I grow mostly vegetables in raised beds and more and more in diy EB self-watering containers. I have 2 unrelated quesstions:

1) If I planted marigolds, nasturiums etc. in containers placed near my raised beds, would they have the same effect of discouraging some garden pests as if they were directly in the ground?

2) Does growing vegetables in containers decrease the changes of disease and pests? I'm guessing soil born diseases would be decreased if I used soil mixes and not garden soil, but I also fill them with a lot of homegrown compost. This past year, my outside EB containers were a haven for slugs underneath them and along the inside of a board I placed in front of the boxes to deter the heat from the sun from absorbing in the boxes. I couldn't tell if they slithered into the tops of them though.

~tom