Vegetables and flowers: Mixing things up in the garden

I received a great question from a Montgomery County reader this week. Becky wrote, “I have a question about any precautions for a vegetable and flower garden. I noticed at Chanticleer they have several vegetables mixed right in with the flowers. I have experimented a little bit with that, in previous years. I have thrown in a couple of tomato plants and even had a rogue potato and little pumpkin plant. Now that I’m expanding my garden, I would like to do that on a bigger scale. Can you think of anything I should be aware of that might create a problem?”

In general, there is no reason not to put plants you grow for their flowers into the vegetable garden, or to tuck veggies in with the flowers. From a botanical standpoint, a plant is a plant, whether you eat it or not. But there are some things to look out for.

As I replied to Becky, “Most flowers will not bother vegetables, though there are some specific ones that don’t ‘like’ each other. For instance, I’ve read that you should avoid planting mint or onions near asparagus, keep beans away from beets, and separate dill from carrots.

“My main concern would be how to keep rabbits, deer, woodchucks, etc. away from your vegetables, unless you want to fence in your flower beds. And of course, make sure that your veggies are located in areas where you can easily reach them to harvest.

“Also, take care that any ornamental plants with toxic leaves (e.g., oleander) aren’t near your greens, where they could accidentally be ‘harvested’ in with your salad, perhaps by a child or a non-gardener family member who assume that anything green and growing together is edible.” Info at https:// homeguides.sfgate.com/flowersshould-not-planted-near-vegetables-60867.html

One other thing to consider is how much space particular vegetables will occupy. For instance, vining crops (squash family) will overrun a garden, and even bush zucchini needs a lot of space. However, things like lettuce, Swiss chard, carrots, and beets make great garden borders, lending different colors and textures. A few broccoli plants interspersed here and there can lend a bit of vertical interest without dominating.

Spacing isn’t just about how much space plants occupy on the ground, i.e., the two-dimensional area. You need to also think vertically. How high do the various vegetable types grow, and will they shade out other crops or be shaded out themselves? What vegetables will you be staking up (indeterminate tomatoes, peas, pole beans, vining cucumbers and squash)? Do you want stakes and cages in your flower bed?

Some vegetables might be best planted separately, in a larger plot, e.g., peas and beans, since you need a lot of them to get sufficient quantity. Wind-pollinated corn needs to be planted in blocks to insure a good yield. Garlic and potatoes, harvested by digging, are probably best left on their own as well. How will you fill in the spots vacated by vegetables that have finished producing?

Ultimately though, you can mix flowers and vegetables, and they can actually benefit each other. More on that in an upcoming column.

Pam Baxter is an avid organic vegetable gardener who lives in Kimberton. Direct e-mail to pamelacbaxter@gmail.com, or send mail to P.O. Box 80, Kimberton, PA 19442. Share your gardening stories on Facebook at “Chester County Roots.” Pam’s book for children and families, Big Life Lessons from Nature’s Little Secrets, is available on Amazon, along with her new companion field journal, Explore Outdoors, at Amazon. com/author/pamelabaxter.