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I
t was when I had my first child that I realised I was
not just making decisions for myself anymore. Now,
over three decades later, I still garden without broad
spectrum sprays, and over the years have got sneakier
in the ways I deal with pests. My garden is messy,
exuberant, overgrown and diverse but manages to
produce much of our food.
There have been many reasons for this success,
including using a whole of environment approach, but
a major plank is still the use of pest-repellent plants.
If you can identify the particular pest, you can use
a planting technique or a spray that controls it without
necessarily doing damage to the beneficial insects
and birds that eat it. By experimenting with plant
combinations in your garden and with making
repellent sprays, you can discover what best
suits you and your garden.
Many insect pests are attracted by the scent of
their chosen meal. So if you mix strongly scented plants
with more vulnerable ones, the stronger scent will mask
the other, confusing the pest so it doesn’t find its target.
Some plants will also actively repel insect pests and
if these are dotted around the garden they add to
the confusion of the voracious villains.
Many of the repelling plants also attract beneficial
insects when in flower. And the final bonus is that a
large number also have medicinal or culinary uses. Here
are profiles of three pest-repellers to get you inspired,
and a list of others worth including in your garden.Whether your problem pest is a wandering
neighbourhood dog or the tiny whitefly,
there’s a plant out there that can deal
with it, writes Penny Woodward.Scent to repel
BAY (Laurus nobilis)
Bay is an attractive glossy-leafedtreethatcangrow
up to 20m, but is easily keptmuchlowerwithregular
pruning. Flowers are creamyyellowandappearon
female trees. Bays are slowgrowingandwithcareful
pruning make excellentpotplantorlawnspecimens.
Once established, baysaretoughandgenerally
pest, frost and drought resistant,doingbestin
well-drained soils and fullsun.
Fresh bay leaves placedintocontainersofflour
and grains repel weevils.Ifplacedonshelvesthey
keep ants away. They determothsfromclothesand
if placed in books protectthemfromsilverfish.Grow
bay trees near more susceptibleplantstoprotect
them from caterpillar attack.Left and below: Yarrow (Achillea
species); bay leaves have a
variety of uses in the home.
Opposite page, from top: Dog bane
(Plectranthus ornatus); a mix of
marjoram, oregano and lavender.PHOTOS: ISTOCK