14 Great Petunia Companion Plants for the Perfect Pairing - The Practical Planter (2024)

Petunias are one of the most popular flowering plants on the market today. That’s because these florae are low maintenance and easy to care for.

Besides that, petunias have long-lasting blooms. They grow stunning flowers in all sorts of bright shades.

While petunias are incredibly beautiful on their own, the florae can benefit from the presence of different species of plants.

So, if you’re interested in learning more about what to plant with petunias, you’ve come to the right place.

In this article, I’ll walk you through everything you need to know about petunia companion plants. I’ll cover what they look like and how they can be beneficial to your garden.

Petunia Overview

Before I start listing companion plants, there are a few details about petunias that you should be aware of.

First up, they’re flowering plants that belong to the Nightshade family and are native to South America. Because of that, these florae can grow in all sorts of conditions.

For example, you can plant them in pots, hanging baskets, or even garden beds.

Moving on, petunias don’t require much maintenance to thrive. All they need is around six hours of full sun per day and a little water.

Besides that, the plants have a relatively long lifespan. With the proper care, they can live up to two or three years.

During that time, they bloom several times and blossom flowers in many colors. That includes white, pink, red, purple, yellow, and blue.

These create stunning displays that can brighten up any indoor or outdoor space.

Petunia flowers usually bloom at the beginning of spring. They’ll last until the weather becomes a bit chilly.

That’s because petunias can’t handle the cold. Their delicate petals will frost over, which will make it difficult for the flowers to stay in bloom.

Finally, they need well-drained soil to flourish.

So, when deciding on a companion flower to plant, it needs to have similar growing conditions to petunias.

What to Plant With Petunias

There are countless plants that you can grow right next to your petunias. Some of them require special care, while others are more hardy.

This can make choosing one type of florae to plant a little challenging. So, to make your life easier, I’ll go over a few species that are ideal petunia companions.

What to Plant With Petunias in Pots

First up, I’ll talk about the plants that you can grow in a pot with petunias.

1 – African Daisy

• Family: Asteraceae
• Scientific name: Osteospermum
• Plant type: Perennial and annual
• Maximum height: 1 to 3 feet tall
• Hardiness zone: 9 to 11

African daisies are one of the most beautiful flowers on our list. These plants produce large, vibrant purple blooms that can brighten up any space.

Just like petunias, African daisies prefer to grow in full sun. They can tolerate the shade, but they won’t be able to grow as many flowers.

2 – Spurge

• Family: Euphorbiaceae
• Scientific name: Euphorbia
• Plant type: Annual, perennial, and biennial
• Maximum height: 1.5 feet tall
• Hardiness zone: 5 to 11

Petunia flowers are usually quite bold. So, if you’re looking for smaller, delicate blooms to compliment the plant, spurge may be the best way to go.

These plants produce tiny flowers with fragile white petals. Because of that, they can add a lot of contrast and texture to your garden.

3 – Guara

• Family: Evening primroses
• Scientific name: Onagraceae
• Plant type: Annual, biennial, or perennial herbaceous plants
• Maximum height: 4 feet tall
• Hardiness zone: 5 to 9

If you’re a beginner gardener, you may want to consider planting guaras as petunia companions. That’s because these plants don’t require much care.

All they need is a little water and they can grow stunning flowers with white or pink petals. On top of that, guaras are slightly taller than petunias.

So, they’ll add a little height to your flower pots.

4 – Floss Flower

• Family: Asteraceae
• Scientific name: Ageratum houstonianum
• Plant type: Annuals
• Maximum height: 2 feet tall
• Hardiness zone: 2 to 11

Floss flowers are one of the most unique species on this list because of the shape of their petals. They resemble tiny hairs shooting straight out of the center of the bloom.

For that reason, the flowers look like small pompoms waving in the wind. On top of that, the petals come in a few gorgeous shades.

That includes pink, purple, red, and even blue.

5 – Michaelmas Daisies

• Family: Asteraceae
• Scientific name: Asters
• Plant type: Perennial
• Maximum height: 6 feet tall
• Hardiness zone: 3 to 8

Michaelmas is another member of the daisy family. It produces purple, blue, and white flowers. Yet, unlike the other plants on the list, this one is a late bloomer.

The flowers will blossom in late summer. That means your petunias will have a few weeks to shine on their own.

6 – Crane’s Bill

• Family: Geraniaceae
• Scientific name: Geraniums
• Plant type: Perennials
• Maximum height: 4 feet tall
• Hardiness zone: 3 to 9

Cane’s bills come in a couple of different shades. First up, the most common color is a vibrant red.

