You would be forgiven for thinking that the Gardening Club had changed its image – what were we doing inviting a speaker to tell us about company in the garden? Not that there is anything wrong with sharing your garden with a friend or relative over a cup of tea (or glass of wine!). But no, Derby and Joan were not the subjects of Andrew Sankey’s talk. In an amusing, witty and interesting way Andrew talked about the way in which we could grow plants together in a successful, mutually beneficial way. Quite naturally some plants already choose their neighbours – think of the wild clematis, the Old Man’s Beard, rambling through hedges. Older civilisations discovered the benefits of growing certain plants together – did you know that the Incas grew marigolds between their rows of corn and beans?
So here are some tips from Andrew – let me know if they work for you!
- Underplant roses with chives (or any member of the onion family) to ward off blackspot and greenfly as would dwarf lavender (try ‘Hidcote’).
- Grow sage near cabbages – if the sage grows too big then pick off the stems and drop them near the cabbages.
- Grow tomatoes near your gooseberries
- Yarrow – a tonic plant will aid all plants in their vicinity. It increases the scent of nearby plants and, fights off pests and attracts ladybirds.
Andrew also described many successful plant combinations for us to consider.
- Underplant hellebores with snowdrops
- Try lilies and roses together to increase their scent
- Plant hardy geraniums near daffodils – their leaves grow and cover the untidy daffodil leaves after they have finished flowering.
- Similarly the untidy straggly leaves of the Allium Christophii can be hidden if overplanted with Heuchera or Alchemilla mollis
Many more useful ideas can be gleaned from Andrew’s little booklet called ‘Companion Planting’ – well worth a read. Have a look at his website.
