The Kitchen Gardener’s Guide to Pests & Allies

This planning tool is designed to assist home vegetable gardeners in growing organically by collaborating with nature. Pests are an unavoidable part of gardening. However, managing them doesn’t need to be a reactive and aggressive game. There are natural predators that we can attract into our kitchen gardens by including certain plants in and around our growing space. Once established, you will have fewer pests, a more beautiful and colorful garden, and you’re creating a healthier ecosystem.

The plants we recommend are easy to acquire, grow, and integrate into backyard or rooftop vegetable gardens, even if you're working with small raised beds or containers. While there are many other plants that will also attract beneficial insects, these are our top picks for the kitchen garden.

For more details on this approach and companioning garden tasks, read “Planting to attract the good guys.”

To use, select the crop you'll be growing or the pest that frequents your garden to learn about which beneficial insects to attract and what to plant to do so!

Signet Marigold interplanted with Swiss Chard to attract nature’s pest control.