Why You Need to Plant Flowers in a Vegetable Garden

Growing flowers has so many benefits not only for your garden, but for you as a gardener. Flowers attract beneficial insects, some are edible or medicinal, bring beauty to the garden, and joy to you. Grow food to heal your body, grow flowers to heal your soul. Here are some flowers to consider adding to your vegetable garden this year.

Best Flowers to Plant in a Vegetable Garden

There are two main types of plants: annual and perennial. Annual plants you will need to replant every year and perennial plants will come back every year without replanting. Have this in mind for what plants you want to grow. I personally think having annual flowers would be best in a vegetable garden because you are replanting vegetables also, but you do what is best for your goals and lifestyle.

Annual Flowers to Plant in a Vegetable Garden

1. Nasturtiums

• Benefits: Nasturtiums are known as “trap crops” because they attract aphids, whiteflies, and other pests away from your vegetables. 
• Great Varieties: Alaska mix, Alaska gold, & Bloody Mary
• Bonus Uses: Nasturtiums are flowers and leaves are edible and have a peppery flavor like arugula.

2. Sunflowers

• Benefits: Sunflowers attract pollinators like bees, which are essential for the pollination of your vegetables. If you don’t want to eat the sunflower seeds the birds will love them in the fall!
• Great Varieties: Teddy bear, procut white lite, big smile (you can’t go wrong with any variety!)
• Bonus Uses: Sunflower seeds are delicious!

Tip: If you are growing tall varieties do not plant them where they will shade out your other plants. I also have a whole post just on growing sunflowers HERE

3. Zinnias

• Benefits: Zinnias are excellent for attracting pollinators such as bees and butterflies, which help pollinate vegetables.
• Great Varieties: Queeny red Lime, Zinderella Peach, California giant mix 
• Bonus Uses: Zinnias are great cut flowers that have a great vase life and can be dried as well.  I also have a whole post just on growing Zinnias HERE

4. Marigolds

• Benefits: Marigolds are fantastic for repelling pests, especially aphids, nematodes, and whiteflies. Their strong scent deters many harmful insects.
• Great Varieties: White swan, French Marigolds, Coco gold
• Bonus Uses: Marigolds are edible and make great cut flowers!

5. Calendula

• Benefits: Calendula helps to attract pollinators and also has medicinal properties. It can act as a natural pest repellent, deterring aphids and other common garden pests.
• Great Varieties: Pacific Beauty mix, Ivory Princess, Alpha
• Bonus Uses: Calendula is edible and makes great cut flowers! It can also be used in tinctures and salves for dry skin.

6. Cosmos

• Benefits: Cosmos flowers are excellent for attracting pollinators and beneficial insects, bees absolutely love cosmos and can be found sleeping on my regularly! 
• Great Varieties: double click rose bon bon, sea shells, candy stripe 
• Bonus Uses: Makes great cut flowers and pressed flowers!

7. Honorable Mentions

Violets: Edible flowers that do well under the shade of plants. They are also great pressed flowers for crafts. 

Sweet peas: Vining plants that flowers smell amazing! BUT pods are not edible so don’t mix them up with your editable snap peas.

Perennial Flowers for Vegetable Gardens

Perennial flowers are great to grow if you want a low maintenance and don’t want to replant flowers every year. Here are a few of my favorites that I like.

1. Yarrow

• Benefits: Yarrow is very drought tolerant and grows as easy as a weed in my climate. Attracts beneficial insects and has many medicinal properties. 
• Great Varieties: The Pearl, Favorite Berry, Flowerburst
• Bonus Uses: A champion cut flower with long vase life and makes a great drying flower.

2. Echinacea

• Benefits: Echinacea is very drought tolerant and grows as easy as a weed in my climate. Attracts beneficial insects and has many medicinal properties. 
• Great Varieties: White Swan, Magnus, Cheyenne Spirit
• Bonus Uses: Also a great cut flower!

3. Lavender

• Benefits:  Lavender is very drought tolerant and grows as easy as a weed in my climate. Attracts beneficial insects and has many medicinal properties. 
• Great Varieties: Best grown from a plant, not seeds
• Bonus Uses: Smells amazing and a great cut flower for fresh bouquets or drying.

What Flowers Grow Well in Raised Garden Beds?

I don’t know what flower wouldn’t do well in raised garden beds. You’re free to pick any flower you like.

What Flowers To Plant in Vegetable Garden to Deter Pests?

As mentioned above flower that are great at deterring pests are

• Nastrutions 
• Marigolds 
• Calendula

What Flowers to Plant in Vegetable Garden to Attract Bees?

• Sunflowers
• Zinnias
• Cosmos
• Yarrow
• Echinacea
• Lavender

What Flowers Not to Plant with Vegetables?

All flowers are great to plant in a vegetable garden, but you do want to be careful of flowers that can spread and take over. For me it has never been a problem because the more flowers the better and if I don’t want a flower growing somewhere they pull out easily. Some flowers that can spread are sweet alysium, cosmos, yarrow, and sunflowers.

Give flowers a chance and add flowers to your vegetable garden. You grow food to heal your body, and grow flower to heal your soul

Beth