It's time to plant marigolds between your tomato plants!

As a gardener, we are often confronted with attacks from insects of all kinds which can damage plants. Marigolds or marigolds are known to help repel pests and at the same time contribute to the beautification of the garden. This plant of the marigold genus is particularly effective in combating tomato pests.

How do marigolds repel pests?

Among the pests of tomatoes are nematodes whose harmful action takes place at the roots of the plant. Extracting water from the soil and the nutrients essential for their good growth then becomes difficult for the tomato plants. Marigolds have the particularity of producing a substance which will disrupt parasitism by these insects. This is thiophene which tends to repel nematodes and whiteflies. This also helps limit invasions of undesirable plants in the vegetable garden such as bindweed and quackgrass. Eggplants can benefit in the same way from the virtues of this substance. The production of this plant from the nightshade family will only be better. Furthermore, aphids which also like to attack tomato plants are also sensitive to marigolds.

In addition to their pest-repelling properties, marigolds are plants that attract certain insects beneficial to tomatoes. Like and hoverflies . Their larvae are known to be heavy consumers of aphids. These so-called auxiliary insects also participate in the pollination of plants.

How to plant marigolds?

Tagettes adapt to almost all soils. However, excessive exposure to sunlight and humidity should be avoided. Planting is done in spring, during the months of April and May. For installation between tomato plants, you must respect a distance of 20 to 25 cm between the plants if they are small varieties. Large varieties require spacing of 30 to 35 cm.

You must then provide regular watering to ensure optimal flowering. Avoid watering the leaves and flowers by limiting yourself to the base of the plant. Otherwise, it can lead to attacks of cryptogamic diseases and fungi. As the plant does not last from one year to the next, it is possible to harvest the seeds when the flower fades. They are then placed in an envelope. You can sow them in the months of February to March of the next season.