2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Many gardeners want their garden to be literally buried in flowers. However, as a rule, there is not much space for flower beds. There is an interesting solution - to plant flowers directly on the beds next to vegetables. Why is it good? And who can be friends with?
It is unlikely that even in scientific textbooks on agriculture one can find a rule prohibiting the close proximity of flowers and vegetables. Rather, the opposite is true. There are many benefits to be found in such a mixed garden. Here are a few of them:
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Pollinators are welcome
Vegetables do not always have spectacular flowers that can immediately attract pollinators. Planting several bright and fragrant flowers between vegetable crops will give a positive result. It is better to choose plants with blue, yellow and white petals (sweet peas, zinnias, sunflowers, delphiniums, kosmeya, etc.) - as a rule, more nectar ripens in them. So bees, attracted by the aromas of flower rows, are unlikely to disregard vegetable crops.
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Bait for beneficial insects
There are insects that bring considerable benefit to the garden: ladybugs, lacewings, wasps, ground beetles, etc. They perform not only pollination, but also a defensive function, protecting plants from various pests. Like other types of insects, useful insects have certain preferences in plants, planting which you can ensure the arrival and excellent work of such insects in your area. They especially love parsley, dill, coriander and flowers from the Aster family.
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Pest control
This question, of course, is controversial, because if the pests have completely cleared up in the garden, then the flowers that annoy them will be of little use. However, many studies show that some flowers and herbs can repel harmful insects. For example, cabbage butterflies dislike anise and hyssop, borage repels tomato worms, catnip scares aphids, and also Colorado beetles and edge beetles, pelargonium chases Japanese beetles, marigolds - asparagus bugs, and sage does a good job with cabbage flies.
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Plants - "decoy ducks"
It would be much easier to deal with pests in the garden if they were concentrated in one place. But it is quite difficult to achieve this just like that. Strange as it may seem, flowers will be able to help here. For example, nasturtium planted next to cabbage can attract aphids, where it can be disposed of.
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Biodiversity
Mixing vegetable and flower crops leads to a rather old horticultural concept of biodiversity - planting a wide variety of plants rather than monocultures. The symbiotic relationship between different plant species is still the subject of numerous studies. Pest insects can react to such a mix by simply confusing vegetable crops with flowers and attacking bright flowers rather than vegetables. Thus, the harvest can be saved.
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Landscape focus
With the help of flowers in the beds, you can interestingly manage landscape solutions in the garden. Flower plantings make great natural borders or fences. Remember that bright shades can reduce the space a little, and neutral tones can increase.
Who is who is friends with?
Here are examples of what vegetables you can plant the most common garden flowers with.
Nasturtium: It thrives on cruciferous crops (cabbage, broccoli, zucchini, radishes) as well as cucumbers and potatoes.
Marigolds: They are very friendly and practically versatile, but it is especially good to plant them next to tomatoes. This way you can get rid of Mexican bugs, nematodes and other pests. Marigolds get along well with legumes, crucifers, potatoes.
Onions: look good in the garden and various types of decorative onions. They are friends with almost all vegetables. They love the neighborhood of tomatoes and carrots, scaring away spider mites and beneficial insect predators from them, which are able to deal with other pests.
Borage: good next to tomatoes and strawberries, scaring tomato worms, and can also improve the vegetation and taste of zucchini.
Sunflower: This beauty is capable of creating a beneficial shade for grapes and herbs. It is well compatible with corn, cucumbers, etc. Birds, looking at the seeds and bright petals of a sunflower, willingly fly into the garden and destroy many garden pests.
And a few more successful neighborhoods:
- crocuses and hyacinths with parsley, lettuce, coriander, - daffodils and tulips with carrots, root parsley, - marigolds with carrots, tomatoes, - irises and peonies with celery, beets, - mini roses, chrysanthemums with parsley, beets.
Delicious and beautiful beds to you!
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