I’m a perky plant parent – my gardening trick will make your tomatoes taste better, it will repel pests too

A PERKY plant parent has shared her gardening trick that makes your tomatoes taste better.

But this clever hack will repel pests at the same time too.

TikTok/perkyplantparent

TikTok/perkyplantparent

If that was not enough for one day, she also ensures her plants are happy and well-fed.

Perky Plant parent (@perkyplantparent) teaches beginner gardeners how to grow food.

In this post, she shared a super-simple idea to add flavor to your crops of tomatoes this year.

However, there was impatience from one of the commenters to her video.

“Get to the point. What herb?” he said.

But she was in no hurry and delivered her tomatoes tip in her own time.

The secret to her method is a concept called companion gardening.

COMPANION GARDENING

Companion planting is all about creating areas for plants that are mutually beneficial.

“Planting the wrong things together can be detrimental to your garden,” said our gardener.

Placing companion plants in the same patch can deter pests and attract good insects.

• onions growing next to carrot helps deter carrot root fly
• Leeks and garlic can also protect carrots from the root fly
• nasturtiums will lure cabbage white butterflies from cabbages and broccoli
• lavender’s strong scent can deter insect pests from carrots and leeks

Companion planting in our organic gardener’s raised vegetable bed saw her place tomatoes, marigolds, and basil together.

“Did you know that planting basil next to your tomatoes will help improve their flavor?” she said.

METHOD

First, she planted the tomatoes, digging a hole deep enough to cover all the furry hairs on the stalk.

These will eventually turn into roots and need to be covered.

Next, she added worm castings to the hole and pellets containing beneficial microbes and nutrients.

“They will make for some happy plants,” she said.

Once the tomato plant was embedded, she moved on to its companion plants.

BENEFICIAL PLANTS FOR TOMATOES

The first of these was the colorful marigold.

“They repel the dreaded hornworm and they also attract bees and butterflies. So plant lots of them when you’re planting tomatoes,” she said.

Finally, she was ready for the flavorsome and pungent herb.

“Basil is great for repelling white flies and hornworms,” she said.

“It smells great too. Be sure to plant lots of basil and marigolds with your tomatoes this year,” she said.

One commenter was grateful for the tip.

“So helpful, thank you,” they wrote.