Lettuce

Lactuca sativa

Asteraceae

Cucumber

Cucumis sativus

Cucurbitaceae

Can you plant lettuce and cucumbers together?

Yes. Lettuce and cucumbers grow well together. A shared bed gave about 35% more harvest than separate beds in 3 field trials, and lettuce kept pests off cucumbers in a greenhouse or pot trial.

Why lettuce and cucumbers work together

More harvest from the same bed. In 3 field trials, a bed with both crops gave about 35% more harvest than the same space split into a cucumber bed and a lettuce bed.
Land Equivalent Ratio in the Intercropping of Cucumber with Lettuce as a Function of Cucumber Population Density (Teixeira Ribas · 2020)
and 2 more sources
Fewer pests. In a greenhouse or pot trial, lettuce kept pests off cucumbers.
Preference of Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) to four vegetable hosts (Yang Zhongxia · 2004 · Acat Entomologica Sinica)
Garden charts recommend it. 2 garden chart entries recommend growing them together. None of them cites a source. Charts pass on gardening tradition; they are not tests.
List of companion plants (uncited entry) (Wikipedia)

What to plant with lettuce and cucumbers

Good neighbours of both, best tested first.

CarrotWith lettuce: 78% more harvestWith cucumbers: Recommended by garden charts, not tested
BeanWith lettuce: 48% more harvestWith cucumbers: 14% more harvest
BeetWith lettuce: 58% more harvestWith cucumbers: Recommended by garden charts, not tested
GarlicWith lettuce: Recommended by garden charts, not testedWith cucumbers: Bigger combined harvest
OnionWith lettuce: Recommended by garden charts, not testedWith cucumbers: Helpful plant chemistry

All 8 plants that suit both, with the evidence

What to keep away from lettuce and cucumbers

CeleryWith lettuce: Garden charts advise against it, not tested
ParsleyWith lettuce: Garden charts advise against it, not tested
PotatoWith cucumbers: 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

Good

avoidgood

2 chart entries: 2 recommend, 0 advise against.

0 cited, 2 uncited.

Research

Good

avoidgood

2 papers found: 2 positive, 0 negative.

yield / land usepest suppression

auto-classified not reviewed by a person

Yield trial

Good

0.35

0.96

Cucumber gains more. Partial LER is each crop's share of the yield it would give alone.

3 field trials. Published LERs lean high.

Good neighbours

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.

Lettuce CucumberLettuce helps keep pests off Cucumber: its scent and plant chemistry confuse or repel the insects that would attack it.

Researchgreenhouse / pot trial x1

Preference of Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) to four vegetable hosts (Yang Zhongxia · 2004 · Acat Entomologica Sinica)

Lettuce CucumberGrown together, Lettuce and Cucumber gave more food from the same ground than apart.

Researchgreenhouse / pot trial x1

Economic analysis of cucumber and lettuce intercropping under greenhouse in the winter-spring. (Rezende BL · 2011 · Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciencias)

Lettuce CucumberMedian land equivalent ratio 1.35 over 3 trials: growing them together gave 1.35 times the harvest of two separate plots of the same size.

Partial LERs (medians): Lettuce 0.35 + Cucumber 0.97. Range across treatments 1.08 to 1.71. 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 trialgreenhouse / pot trial x3

Land Equivalent Ratio in the Intercropping of Cucumber with Lettuce as a Function of Cucumber Population Density (Teixeira Ribas · 2020)

Intercropping in cucumber (Cucumis sativus) under greenhouse conditions (Yildirim · 2004)

1 more source

YIELD OF INTERCROPPED LETTUCE AND CUCUMBER AS A FUNCTION OF POPULATION DENSITY AND CROPPING SEASON X1 - PRODUTIVIDADE DO CONSÓRCIO DE ALFACE E PEPINO EM FUNÇÃO DA DENSIDADE POPULACIONAL E ÉPOCA DE CULTIVO (Cecílio Filho · 2019)

Tradition saysGood

2 gardening-lore entries, 2 without a specific citation. Lore is a starting point, not proof.

