Millie adds flowers to her patch, not because she wants to ‘pretty it up’ but because studies have shown that food crops benefit from having other flowers nearby to attract predatory insects and pollinators.
The insects control possible pests for you, so you don’t have to use sprays that would also kill bees and other pollinators.
Interplanting is the best way to grow crops such as lettuce organically.
Step 1:
Add some compost, worm castings and animal manure pellets to the soil to improve it before planting.
Step 2:
Space out your seedlings – in this case Millie has used a loose-leaf lettuce (Lactuca sativa ‘Oakleaf’) – and she has vowed to plant one flower for every ten plants. Millie has used sweet alyssum (Lobularia maritima), which will help attract hover flies.
Step 3:
Water in well.
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