Christine, do you know if garlic helps with rust at all (on beans, hollyhocks, cannas, and so forth)? You may have covered this ... I didn't have time to read through all the previous posts, If so, I apologize for the redundancy,

Hi Tee, I'm not really sure if we covered rust or not in the above conversation but, thank you for asking.

Since rust fungi doesn't like sulfter, and garlic contains sulfur, I think it would be helpful to control rust.

Here's a recipe to make a garlic tea solution:
In a blender - blend two heads of garlic w/ 1 quart of water until well blended, approx. 5 minutes.
Strain the solution w/ cheesecloth to remove any remaining garlic chunks.
Add several drops of liquid soap to the tea solution.
To apply - In a spray bottle mix one part garlic solution to nine parts water.
In the morning hours, spray on the infected plant(s).
You can apply the solutionfull strength, if the rust is severe or in advanced stage.
*It's always a good rule to test the solution on a small area before spraying on the entire plant.

Thanks. I've never been bothered by rust until I got here in the humid South, so it's a new experience for me. Ah, the joys of gardening. I'll keep that recipe in mind for next year and let you know what happens. I have an old blender for just that purpose.

Another companion plant I have found to help roses is sage.

I grow my sage in pots ... maybe I'll set the pots amid the roses next year.

Noob gardener here. I wanted to know what is a good companion to plant with squash. My squash last year were crushed by squash bugs and bore worms. So I'm looking for a companion that would help deter these two pests... Either in the form of a plant or beneficial insect/ natural predator.

Thank you in advance.


Respectfully,

Vador

Hi Vador!

Welcome! The best companion for squash to deter squash bugs and bore worms that comes to mind is nasturtium. I plan on growing it with my cucurbits this year for sure, and marigolds are good.

Here's an article about some beneficial insects that you might like to read : http://garden.org/articles/vie...

Tachinid flies are great beneficials that are predators of many insects including the squash bugs.

Squash bugs were really bad last year, around here also. It must have been the extra heat and drought. A soapy blast will also kill the squash bugs. I sprayed for weeks! You have to spray them directly on the bug to kill it. I used a castle lavender soap but think any will do the job. The appear early in the summer so it's good to just do an inspection, including looking under the leaves where they lay their eggs. You'll see them, orangish-brown small eggs grouped in a "V" shape is typical.

Last year was the only year I didin't plant the garlic and squash close together, so I'm also wondering if the garlic was a deterent. Radishes are another good companion near squash. Tarragon is disliked by many pests and is always good to have in the garden, most plants get along with it fine and the ladybugs are attracted to tarragon.

Greeting Wildflowers,

Thank you so much for the welcome and your quick response. So mild follow up questions, if it is not to much of a trouble.

1. Are nasturtium's poisons any way to people? (i have my sons that help with the gardening and want to make sure they won't hurt them)

2. Where do you get Tachinid flies from? Do you guys order your beneficial insects from somewhere or just hope they show up through the year?

3. What do you mean by soapy blast? Last year my sons and I were picking them off the the squash at dusk and putting them in a bucket of soapy water. (i made it a game for them, the one how got more squash bugs that night got an cookie, piece of chocolate or extra story that night.)

4. Do you recommending doing radishes or garlic with the squash?
4. Do

No problem at all, ask away! I'll give you as much of an answer as I can. I don't always have the answers but if I don't, I'll try to find one. LOL
So here goes.

1. Nasturtiums are not poisonous. They are edible flowers that have a peppery taste. They are wonderful flowers to have in the garden and actually one of my favorites since my childhood. when I would bite off the tip of the spur and drink the nectar from them. Your sons will love them!

2. I don't know of a source for tachinid flies. I do have a great source for other beneficial insects. Planting flowers is a good way to attract the tachinid flies and some garden herbs is always a good start because so many beneficial insects are attracted to them. Some favorites are Lobularis maritima, Petroselinum crispum, Melissa officinalis, and Anthemis tinctoria.

3. I'm talking about a hose sprayer. It's an attachment that you put on the end of the hose. You can add some soap with just a little water in the sprayer attachment and then spray the squash bugs. "Blasting" wasn't a good choice of words though because when you spray them, you want the soapy solution to spray the bugs and kill them. Or, just pick them off like you did with your sons and put them in the soapy water, it does the job.

4, I recommend doing Nasturtiums with the squash. That is my plan for repelling those bugs this year. I'm also planning to try radishes, but since I've never tried and don't have another direct source, it will be experimental for me.

But my garden is an on-going experiment!

I'm so happy I found this post!

