Grow Marigolds With Tomatoes (Increase Yield By 68%)
Are Marigolds The Secret To A Great Tomato Harvest?
Marigolds are a great companion plant for tomatoes. They are a natural insect repellent, and they provide the necessary nutrients for a healthy tomato plant. In addition, marigolds also repel aphids, which can cause a lot of damage to tomato plants.
If you are like most gardeners, you probably think of marigolds as pretty flowers that add a touch of color to your landscape.
But did you know that marigolds can also be used to improve the health of your tomato plants?
By planting marigolds near your tomato plants, you can help them fight off diseases and pests. Marigolds also provide your tomatoes with some much-needed nutrients.
Why Marigolds Are a Great Companion Plant for Tomatoes
If you’re looking for a great companion plant for tomatoes, marigolds might be a good choice. They’re easy to grow, and they have a long flowering period, so they’ll add a lot of color and fragrance to your garden.
Below we have listed 5 reasons why you will want to start growing marigolds in your garden alongside your tomato plants
5 Reasons Why You Should Grow Marigolds Alongside Your Tomato Plants
1. They Attract Bees and Other Benefiting Insects.
Butterflies, bees, ladybugs, and other beneficial little beasts visit the tomato garden, and who doesn’t like them? Many of the insects that marigolds attract help to keep insect pests at bay, and that’s great to aid pollination.
By attracting these beneficial species, marigolds can help reduce the need for pesticides or insecticides.
2. Slugs and Snails Hate Marigolds
Slugs and snails have a habit of eating plants, and they do so primarily to feed themselves. Slugs and snails are a very important part of a healthy ecosystem, but they can be a nuisance when they eat your garden.
The solution is to use a trap crop, which is a plant that is attractive to slugs and snails, but is unattractive to the plant they normally eat.
The marigold is a popular trap crop, and it’s easy to grow. It’s also an easy thing to keep growing, as you don’t need a lot of space to grow marigolds.
3. Marigolds Deter Animal That Love Eating Tomatoes.
Marigolds are a favorite garden plant of many animals, such as rabbits, deer, cats, and snakes. The strong odor of marigold plants deters these animals from eating the plants, and may even scare them away.
4. Marigolds Help to Keep the Soil Healthy
Growing marigolds in your garden is a great way to help keep your soil healthy. Not only do they add beauty to your garden, but they also help to improve the soil’s fertility and improve the growth of plants in the garden.
5. Marigolds help to Deter Tomato Worms
Marigolds are one of the most effective ways to deter tomato worms from attacking your tomato plants. The smell of marigold is extremely pungent, and the sight of them will make a worm think twice about eating a tomato.
Marigolds and Tomatoes
There are many ways to plant marigolds with tomato plants. They could form a wall around the tomato patch. Smaller varieties could be planted closer to the plants, while larger ones could be planted further away.
Different Types of Marigolds
There are many different types of marigolds. Some are more common than others. And some are better suited to certain gardens than others. The truth is, there are no rules when it comes to growing marigolds.
It’s all about what you like and how much space you have to grow them. The following post will help you understand the different types of marigolds and which ones are best for your garden.
Below we have listed the 31 best varieties of marigolds
- Bambino
- Bolero
- Brocade
- Colossus Red Gold
- Court Jester
- Crackerjack
- Daisy Wheel Lemon
- Fiesta
- Golden Guardian
- Harmony
- Hawaii
- Ildkongen
- Kilimanjaro White
- Legion of Honor
- Lemon and Tangerine Gems
- Lemon Drop
- Mandarin
- Mary Helen
- Mexican Tarragon
- Moonlight
- Naughty Marietta
- Nosento Limegreen
- Orange Flame
- Phyllis
- Queen Sophia
- Red Cherry
- Red Metamorph
- Spun Orange
- Strawberry Blonde
- Tangerine
- Tiger Eyes
Because there are so many varieties of marigolds for your to choose from, we couldn’t go into any detail about each one of them in this blog
We have listed a detailed post from our friends at Gardeners Path who talk about these in more detail if you want to know more.
Which Marigolds Are Best For Tomatoes?
The tomatoes in the garden will benefit from the benefits of each and every marigold plant. African marigold is a deer deterrent that can be tried if you are facing a particular problem. The root knot nematode is related to the French marigold.
If you want to attract bees and beneficial insects, signet marigold is the way to go. The tomato worms and caterpillars are of particular concern.
You can see which ones you like best by mixing and matching a variety of marigolds. If you can see what works well, you can prevent tomato problems.
How to Grow Marigolds
The annual flower is frost tender and is easy to grow. It is possible to start plants indoors 4 weeks before the last frost date or directly in the garden after the last fear of frost has passed.
They start to bloom around 10 weeks later. There are many different types of marigold seeds available to you.
If you want to save yourself a lot of trouble, buy transplants that are ready to plant near your tomatoes because African, French, and Signet marigolds are popular bedding plants.
In full sun, marauding plants like to stay evenly moist in the well-drained soil. Both tomatoes and marigolds will benefit from this start.
African and Signet marigolds are tolerant of hotter, more humid sites.
The French marigolds prefer a moist environment. Depending on the type of marigold you grow, pinching young plants for bushier growth and deadheading to encourage more blossoms can be very successful.
Other Companion Plants That Benefit Tomatoes
Companion plants are any plants that grow near tomatoes to help them thrive. These are plants that will help your tomatoes grow and give you all kinds of benefits too!
Some companion plants are very easy to grow and some are a bit more difficult. You can use these plants to make your garden look pretty or even add a little extra flavor to your tomato plants.
Here are a few of our favorite companion plants:
Basil is one of the easiest companions to grow. It grows quickly and will grow well in just about any type of soil.
Basil is also great for pest control, and it can attract pollinators to your tomatoes. Marigolds are a great companion for tomatoes. They can be grown in almost any soil, and they have a long growing season.
Marigolds, as already discussed also easy to grow and can provide a great amount of pest control.
Nasturtiums are another easy companion to grow. They grow quickly and will do well in most soils. Nasturtiums are also a great addition to pest control, and they’re also good for attracting butterflies to your garden.
Peas are a great companion plant for tomatoes. They grow quickly and will do well in most soils. Peas can also help to attract pollinators, and they’re also a good addition to pest control.
If you want to learn more about companion planting with tomatoes, Then check out our recent post
Read more: The 12 Most Popular Companion Plants For Growing Tomatoes
