Planting wildflowers around my veggie garden- Good Plan?
I’m going tο hаνе a garden 50′ x90′ аnd аn addition 20x’40′ wіth tomatoes. I wаѕ рlаnnіng οn planting a 2-4 foot wide strip οf mixed wildflowers round thе edge tο hеlр attract bees аnd stuff. Iѕ thіѕ a gοοd рlаn?
I’m running drip irgation tο thе garden, wіll thе flowers need tο bе watered thіѕ way аlѕο?
I’m іn zone 7 wіth very sandy soil.
Thanks іn advance!
Tο rерlу tο 3rd comment: Thе garden wіll bе іn a already fenced area whісh hаѕ a wide gate fοr tractor access аnd I’ll bе planting thе flowers around outside thе fence ѕο іt wont bе hindering thе garden аt аll. Thе Tomatoes wіll bе grown rіght next tο thе fenced area whеrе last years garden wаѕ ѕο thеу аrе connected аnd easy access.
I’m planting ѕο much becauce I wіll bе home canning mοѕt οf іt frοm mу family аnd close relatives. Wе hаνе sucessfully grown everything before, I јυѕt want tο dο іt bіggеr аnd better thеn before. Wе hаνе gotten a tractor аnd plows ѕο іt wont bе аѕ bіg οf a chore. Plus wе′re multching everything аnd combined wіth thе drip irrgation thаt ѕhουld keep alot οf thе weeds down. I’m a stay аt home mom ѕο I’ve gοt thе time іt wіll take. I’ve even gοt thе wildflower seeds already due tο ѕοmе deaths іn thе family аnd thеу mаkе thoes packets up fοr people аnd wе hаνе a bunch left over. Thanks fοr thе thουghtѕ аnd advice frοm everyone!
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Tags: around, Bees, Close Relatives, Deaths, Drip, Easy Access, Fence, Garden, Garden Flowers, Good, Plan, Planting, Planting Flowers, Running, Sandy Soil, Stay At Home, Stay At Home Mom, Thanks In Advance, Tomatoes, Veggie, Veggie Garden, Weeds, Wildflower Seeds, Wildflowers, X90, Zone 7
6 Responses to “Planting wildflowers around my veggie garden- Good Plan?”
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I think it sounds like a great idea. You can buy wildflower mixes that are designed for dryer areas. In my experience, if you water the area on a regular basis while the seeds are germinating, once the plants are established you can start cutting back.
Its a very good idea to plant wild flowers along the edgeof ur veggie garden. Its not only gonna be pretty to look at, but its gonna help attract bees and butterflies to your veggie garden.. because veggies need polinated too..
You can water the flowers the same way that u water ur veggies.. they may not need as much water as your veggies.. but all plants need water…
If your doing your drip irrigation yourself… just add less holes where your flowers, so that way your flowers get watered, and your veggies still do as well..also it will prevent from runoff..
Hope you enjoy your garden..
Your plan is very ambitious to say the least. There are numerous wilflower strips available through numeous catelogs and in most nursery or hardware stores. Unfortunately the plan is, in my opinion, non-functional.
To tend your garden and tomatoes requires unencumbered access to the site. A wildflower garden hinders your ability to bring in necessary tools, mulch, water, etc. By definition wildflowers are exactly as stated. They will not be impeded by the perimeter you wish. They will invade on your gardens and impede your access to provide maintenance.
A great solution, should you really wish to have wildflowers, is to create a mound of soil backgrounding your garden. On this elevated mound plant the wildflower strips. You can make it any shape or size you wish and obtain the wildflower effect and still attract the bees and butterflies, etc.
Tomatoes require a great deal of care and nuturing to be a success. That soil needs to be perfect to achieve your goal.
It must be full of loam and acidic. Your local nursery should be able to run a soil test for you to tell you exactly what you need for additives to reach your dream. Some claim that well placed Geraniums help keeping insects from the Tomatoes.
Be advised that Wild means exactly that. Once planted and in place they will do exactly what they want to do and go where they want to go. Sounds like a great and extensive project and I wish you luck.
i wonder if it will bring too many weeds? I usually plant marigolds around tomatoes to bring bees and ladybugs, not wild flowers because they bring the beetles here. I think I am in zone 7 too. but I dont know as much as you do about gardening so you trust your instinct. good luck
The flowers will bring the bees to pollenate which is great. I would make sure there are also marigolds — the scent keeps some pests away from the tomatoes. I plant the marigolds right in with the tomatoes. I also plant garlic with the tomatoes as its scent also keeps away pests and you get to reep the benefit of having garlic at the end of the season.
yes wild flowers are a good idea, to attract beneficial insects to the garden for pollination i would suggest that you plant mainly yellow coloured flowers as this seems to attract more insects. as for your tomato’s i would plant things like garlic ( common or Russian giant ) any of the allium family chives, onions. this way you keep the insects down plus you get two crops off one bed.