Seeing Jewelweed and Poison Ivy together reminded me of the practice of companion planting in the garden.  Often it occurs naturally, but we can use the techniques in our own gardens.

 

Companion planting is the practice of deliberately planting, or allowing to grow, plants that compliment each other. They may provide shade or physical support, enhance growth or flavor, improve soil quality, deter bad or attract good insects and animals to the garden, etc.

 

There are many good resources for companion planting, like the Farmers Almanac and home gardening books.

 

Here are a few companions I count on in my garden:

 

Marigolds are pretty to look at,  and they deter many plant pests like nematodes, whiteflies, and bean beetles.  The deer don't like them either.

Borage planted near tomatoes deters tomato hornworms (which can devour your crop overnight.)   Borage also attracts bees to the garden to pollinate tomatoes, peppers, squashes, well...everything.

Basil improves the flavor of tomatoes (as every Caprese salad lover knows) but it also repels flies and mosquitoes.

 

Rosemary and Thyme improve the flavor of lots of things, and they deter the moths and worms that eat cabbages and other Brassicas.

Daffodils and castor bean are toxic to gophers and moles, so they stay away.  Deer won't eat them either.

 

Another good example is the "three sisters."  Native peoples have planted corn, beans, squash together for centuries.  The corn provides support for the beans to grow up, and the squash shades the roots of the other plants.

 

So you see, flowers are more than just pretty faces in our gardens, they provide many services too.

 

IMHO, (OK, not so humble) companion planting is far superior to pesticides, even though it is probably more work.  But when we kill insects, we kill the good ones along with the bad ones.  I don't want cabbage moths, but I do want Monarchs in my garden.  I don't love yellow jackets, but we NEED honey bees.  So we just put up with some things for the good of the whole.  That is a life lesson in itself!

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!