How things have changed over the years when it comes to gardening - I often think how did folk deal with all the pests that can invade the veggie garden.
Well for one thing, life was slower and much physical labour was involved - it was a way of life for families if they wanted to eat.
Crops were watched carefully as they grew and pests were hand picked off the plants as soon as they were noticed.
Today, chemical sprays are used by those that do not practice organic gardening, but years ago, folk would interplant different plants with their veggies so as to deter pests.
This brings me to a post that I did some time ago about how I mix up my plants and plant them close together.
Some people may not agree with this, but back in the day, it was done all the time.
Pests are attracted to certain scents and by mixing up plants such as herbs, flowers, onions with your veggies, the pests are confused by the different scents from the herbs etc., and will to a large extent, leave your precious veggies alone.
Also, the fact that your planting is crowded, makes this method even more successful.
There are some farmers here in the Cape that have changed over to organic methods and they will tell you that after a few years, their yields increased - and the pest invasions decreased and the balance is now healthy the way nature intended it to be.
