We are growing a ton more of tomatoes this year than we ever did. Plus with the ecoli scare I think everyone is being a little bit more picky on what they buy and what they grow.

But I too has stuck a veggie plant here or there among my flowers. I put this tiny little grown from seed tomatoe next to some cosmos and now the darn this is just as tall as the cosmos and it has branched off and has 4 main stems, what is with that. But I am loving seeing all of the different shapes of of tomatoes starting. It is truely amazing. And I have abunch of marigold in and around the main veggie patch that is made up mainly of tomatoes and peppers.

Paula

Hi Kevin,
I grow veggies in with flowers. I figure why not. I've always grown a lot of veggies. I don't spray any chemicals. Every year I grow peas along the fence in my long flower bed. I plant them very early before I get my actual veggie garden ready for other things anyway. I have rabbit problems so I grow peppers in pots on my porch and patio along with ornamentals. Other things I can think of that I grow/have grown in with the flowers- dwarf tomatoes, pole beans, squash, and tomatillos. I was doing okra, but the slugs killed my babies. I'll need to make sure they are bigger before setting out next year. I grow all my herbs in the flower beds. Oh, and I grow my fruits in with the flowers like jostaberry, and blackberry. I have my grapes covering an arbor to the entrance to the veggie garden, but the outer garden is flowers so I guess that counts too.
Remy

I do. Some veggies are really nice for that. Okra and eggplant, if you like them, have particularly lovely blooms. Chard has great color and texture. Lots of herbs are attractive too, especially for edging beds. I grow silver and lemon thyme and purple basil. Oh, and sage is nice, too.

No, but I wish I could. I did when I was first starting out (and had lots of empty space) but now the perennials have taken over. Thats why I have a small plot designated for just veggies; it keeps me from planting any flowers in there ;-). I do have chives, Serpent Garlic, and parsley in my flower beds though. Chives are beautiful in bloom, and last longer than ornamental Allium. Serpent Garlic is awesome too, with its curly stems. I let half of my parsley go to seed because it looks pretty in bloom too.
CMK

Yes, I do. The old English gardens were planted that way. I interplant tomatoes and peppers in my front ornamental bed because that's the best sun I have. Chives among the roses keep certain pests away. Marigolds near tomatoes also keep certain pests away from them. I love to edge my okra and pepper patch with allysum. I am sure there are several 'mixers' out there.

Most years I grow jalapeño and sometimes bell peppers in the front gardens. I also usually plant 'Bright Lights' swiss chard in with the perennials too. I have chives planted around the water faucet which happens to leak just a bit when I water, making the chives totally carefree.

Crystal

I do! I put Bright Lights swiss chard in the center of my containers for an upright accent. Love the big, vertical leaves and the brightly colored veins. They will grow in sun or shade.

I found that I had planted too many cabbages this year (how are two people going to eat 25 heads of cabbage?) so I transplanted a few to empty spots in my perennial beds, and the big blue leaves look wonderful mixed in with the flowers. I may do this every year, it looks that good.

Basil and chives are pretty enough to mix in as well. Just deadhead both to prevent a chaos of seedlings.

Great post.

One other thing. Last year I underplanted nasturtiums in my veggie garden and was very pleased with the effect. They are edible and a nice peppery accent to salads.

Thank you. I'm glad I'm not alone. I really like the idea of using cabbage. Those leaves are beautiful. Now I bet there must be mini varieties of some of these to make it even easier.

Kevin

I not only plant them into my flowers, I also make pots of them. Last year I had eggplants in huge urns and they did well. This year I have peppers in some pots, tomatoes and basil in others. Why not?

I just read today that marigolds go well with tomatoes. Not only will they repel white flies, but tomatoes grow better with them too. The recommendation is 2 or 3 marigolds per tomato plant.

Beside tomatoes, green peppers, cukes, I tried to get a little more color by planting purple beans and purple peppers. I've had great luck with the purple beans (they turn green when cooked) but is my first year with purple peppers. I have started integrating flowers in my veggie patch. I love the effect and when harvesting the veggies I spend more time with my beautiful flowers. I have a sweet autumn clematis growing on an old rusted spring in the middle of the garden. I have golden glows, single hollyhocks, daisies, echinacea fatal attraction, sedums, pearlyeverlasting, flax, and peruvian daffodils interplanted with the veggies. Each year I have been increasing the flowers and the veggies have done better. I think I weed, fertilize, and water more with the flowers there.