Growing Perennials & Companion Plants: tips for organic pest-free food, medicinals & healthy soil

Learn how Tanya from ‪@Lovelygreens‬ has created a low-maintenance vegetable and medicinal garden on a slope, and how she uses perennials and companion plants to create healthy soil and bountiful harvests. Tanya uses perennials and ground cover to prevent soil erosion. She spreads out plants of the same family across the plot to reduce pests moving through the whole crop and incorporates them within polycultures (cottage garden style) for multi-layered beds that are brimming with insects, and bursting with colour and food. Sacrificial plants like nasturtium, are used to reduce pest damage. Companion plants are used to attract beneficial insects such as pollinators, and repel the unwanted ones, helping to create a balanced ecosystem. Tanya grows hundreds of different plants, from annual vegetables to perennial fruits, herbs and medicinals. A lot of Tanya's garden produce is multifunctional, and she makes soaps and plant-based dyes from them too. Tanya talks about her favourite multi-use companion plants in PM109: www.permaculture.co.uk/issue/autumn-2021 She also has a new book that looks at how to create this diverse, buzzing and edible ecosystem: lovelygreens.com/a-womans-garden-grow-beautiful-pl…