I planted some allium around my roses because I had heard that it was a good combination. So good to see it actually worked for Steven!

I'm actually going to plant some basil around the roses as well, because I read the basil helped discourage certain pests. I'll let these basil plants flower and collect the seeds for next year. I think basil flowers are so pretty.

Isn't parsley also a good companion for a lot of vegetables?

Hi ssgardener!

Thank you for sharing what you've tried. It's really nice to hear from other gardeners about what has worked for them, it makes it so much better, I think.

I really love planting basil around the garden too, it definitely seems to help control the pests. For one thing, the flowers are attractive to so many beneficials, including the pollinators. I've noticed some plants stay pest free in my garden when basil is planted nearby, while others of the same plant are bothered where I haven't planted basil. Sometimes I think it's the strong scent of the basil that either repels or confuses the pests.

Yes, you are right about parsley!

Thank you so much for the information above. I'm really liking this gardening community. It has been really helpful. I hope to get my knowledge and experience up at some point so, I can answer questions(contribute) rather then just ask.

That said, I did have more questions.

What are good companion plants to plant with watermelon and melons? How about Broccoli ? Again I'm trying to avoid cabbage loopers on the broccoli. The watermelon and melon i've never grown but, plan to give them a shot this spring.

This really is a wonderful community of gardeners! I've learned so much from talking to other gardeners, or sometimes just reading. I have a feeling you are going to have a lot to offer by way of gardening in no time.

You definitely should grow nasturtiums! They are great companions for melons and broccoli too! Broccoli likes calcium, nasturtiums don't need so much and it will deter the beetles and other bugs. Grow it right under the broccoli and melons, that way when the sun gets hot, they will also protect the nasturtium from the hot sun.

Marigolds are another good choice. They are really good at repelling pests but they will attract lots of butterflies.

Herbs - basil, rosemary, sage, oregano.

Nasturtiums - the flowers and leaves are edible and often used in salads. The flowers are milder in flavor than the leaves.



Marigolds are easy to grow and great companions in the garden.

Thank you wild flowers for all the advise.

You're very welcome.

The tiney flowers of mint family and other herbs that bloom with nectar which attracts the tiney wasps that feed on aphids. We have citrus trees with mint underneath, so we don't need to spray. Periodically there will be an abundance of aphids, but a few days later, the carnivorous predators populations catch-up to the pests.
picture shows mustard blooms in front of dwarf citrus.

John, that's great! thanks for the info. I like using herbs to attract beneficial insect.

Love the mustard in bloom too, they attract lots of bees and other pollinators.

I think if the mustard weed was not considered a ''weed'' we would all want the beautiful blooms in the garden.

I just found this forum! I got very serious about companion planting, & the 3 Sisters method last year. 'Wildflowers' mentioned using nasturtium with the gourd family, which includes all squash & pumpkin, & I can attest to the remarkable results. I was plagued with squash bug & cucumber beetles 2 years ago. Remembering what my grandmother told me about always planting nasturtium in your garden, I planted a good number of the vining & bush type, as I grow a large amount of squash & gourds. I saw 1 cluster of squash bug, early on, but once the nasturtium got going, I never saw another. An addition plus is that they are a wonderful addition to summer salads. Another plus is that the hummers love them! If you don't want the vines to overrun your garden, then I recommend growing the bush type. Their spread is about 1 foot tall, buy about 2 feet in diameter, which is perfect for in-between hills of squash.

As for cucumber beetles..... they can't stand radish. These buggars lay their eggs in the soil around the vines, & the new beetles emerge & demolish you plants. Radish gives off a toxin in the soil that repels them. Believe me, it works. I bought some radish tapes, & planted them between the hills of squash, that I grow on a trellis in a long row. I barely saw a cucumber beetle, or evidence of them, all season.

Now about the 3 Sisters method........ many have said that they don't want all the tangle of vines. But that is exactly what you want to keep the raccoons from stealing/demolishing your corn. The trick is to plant your corn in mounds about 6 ft. apart, maybe 4-5 stalks per mound. You will also plant your beans in this mound, but wait until you corn is established, about 1-2 ft high. Plant your squash, gourd, or pumpkin in mounds 6 ft apart in-between the corn/bean mounds. This lets the corn get very established so the combined weight of any vines that climb it won't pull it over. So when you are planning your plot, you will have mounds 3' apart, that alternate with the corn/bean, & gourd, squash or pumpkin, in rows spaced 6' apart. It's true that the beans will aid the corn, as beans pull nitrogen into the soil. Another good addition is to plant some nasturtium in there to control the cuke beetles & squash bugs. It's a win-win combination.