0 negative.

pest suppressionnutrients / soil

auto-classified not reviewed by a person

Yield trial

Bad

No per-crop split reported in these trials.

1 field trial. Published LERs lean high.

It's complicated

What happens above and below ground

Each animation illustrates a mechanism a study reported for this pair. Pick a card to focus on it.

Everything at once.

What is going on (3)

Pick a card to spotlight its animation in the scene.

Cabbage PepperCabbage helps keep pests off Pepper: its scent and plant chemistry confuse or repel the insects that would attack it.

Researchfield trial x1

Pepper weevil, Anthonomus eugenii (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) suppression on jalapeño pepper using non-host insect repellent plants (Adeleye VO · 2022 · Crop Protection)

Cabbage PepperCabbage changes the soil for Pepper, sharing nutrients or feeding the fungal threads that link their roots.

Researchfield trial x1

Influence of Companion Planting on Microbial Compositions and Their Symbiotic Network in Pepper Continuous Cropping Soil. (Gao J · 2023 · Journal of microbiology and biotechnology)

Cabbage PepperMedian land equivalent ratio 0.90 over 1 trial: growing them together gave only 0.90 times the harvest of separate plots, so the mix was less efficient.

Partial LERs (medians): Cabbage 0.45 + Pepper 0.45. Range across treatments 0.75 to 0.91. Medians are taken separately, so the parts need not add up to the median LER. LER above 1 is biased upward by publication bias.

Yield trialfield trial x1

Agronomic Performance of Collards under Two Intercrops and Varying Nitrogen Application Levels as Assessed Using Land Equivalent Ratios (Mutiga · 2011)

Tradition saysBad

1 gardening-lore entry, 1 without a specific citation. Lore is a starting point, not proof.

None of the 1 tradition entry cites a specific source.

Companion plants for both cabbage and peppers

Plants that are good neighbours of each. Biggest harvest gain first; each cell links to the evidence for that pair.

Plant	With cabbage	With peppers
Carrot	19% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 1 study. Charts: not listed.Evidence for cabbage and carrots	127% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 1 study. Charts: not listed.Evidence for peppers and carrots
Cilantro	Draws in pest-eating insects70% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 7 studies. Charts: recommend.Evidence for cabbage and cilantro	Fewer pests and draws in pest-eating insectsField trial, 2 studies. Charts: not listed.Evidence for peppers and cilantro
Dill	Draws in pest-eating insects and lures pests away55% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 3 studies. Charts: recommend.Evidence for cabbage and dill	Draws in pest-eating insectsField trial, 1 study. Charts: not listed.Evidence for peppers and dill
Eggplant	54% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 1 study. Charts: not listed.Evidence for cabbage and eggplant	No trial foundSame family (Solanaceae): shares pests and diseasesNot tested. Charts: recommend.Evidence for peppers and eggplant
Onion	Fewer pests and draws in pest-eating insects8% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 8 studies. Charts: recommend.Evidence for cabbage and onions	20% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 6 studies. Charts: recommend.Evidence for peppers and onions
Celery	27% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 1 study. Charts: recommend.Evidence for cabbage and celery	Better soil and nutrient uptakeField trial, 1 study. Charts: not listed.Evidence for peppers and celery
Basil	12% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 2 studies. Charts: not listed.Evidence for cabbage and basil	Fewer pests and draws in pest-eating insectsMixed results on harvestField trial, 6 studies. Charts: recommend.Evidence for peppers and basil
Rosemary	No trial foundNot tested. Charts: recommend.Evidence for cabbage and rosemary	Fewer pestsGreenhouse or pot trial, 2 studies. Charts: not listed.Evidence for peppers and rosemary
Chives	No trial foundNot tested. Charts: recommend.Evidence for cabbage and chives	Fewer pestsGreenhouse or pot trial, 1 study. Charts: not listed.Evidence for peppers and chives

Harvest from the same space compares a bed with both crops against the same area split into single-crop beds, counting the harvest of both crops (the land equivalent ratio in yield trials).

The evidence, with sources

ResearchGood2 entries

Goodpest suppressionfield trialauto-classified

Cabbage helps Pepper
Pepper weevil, Anthonomus eugenii (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) suppression on jalapeño pepper using non-host insect repellent plants
Pepper weevil, Anthonomus eugenii (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) suppression on jalapeño pepper using non-host insect repellent plants (Adeleye VO · 2022 · Crop Protection)

Relevance 90% · effect confidence 86%
Goodnutrients / soilfield trialauto-classified

Cabbage helps Pepper
Influence of Companion Planting on Microbial Compositions and Their Symbiotic Network in Pepper Continuous Cropping Soil.
Influence of Companion Planting on Microbial Compositions and Their Symbiotic Network in Pepper Continuous Cropping Soil. (Gao J · 2023 · Journal of microbiology and biotechnology)

Relevance 88% · effect confidence 56%

Yield trialBad1 entry

BadLER 0.90field trial

Kenya, 2006; Additive design; median LER 0.90 over 4 treatment(s)
Agronomic Performance of Collards under Two Intercrops and Varying Nitrogen Application Levels as Assessed Using Land Equivalent Ratios (Mutiga · 2011)

TraditionBad1 entry

Badadvises against
Peppers: avoid kale (cabbage, Brussels sprouts, etc.)
List of companion plants (uncited entry) (Wikipedia)

Plan a bed with cabbage and peppers

All neighbours of cabbage and of pepper, or every pair at once in the companion planting chart.

Have you grown cabbage and peppers together?

Tell other gardeners what happened: spacing, pests, harvest, or ask a question. Reader notes are not checked by us and do not change the verdicts on this page.