This fruit tree guild planner helps backyard growers with one or more fruit trees turn a garden idea into a clear planting plan. You enter a few numbers, and the tool works out the counts and lists for you. That matters because companion planting only works when the right plants sit in the right places, and guessing the layout often leaves gaps where pests or weeds move in. A written plan keeps the bed full, the soil covered, and each plant doing a job for its neighbours.
Companion planting is an old garden habit with a simple logic. Some plants feed the soil, some shade it, some confuse pests with strong scent, and some attract helpful insects that eat the pests. When you mix them well, the bed needs less spraying and less weeding. When you mix them badly, plants compete for light, water and food, and both sides grow poorly. The tool helps you keep the good mixes and avoid the known bad ones.
To use the tool, enter each value in order: Canopy radius in metres. Then press Calculate to see the result. Each line shows one part of the plan, so you can spot a number that looks wrong before you sow anything. If you change any value, press Calculate again. The example button fills in a worked case so you can see how the tool behaves before you enter your own numbers.
Here is a worked example. Take a tree with a 2 metre canopy radius covers 12.57 square metres and needs 7 nitrogen fixers, 26 ground cover plants, 13 pollinator flowers and 7 mulch plants. That result is the point of the tool: one clear plan, with each part visible. If a neighbour asks why you planted things that way, you can walk through the same lines. If your bed is bigger or smaller, you change one number and the plan updates. That makes changes fast and keeps the garden honest about what will fit.
Good garden plans also respect water and light. Plants that love dry soil should not sit next to plants that need daily watering, because one side will always suffer. Tall plants should sit on the north side of the bed in the northern hemisphere, so they do not shade everything else all day. Leave paths wide enough to walk and pick, because a bed you cannot reach is a bed you cannot care for.
Three mistakes show up again and again. The first is planting too close, which looks full in spring and becomes a crowded struggle by summer. The second is copying a plan from a different climate, where frost dates and rain change everything. The third is planting once and never checking back, so a fast plant takes over and a slow plant disappears. Walk the bed each week, thin what crowds, and note what worked for next year.
Tips
- Start small. One well-planned bed teaches more than four beds planted in a rush.
- Write the plan down and keep it with your seed packets, so next year starts from notes, not memory.
- Rotate crops each year. Do not plant the same family in the same spot season after season.
Does companion planting replace pest control?
No. It lowers pest pressure and supports helpful insects, but you still need to check plants, pick off pests by hand, and remove sick leaves early.
What if my bed is a different size?
Change the bed numbers in the tool and recalculate. The plan scales with your bed, so a balcony box and a large plot both get counts that fit.
Can I mix in plants not listed by the tool?
Yes, if they share the same water and light needs and are not known bad neighbours. Add them at the edges first, and watch how they grow before giving them more space.
Versión en español: Planificador de Gremio de Árbol Frutal