I plant flowers in the vegetable garden mainly to attract pollinators, and as barrier crops for seed saving purposes. I'm with Jean, I have yet to see any conclusive evidence that companion planting repels insect pests. Anecdotal evidence (I used it, and had no .....) means nothing, unless a control (unprotected) planting of the same vegetable, at the same site, had problems. The most common myths seem to be for marigolds & nasturtiums. However, I am not saying that flowers are not useful for pest control. There are several ways they can be helpful. To the extent that companion planting breaks up large mono-cultures, it can be helpful in reducing the spread of insects or diseases. This strategy works best if the adjacent plants are of a different genera, with different insect pests. For example, you would not want tomatoes, eggplant, and potatoes to be adjacent to one another, since they are closely related - as is the flower Nocotiana. Flowers & herbs are seldom in the same genera as cultivated vegetables, so they are generally effective as companions... but with a little planning, the same effect can be achieved with edible plants. Flowers & herbs can be used as trap crops, as can other plants. I have observed some insects that are attracted more to the weeds in my garden, than to the vegetables. Mallows will attract white flies... but since okra is also a mallow, that strategy could potentially backfire. I grew an unusual solanaceae, "Litchi Tomato", which acts as a trap crop for Colorado potato beetle. The problem with using trap crops as a pest control strategy is that you are attracting harmful insects... so if planted as a preventative measure, it could actually make things worse. Trap crops are best used outside the garden, to attract the target insect & kill them. Flowers can also be useful for attracting & holding beneficial insect populations. Cleome, for example, attracts wasps... and as scary as that thought might be, wasps control several garden pests. Other flowers feed the adults of insects that are predatory as larvae, such as Syrphids (hover flies). And while this is not a flower, I'll mention that yardlong beans are attractive as feeding sites for ladybugs... so if you want to keep ladybugs from migrating, you might consider growing them.

Hi Sandy, I feel your pain, and I also can relate to the BB gun. I won't use anything that isn't organic or can hurt the butterflies/cats. But, I will use a BB gun. The crows would pull up the seedlings in our flower gardens and in our vegetable garden and THEN eat all of the sunflower seeds (that is... what seed the squirrels left) out of the bird feeders not leaving any for my little birds. So, I started using my son's BB gun to get rid of as many squirrels and crows as possible. The squirrels are easy to shoot, but you have to really sneak up on those crows! If you kill a crow, hang it up in the garden and the others won't come back. It will eventually disinegrate, but it really works while the dead one holds up. If you can't bring yourself to use the BB gun, just go shopping for new flowers while your husband does the necessary deed. My biggest problems in my part of Central Va are deer and rabbits. The deer try to eat all of the roses and tomatoes and the rabbits will eat every fresh thing you plant. They think you just added a new item to their 'Bunny Buffet'!! I just found out today that a mother bunny is raising her baby in the thickest planted part of my circle garden in the middle of my driveway. No wonder my newly rooted and planted butterfly bush in the circle garden got chewed off! Oh well.... I don't have the heart to leave a baby motherless or kill a baby. Glad I bought those stakes at Walmart today to put some fencing around my newest butterfly bush cuttings. OK... now that I'm finished fussing, my suggestions are: You could try using some bird netting over your seedlings to keep the birds off and maybe pin down some wire over newly planted areas to keep the squirrels out. Once the plants grow big enough, the squirrels and birds will usually leave them alone and you can stop using the netting and wire. Hope this helps. Good Luck! Betty P.S.- Miss Sherry, I envy your fencing. I dream of fencing!

Wow, Violetta, that is awesome! bookmarked it. I really need vivid pictures and descriptions like this to identify bugs and know whether they are good or bad. Got some really weird bugs in the worm bin and compost pile and I'm afraid to mulch with the wormcastings again until I can ID the creepies. Bought a bug book but it's very limited.

Firstly, you should begin educating yourself about the many different critters you'll likely meet in your garden...good and bad. Identifying the pests as well as the beneficials will be extremely helpful to you. I think that a good field guide is a terrific place to start. Visit your local bookstore to see if you can find something that you like. (I have several, but often recommend The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Insects and Spiders. I made it a requirement for my college level insect classes, and since the book is covered with a black leatherette binding, several people thought that I was teaching Bible studies, lol.) Bees, of course, are attracted to plants that provide plentiful supplies of nectar and/or pollen. Many of the annual and perennial flowers that we incorporate into our landscaping will end up being bee (and butterfly, moth, hummingbird, etc.) plants. Do some internet searches on 'nectar plants' and you'll get lots of ideas.