Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Flowers that repel pests
Speaking of pests, yesterday I talked about Japanese beetles, today I want to talk about flowers that repel bugs!
Cranesbill also known as perennial geranium, are hardy natives that enjoy part shade.
Russian sage is a great option for the sunny perennial border. It attracts beneficial bees while offering nothing to browsing bug pests. It’s tough, fuzzy foliage and aroma are a turnoff!
Lavender will also do the trick but be sure you purchase the perennial for zone 4.
For a sweet annual around your veggies and/or front of the perennial beds, butter daisy is adorable.
The prolific daisy-like yellow flowers bloom from May until frost and contrast well with the bright green foliage. The leaves are opposite, slightly fuzzy, and have smooth, wavy, or slightly toothed margins. It also reseeds.
One perennial I LOVE the smell of and bugs hate, is dianthus! I have ‘Firewitch’ but there are a LOT of options.
And then there’s catmint aka nepeta. Whether or not you like cats, you should include the famed Nepeta ‘Walker’s Low’ in your perennial garden if pests are a problem.
Not only does this blue-blooming hummingbird magnet deflect insects, but rabbits and deer pass it by as well. Try a pretty carpet of several plants as a companion planting in a rose garden. And nepeta is the perennial of the year for 2021 from the Perennial Plant Association.