There is a lot of lore surrounding gardening. Many of the “remedies” and taboos do not apply to our unique growing area, many are questionable with no available scientific backup, and many are just unsupported myths. How do we determine if there is any gold among the rubble?
A good place to start is the website maintained by Dr. Linda Chalker-Scott of the Washington State University Extension called “Horticultural Myths” and her podcasts on “The Informed Gardener.” Also, see the article by Extension Agent Trevor Hylton, “Gardening Snake Oil.”
One area that is fertile ground for myths is companion plants. We have a lot of reservations about companion plant information. See more here:
It’s time we did some informal research of our own with plants that have compatible growing seasons and environmental needs in our North Florida area. We’ve already started with our cover crops, pollinator plants, nitrogen fixing plants in the forest garden, and interplanting marigolds, alyssum, buckwheat and herbs with our vegetables. Also see our previous post with photos of our giant sunflowers as trap plants for leaf footed bugs. We’ll let you know how it goes as we try out other companions.
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