This can add a wonderful bold pop of contrast to your garden. Other than that, the flowers can have white petals.

These will perfectly complement the bold colors of petunias.

On top of that, these plants are heat resistant. So, you’ll be able to enjoy the flowers all through the summer.

7 – Candytuft

• Family: Brassicaceae
• Scientific name: Iberis
• Plant type: Perennial
• Maximum height: 1 foot tall
• Hardiness zone: 3 to 9

Candytufts produce large blooms with many tiny white petals. Other than that, the flowers grow in dense clusters close to the ground.

In fact, the petals are so dense they usually completely hide the foliage underneath. So, your petunias will appear to be growing right out of a bed of small white flowers.

What to Plant With Petunias in Hanging Baskets

With potted plants out of the way, I can move on to companion plants that are ideal for hanging baskets.

8 – Marigolds

• Family: Asteraceae
• Scientific name: Tagetes
• Plant type: Annuals
• Maximum height: 3 feet tall
• Hardiness zone: 2 to 11

Marigolds produce large flowers that resemble sunflowers. Yet, that’s not the most impressive feature of the plant.

The petals on the bloom come in a variety of shades. That includes yellow, orange, and deep red.

Plus, some flowers have ombre petals, with two colors fading into each other.

To top it all off, marigolds have a few medicinal properties. So, not only will they create a beautiful display, but they can also help you get rid of minor rashes.

9 – Vervain

• Family: Verbenaceae
• Scientific name: Verbena officinalis
• Plant type: Annual or perennial
• Maximum height: 1.5 feet tall
• Hardiness zone: 8 to 11

If you’re looking for small flowers that won’t overcrowd your hanging baskets, vervain may be the way to go.

These plants have soft, delicate petals that come in purple, white, and red.

In addition, vervain can attract butterflies and other pollinators to your hanging basket. That way, you won’t have to worry about regrowing your plants.

10 – Garden Sage

• Family: Lamiaceae
• Scientific name: Salvia
• Plant type: Perennials and annuals
• Maximum height: 3 feet tall
• Hardiness zone: 4 to 10

If you’re planning on hanging your petunias in your kitchen, then sage is the perfect companion. That’s because the herb has an earthy, almost sweet flavor.

So, you can add it to all sorts of dishes to spice them up. Plus, the flowers are similar to petunias in height.

This will create a dense display of vibrant colors. For the best effect, grow the sage in the middle of a hanging basket and plant a few petunias around it.

11 – Million Bells

• Family: Nightshade
• Scientific name: Calibrachoa
• Plant type: Perennials
• Maximum height: 1 foot tall
• Hardiness zone: 9 to 11

Just like petunias, million bells are part of the Nightshade family. In fact, bells look like miniature versions of petunias.

So, it shouldn’t be a surprise that both species have similar growing conditions.

Because of that, planting the two flowers in the same hanging basket should be a walk in the park.

12 – Snapdragons

• Family: Plantaginaceae
• Scientific name: Antirrhinum majus
• Plant type: Perennials or annuals
• Maximum height: 4 feet tall
• Hardiness zone: 7 to 11

Snapdragons are pretty little blooms that come in pink, red, white, yellow, and purple. Even though the plants produce small flowers, they have incredibly long stems.

Because of that, the petals can sway in the wind, giving you a magical display.

Plus, petunias are the ideal height to cover up the stems. So, planting both flowers together will result in fuller, more colorful hanging baskets.

13 – Sweet Alyssum

• Family: Brassicaceae
• Scientific name: Lobularia maritima
• Plant type: Annuals
• Maximum height: 1 foot tall
• Hardiness zone: 5 to 9

Sweet alyssums are a type of trailing plant. That makes them one of the top choices for hanging baskets.

These florae will grow long stems that can hang loosely from a basket. On top of that, the white petals give off a faint, sweet fragrance that can fill up any space.

14 – Red Sage

• Family: Verbenaceae
• Scientific name: Lantana camara
• Plant type: Perennials
• Maximum height: 0.5 feet tall
• Hardiness zone: 7 to 11

Red sage is one of the shortest plant species on our list. It usually grows to about six inches in height and produces tiny flower clusters.

These blooms sit snugly around petunias

Because red sages produce such a strong aroma, they can ward off animals like rabbits and deer. That means they can help protect your petunias from predators.

Final Thoughts

There are countless plant species that would make the ideal companions for petunias.

If you’re planning to grow your plants in a pot, then you may want to opt for African daisies or spurges.

Other than that, you can also grow floss flowers and candytufts.

Moving on, if you want to plant petunias in hanging baskets, there are a few companion options. That includes marigolds, vervain, red sage, and snapdragons.