Flowers in the vegetable garden, 7 that provide beneficial effects

For years I have been planting flowers in the vegetable garden. Originally, for the beauty they add to the garden. However, I now realize that flowers provide additional benefits. Those benefits include pest control, biodiversity, and the ability to attract beneficial insects. Whatever your reason for planting flowers, I share seven flowers that I plant in our vegetable garden and the benefits they provide.

Scientific knowledge on the benefits of companion planting has been increasing over the past few years. However, much knowledge is still based upon experience. As you plant flowers in the vegetable garden, make notes of any benefits you observe.

Estimated reading time: 9 minutes

Placement of flowers within the vegetable garden

Consider planting flowers throughout your vegetable garden. I typically plant flowers on the edges of vegetable beds. Also, think about the height of the flower in relation to the height of the vegetable. For example, tomato plants can easily overtake most flowers thus blocking out sunlight.

A second option is to deliberately plan for flowers within your vegetable beds. Similar to the way you plan your vegetables, plan space for flowers. A mass of flowers will make it even easier for beneficial insects to find their way to your garden.

Here is a look at the seven flowers that are always present in our vegetable garden.

1. Marigolds

Marigolds are one of the most dependable and durable annual flowers that you can plant in your garden. They are easy to start from seed and there are few pests or diseases that bother them. In addition, marigolds are not fussy about the soil and work well planted in the ground or in containers. Finally, marigolds are one of the classic flowers in the vegetable garden.

Marigolds can be classified as follows with French and African being the most common:

• French (Tagetes patula) – Dwarf, bushier plants with both solid and multi-colored flowers. Long blooming season from spring up to the first frost.
• African (Tagetes erecta) – Tall plants with pom-pom double flowers in yellow and orange. Also referred to as American marigolds.
• Triploid is a cross between the French and African marigold.
• Signet (Tagetes tenuifolia) – Bushy plants with fine lacey foliage and single flowers. Signet marigolds are edible.

Marigolds range in height from 6 inches (dwarf French variety) to 3’ (African variety). The flower petals range in size from 2 inches across to up to 5 inches. 

Companion planting benefits of Marigolds.

• In the Brassicaceae family (kale, broccoli, cabbage) marigolds have be shown to repel pests such as cabbage butterflies and cabbage moths.
• In the Solanaceae family, eggplants and green pepper also benefit from the repellent effect of marigolds.
• Marigolds can protect daikon (oriental radish) especially during the early stage of growth.
• For onions, marigolds have been shown to reduce the egg laying behavior of onion flies.

2. Nasturtiums

Nasturtiums are annual plants that produce colorful edible flowers. The growth habit of nasturtium can either be bush-type or vining. For smaller spaces, plant a variety with a dwarf bush-type growth habit (Tropaeolum minus). If you have more space, then choose a vining variety of nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus). The first time I planted nasturtium, I did not realize this difference and had difficulty managing the vining variety.

Companion planting benefits of nasturtiums.

• Growing nasturtiums with zucchini can reduce the amount of damage from squash bugs.
• Because nasturtiums are in the brassica family, they can be used as a sacrificial host for the white cabbage butterfly. Therefore, plant nasturtiums around cabbage, broccoli, kale and other members of the brassica family.

3. Dill

Dill has beautiful ferny, blue-green leaves, is an annual (sometimes biennial), and is very aromatic. It grows upright on tall hollow stems. It’s one of the tallest herbs in my garden, reaching ~three-five feet in height. Because of its height, dill can become spindly and should be supported by a stake. At the top of the stem, dill produces lovely umbrella-like heads of yellow flowers.

Companion planting benefits of dill.

• Interplant dill with brassica crops to control cabbage worms.
• Control the Colorado potato beetle on eggplant by interplanting dill. Dill will attract beneficial insects that prey upon the Colorado potato beetle.
• Plant dill to attract parasitic wasps which will help control caterpillars.

4. Cilantro

Cilantro is an annual plant that is part of the carrot family. Thriving in cool temperatures under 75°F, Cilantro is amazing to watch as it grows. First, cilantro produces fragrant, spicy leaves. Next, the leaves are followed by small white flowers. Finally, the flowers turn into round seeds which become coriander. Because Cilantro reaches a height of 3 feet, it should be supported by a stake as it grows. When growing cilantro, there are two parts of the plant that can easily be harvested, the leaves (cilantro) and the seeds (coriander). 

Companion planting benefits of cilantro.

• Control the Colorado potato beetle on eggplant by interplanting cilantro. Cilantro will attract beneficial insects that prey upon the Colorado potato beetle.
• Plant cilantro to attract parasitic wasps which will help control caterpillars.
• Interplant cilantro with brassica crops to control cabbage worms.

5. Sweet Alyssum

A low-growing annual, sweet alyssum grows in a mound. The mound can grow up to 12 inches tall and wide. With the sweet honey fragrance of its tiny white, pink, or purple flowers, it attracts beneficial insects including butterflies and bees.

Companion planting benefits of sweet alyssum.

• Plant Sweet Alyssum along the edges of a lettuce bed to attract parasitic wasps which will help control aphids.
• Growing sweet alyssum around carrot plants can deter pests that lay eggs in the soil.

6. Calendula

The lovely orange and yellow flowers of calendula add such a nice pop of color to the vegetable garden. It’s an easy to care for annual plant that reaches a height of 1-2 feet. An added benefit is that calendula grows well into the fall. In addition, it easily self-seeds. I will typically find calendula growing in the same spot every year. Lastly, calendula is an edible herb with spicy leaves and flowers.

Companion planting benefits of calendula.

• Calendula attracts aphids and can thus be used as a trap plant.
• Plant calendula to attract beneficial insects to the garden such as ladybugs, hoverflies, and lacewings.

7. Chamomile

Such a pretty plant with small daisy-like flowers. There are two separate species of chamomile. Roman Chamomile is a perennial and grows up to 1 foot tall. While German Chamomile is an annual and can grow up to 3 feet in height. In our vegetable garden, I grow German Chamomile. While it’s an annual, it self-seeds so readily that I find chamomile plants all around our vegetable garden. Consequently, I learned the hard way not to put Chamomile in our compost pile.

Besides its medicinal properties and being able to make tea from the flowers, chamomile also has pest repellent properties.

• Via its repellent property, chamomile can deter various pests of Brassica crops (e.g., kale, broccoli, cabbage)
• Because chamomile attracts aphids, it can be used as a trap plant for aphids.

In conclusion, those are the seven flowers that I plant every year in our vegetable garden. Because I typically have low pest populations in the vegetable garden, I’m convinced of the beneficial effect of flowers. Of course, it’s also important to practice crop rotation and always strive to improve the health of your soil.

Good luck as you plant flowers in the vegetable garden.

Additional Information

You may find these posts to be of interest as you plan your vegetable garden.

• Creating and maintaining an organic vegetable garden – Part One
• Creating and maintaining an organic vegetable garden – Part Two
• How to use floating row cover in your organic garden
• Managing garden pests with an integrated approach
• Companion planting for pest management in the vegetable garden
• Install a solar powered fence to keep groundhogs out of the garden
• Getting started with seeds, 4 secrets for successful seed starting

References

• Plant Partners by Jessica Walliser
• Japanese Style Companion Planting by Toshio Kijima
• Companion Planting and Insect Pest Control
  • Joyce E. Parker(1) , William E. Snyder(2) , George C. Hamilton(1) and Cesar Rodriguez‐Saona(1)
  •  (1) Department of Entomology, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
  • (2) Department of Entomology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, USA