Even without companion benefits, the vegetable garden is a lovely place to plant flowers intended for cutting.
you’re free to snip them as you’re selecting vegetables for dinner.
Below, discover 17 of the best flowers to add a new dimension to your vegetable garden.
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Why Plant Flowers in the Vegetable Garden?
Planting flowers in your vegetable garden is an excellent strategy to help your vegetables thrive and increase your harvest.
It is an herb that is right at home in a vegetable garden.
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The flowers are a beacon for bees and a delight for gardeners.
It’s known as part of thebest vegetable garden companion trios: borage, tomatoes, and squash.
Both its leaves and flowers are edible with a subtle cucumber flavor.
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The plant is fast growing and can bedirectly sownin the ground.
After that, it tends to reseed itself.
Some borage flowers are pink and some are blue.
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Light, temperature, and other external conditions can cause this color variation.
Nasturtium
Cheerful nasturtiums (Tropaeolum majus) prefer cooler temperatures and continue blooming well into the fall.
Nasturtiums offer some protection from squash bugs and beetles.
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They also are favored by aphids and make a great trap crop.
The seeds are large and easy to collect for replanting next season.
Many varieties will seed on their own.
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Or it’s possible for you to try turning them into nasturtium capers.
Pot marigolds are considered an edible flower, though they have a predominately bitter flavor.
It is their brilliant orange color that livens up a plate.
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In the garden, calendula is a mixed blessing.
It repels somepests, such as asparagus beetles and tomato hornworms.
But it also attracts a few others, includingaphids.
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Do not let that stop you from planting this flower.
Cosmos
Few flowers grow as easily and bloom as profusely as cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus).
Deer tend to avoid it, along with many insects, includingticks.
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Even mice typically find somewhere else to snack.
Marigold
Marigolds (Tagetes sp.)
do not get the respect they deserve.
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They head off pests both above and below the ground, and they look great doing it.
Ring your garden with marigold plants, andrabbitswill think twice before crossing the line.
Plus, confuse Mexican bean beetles byinterplantingmarigolds with bean plants in your vegetable garden.
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Marigolds arecredited with repellingsquash bugs, thrips, tomato hornworms, and whiteflies.
Sunflower
Sunflowers (Helianthus annuus)are a perfect flower for the vegetable garden.
They make great trellises for climbing plants, and they have lots of nectar to attract pollinators.
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They will not cross-pollinate with the edible peas, as they belong to different genera.
They are also popular with hummingbirds.
The paler, pastel varieties seem to be attractive toJapanese beetlesand can be used as a trap crop.
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Gaps are expected in a vegetable garden as you harvest your crops.
Many gardeners use them as cover crops because they are fast-growing and able to quickly retain moisture.
But they’re edible, too.
The Spruce / LetÃcia Almeida
It’s tough to use these flowers in the heat, so it’s best for fall-to-spring vegetable gardens.
Keep them moist but not soggy, and don’t subject them to high humidity.
Petunia
Petunias (Petuniaspp.)
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These plants are also fast-growing annuals that work well when planted around the perimeter of the vegetable garden.
Pinch dead flowers to continue their bloom.
Just water them consistently; they can withstand wet conditions.
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Dahlia
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Dahlias (Dahliaspp.)
bloom late season and have long-lasting lush, abundant petals that last for three months.
It’s a beloved plant for a vegetable garden because it attracts butterflies which in turn pollinates the vegetables.
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Don’t let the soil dry around dahlias, especially in hot, dry summers.
Versatile cornflower tolerates hot summer days and light freezes.
Sweet alyssum also brings butterflies and other pollinators into the garden.
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Plant them next to petunias and marigolds for an extra punch of protection for your vegetables.
Daylily
Daylilies(Hemerocallis spp.
The plant blooms from spring through late summer and does best in full sun and is slightly drought tolerant.
Daylilies are for the most part pest-free and evenrabbits avoid thembut not deer.
The plant needs full sun but tolerates some shade, especially in hot climates.
Lupines prefer cooler summers and don’t do well in high humidity.
What Flowers Should Not Be Planted Near Vegetables?
One of the biggestvegetable garden mistakesis planting flower varieties that should not be planted near vegetables.
If you’re rotating crops, it’s best to use annuals in the vegetable garden.
