• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Frugal Gardening

Simple ways to save money while you garden

  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Garden Frugally
  • Buy These
  • Privacy Policy
  • Navigation Menu: Social Icons

    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter

4 Reasons to Plant Flowers in and Around Your Vegetable Garden

August 19, 2019 by Steph Coelho Leave a Comment

image_pdfimage_print

For a long time, I thought planting flowers was a pointless and frivolous gardening activity. Sure, they looked nice, but I was much more interested in growing food. Being able to grow frequently eaten foods such as lettuce, tomatoes, and arugula, meant that my grocery bills were lower, and I was even able to share excess produce with friends and family. Growing produce is still the focus of my gardening efforts, but now, I put equal effort into cultivating a balanced ecosystem that includes flowering plants. 

Why plant flowers?

Aesthetic: There’s no denying that a patch of flowers around the garden looks beautiful. Well placed flowering plants pull together an outdoor space and really allow it to shine. A few containers of brightly colored gerberas on my back deck add a look I couldn’t otherwise achieve with simple greenery. 

Attract pollinators: Flowers are an essential food source for many pollinators, and the colorful blooms will bring bees and other buzzing beneficial insects to the fray. Pick native flowering plants, and each time you step into your outdoor space, you’ll notice that your garden is vibrating with energy. 

Attract predatory insects: Some flowering herbs and plants also attract predatory insects that can help you take a bite out of pest problems — and even avoid them altogether. Catmint, for instance, attracts lacewing insects, which in turn devour pests such as aphids and Japanese beetles. The tiny flowers on this herb also attract bees. 

Enjoy cut flowers for free: If you’re anything like me, you love having a bouquet of fresh-picked flowers on your coffee table or kitchen windowsill. It’s a beautiful way to bring the outdoors inside, but buying plants from a flower shop is an expensive purchase that most frugal gardeners aren’t able to afford. Even those with a sufficient budget to buy cut flowers are wary of spending money on this type of expense. Planting flowers in your garden allows you to have a steady supply of cut flowers for your home. My favorite are zinnias. Start a few indoors, transplant in the spring and in mid- to late summer you’ll be rewarded with a prolific patch of delicate and colorful blooms. 

Annual versus perennial

Plant a variety of flowers including perennial and annual varieties to ensure you have a varied array of blooms. I like to cover the bulk of my flower-designated areas with perennials since they’re low maintenance and don’t require me to purchase new seed each year. I do enjoy planting a few annual varieties (zinnias, for example), though. Don’t be afraid to ask nursery employees for suggestions on what to plant. 

When in doubt, pick drought-tolerant perennials, and you can enjoy a flowery display without too much effort! 

Steph Coelho

Steph Coelho is a freelance writer gardening in zone 5b. She is a certified Square Foot Gardener and has taught various garden-related workshops. When she’s not digging in the dirt or writing, she’s cooking up fresh produce, running, or listening to her favorite podcasts.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: flowers, Vegetable Garden

Previous Post: « The No-Cost Way to Increased Tomato Yields: Pruning
Next Post: Cooking on the Cheap: Snacking from Your Garden »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar




Popular Posts

  • Garden For FreeGarden For Free by Steph Coelho Is it possible to have a lush flower garden, produce…
  • Vinegar Uses In GardenVinegar Uses In Garden by Steph Coelho 1. Clay Pot Cleaning: Vinegar will remove the white salt…
  • Troubleshooting the Seed Starting Process: Using Old SeedsTroubleshooting the Seed Starting Process: Using Old Seeds by Steph Coelho I'm typing this up on a gloomy day here in…
  • Using Shredded Paper As Garden MulchUsing Shredded Paper As Garden Mulch by Steph Coelho Should you use shredded paper as garden mulch? Normally, I…
(X) Inexpensive Alternatives To Grow Lights

Inexpensive Alternatives To Grow Lights

Grow lights can be a really helpful tool for indoor gardening. Many people find that they are worth their cost. However, they aren’t cheap. Therefore, you might want to consider some of these inexpensive alternatives to grow lights. What Are Grow Lights? Grow lights are exactly what their name says: lights designed to help plants…

Read More

Maintaining a Garden to Keep Your Indoors and Outdoors Clean

Gardening gives your home the required curb appeal and does wonder for your well-being. Physical exercise keeps blood pressure in check and contributes to a healthy weight, and interactions with flora improve your mental health and mood. Below is a list of ways to maintain your garden.   Watering Watering the plants is crucial and…

Read More

4 Reasons to Volunteer for an Eco-Friendly Gardening Club

Volunteering is an amazing way to give back to society and spend your time in a fulfilling way. If you’re wondering whether to volunteer or what to volunteer for, there are a number of causes to volunteer for, including eco-friendly gardening. Read on to see four reasons why you should consider volunteering your time in…

Read More

5 Ways Depression Costs Me In the Garden

5 Ways Depression Costs Me In the Garden

I struggle with chronic, recurring depression. While it’s well-managed, the symptoms do creep up from time to time. Depression is an expensive mental health condition, in ways that might surprise you. In fact, during bouts of depression, I find that it costs me in the garden. This does mitigate the many mental health benefits of…

Read More

Footer

Copyright © 2022 · Foodie Pro & The Genesis Framework