None of the 2 tradition entries cite a specific source.

Companion plants for both lettuce and cucumbers

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

Plant	With lettuce	With cucumbers
Carrot	78% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 1 study. Charts: recommend.Evidence for lettuce and carrots	No trial foundNot tested. Charts: recommend.Evidence for cucumbers and carrots
Bean	48% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 2 studies. Charts: recommend.Evidence for lettuce and beans	14% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 1 study. Charts: recommend.Evidence for cucumbers and beans
Beet	58% more harvest from the same spaceField trial, 1 study. Charts: recommend.Evidence for lettuce and beets	No trial foundNot tested. Charts: recommend.Evidence for cucumbers and beets
Garlic	No trial foundNot tested. Charts: recommend.Evidence for lettuce and garlic	Bigger combined harvest and better soil and nutrient uptakeChemicals that hold growth backField trial, 5 studies. Charts: recommend.Evidence for cucumbers and garlic
Onion	No trial foundNot tested. Charts: recommend.Evidence for lettuce and onions	Helpful plant chemistry and bigger combined harvestField trial, 3 studies. Charts: recommend.Evidence for cucumbers and onions
Spinach	Bigger combined harvestGreenhouse or pot trial, 1 study. Charts: not listed.Evidence for lettuce and spinach	Better soil and nutrient uptakeGreenhouse or pot trial, 1 study. Charts: recommend.Evidence for cucumbers and spinach

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).

Recommended by garden charts for both, not tested yet

Kohlrabi Dill

The evidence, with sources

ResearchGood2 entries

Goodyield / land usegreenhouse / pot trialauto-classified

Economic analysis of cucumber and lettuce intercropping under greenhouse in the winter-spring.
Economic analysis of cucumber and lettuce intercropping under greenhouse in the winter-spring. (Rezende BL · 2011 · Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciencias)

Relevance 95% · effect confidence 76%
Goodpest suppressiongreenhouse / pot trialauto-classified

Lettuce helps Cucumber
Preference of Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) to four vegetable hosts
Preference of Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) to four vegetable hosts (Yang Zhongxia · 2004 · Acat Entomologica Sinica)

Relevance 91% · effect confidence 88%

Yield trialGood3 entries

GoodLER 1.48greenhouse / pot trial

Brazil, 2015; Additive design; median LER 1.48 over 8 treatment(s)
Land Equivalent Ratio in the Intercropping of Cucumber with Lettuce as a Function of Cucumber Population Density (Teixeira Ribas · 2020)
GoodLER 1.15greenhouse / pot trial

Turkey, 2000-2001; Additive design; median LER 1.15 over 4 treatment(s) · partial LER Cucumber 0.965
Intercropping in cucumber (Cucumis sativus) under greenhouse conditions (Yildirim · 2004)
GoodLER 1.34greenhouse / pot trial

Brazil, 2005-2006; Additive design; median LER 1.34 over 12 treatment(s) · partial LER Lettuce 0.35
YIELD OF INTERCROPPED LETTUCE AND CUCUMBER AS A FUNCTION OF POPULATION DENSITY AND CROPPING SEASON X1 - PRODUTIVIDADE DO CONSÓRCIO DE ALFACE E PEPINO EM FUNÇÃO DA DENSIDADE POPULACIONAL E ÉPOCA DE CULTIVO (Cecílio Filho · 2019)

TraditionGood2 entries

GoodCucumber helps Lettuce
Cucumber: helps lettuce
List of companion plants (uncited entry) (Wikipedia)
GoodCucumber helps Lettuce
Lettuce: helped by cucumbers
List of companion plants (uncited entry) (Wikipedia)

Plan a bed with lettuce and cucumbers

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

Have you grown lettuce and cucumbers 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.