I'm mainly thinking of herbs such as lemon and bee balm to attract bees and enhance flavor... Ok, attracting pollinators is always a good thing! Even tho most veggies are self pollinating it is always handy to have them for the squash and such. All around the edges of the garden works well for that purpose. And they aren't picky either - most any flowering plants will get their attention. Improving taste is another matter since it simply can't be proven/documented in any way and some problems can result depending on how planted - shading from the bigger plants, needing very different nutrient and water needs, competing for nutrients and water, attracting pests that can harm the primary crop (as marigolds do with aphids), etc. Again borders work ok, mixed in with the vegetables needs to be done with care. A herb garden or patch or even in a separate row that is just herbs is a great thing to have and since herbs prefer much lower nutrient needs than vegetables they thrive best when away from all the heavy fertilizing is. Mixed in with the tomato plants and such - not so much. Experiment with some placements and see what works for you best. I posted this question in the companion planting...and got no replies Yeah that's a problem and a clue as to the fading popularity of it. There is still alot of information to read there but it isn't active. When the fad was hot and heavy years ago it was pretty aggressive in this forum with all its claims and things got pretty heated so was given its own forum. Over time and with experience and questionable results the fad and the forum has pretty much faded. It just never developed into all it was initially cracked up to be. Dave

Hi - I have a very large hosta with yellow edges for shade; and a whole bunch of heirloom tomatoes [can send you my list] Would like to trade for your coneflower, balloonflower, and /or Siberian and yellow flag iris. Doreen.

This is actually a great time of the year to start many plants from seeds. With the warm weather, they are likely to germinate very quickly. Your plants might not amount to much this year, but you can plant them out in the fall and have good sized plants next spring. I did this last year with some Daisies and Coreposis and they are now blooming in my garden. BTW, Coreposis 'Early Sunrise' is sure a blooming machine. I think that I started those seeds in mid July. Every time I have been to Merrifield Garden Center they have had a decent supply of seeds, but it is definitely not too late to order via mail-order. Below is a link to the FAQ on the Winter Sowing forum. - Brent Here is a link that might be useful: Is there Spring and Summer Sowing? (seed lists included)

It's hard to add much to what has already been said, but in Winter Springs right now my herbs are very happy. My rosemary, oregano, mint, lemon balm, and parsley are going crazy. I let my cilantro and basil seed over the late summer and now I have both sweet basil, cinnamon basil, and cilantro coming up for a second generation. I have quite a few pansies that I planted maybe 6-8 weeks ago (from a nine pack of seedlings at Home Depot) and those are doing great!