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10 www.DesertMessenger.com May 17, 2023 Gardening with Dennis NOTICE to Advertisers: Please check your ad(s). Errors/corrections must be submitted before deadline, to be published in the next available edition of the Desert Messenger. DEADLINES are printed - in multiple locations - in EVERY issue of the Desert Messenger! For rates and deadlines visit www.DesertMessenger.com Desert Messenger News offers FREE Classifi ed Ads! Here's the small print: Items for sale under $500. Private Party Only. 1 per month. Yard/Garage/Craft Sales, Wanted, Give-a-ways, Free, Lost & Found, etc. (non-commercial) For more information, contact Rain at 928-916-4235 or Email: Editor@DesertMessenger.com Stay up to date with Town Hall Town of Quartzsite now offers text notifi cations on your phone through TextMyGov. iWorQ is excited to an- nounce a strategic partnership with @TextMyGov to expand citizen en- gagement with text messaging To opt in, text the word "QUARTZSITE" to 91896. 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CARROTS LOVE TOMATOES By Alex Taft "Carrots Love Tomatoes" is a book by Louise Riotte that I bought in 1990. Its subject is companion planting. This year I bought an- other book, "How to Grow Your Own Food" by Angela S. Judd, on container gardening. Each book, though decades apart in publishing date refer to the same lists on com- panion planting – in short- that car- rots do indeed love tomatoes. Companion planting encourages each plant, though different to not just grow but fl ourish. Both of these books provide the reference ma- terial for this article. Companion planting is visible everywhere in the desert. The seeds scattered by wind, birds and animals tend to grow and fl ourish under certain conditions. For example, saguaros that do well usually start next to a creosote bush, Palo Verde tree or Ironwood. They are natural companions. What is in- teresting is that companion plant- ing principles work well in con- tainer gardening also. Some plants, because of the nutrient needs of each can cause both plants or one to fail. This is not much different than human relationships. The re- sult however in the plant world is not divorce court but rather lack of a certain crop. Some plants such as cabbage do best by themselves be- cause they take up a lot of nutrition from the soil, leaving little for any other plant to fl ourish. Companion planting can be suc- cessful because one plant contrib- utes to the nutritional needs of an- other or the other plant may give off chemicals that prevent pests from attacking its companion. The list of companion planting options whether you are planting in the ground or using containers is ex- tensive. Here are some examples: •Tomato leaves contain a volatile alkaloid, solanine which at one time was used as an agricultural insecticide. You can use the leaves to make an insecticide for roses so that beetles will not bother them or plant to- matoes near- by. Tomatoes plant- ed next to asparagus protect them from the asparagus beetle. Other friends of tomatoes are carrots, nas- turtiums, marigolds, parsley, chives and onions. • Green onions also keep away pests and can be grown with almost anything except cabbage. • Basil grows well with tomatoes and peppers. It helps tomatoes over- come insects and diseases as well as improving growth and fl avor. Basil also repels fl ies and mosquitoes. • Parsley planted with tomatoes or asparagus help them grow better. • Mint and oregano each do best by themselves. • Spinach and strawberries grow well together as do sunfl owers with cucum- bers. • Bush Beans do well with pota- toes and protect each other from beetles. They do not do well with any type of onion, chives or garlic. Car- rots also do well with beans and vice-versa. • Chives do well with parsley, lettuce and cucumbers. Both books referenced above list each plant and what its companions are. Much of the companion plant- ing was started by simple observa- tion that was later backed by sci- ence. Companion planting helps to get better results from your garden- ing efforts whether you are using containers to grow plants or have a garden. It is also used by organic gardeners as a way to successfully avoid the use of chemicals for fertil- izer and pest control. All of us, plant or human can and do recognize a neighborhood or en- vironment where at the very least, there is easier living so we can better achieve who we are. That comment is not intended to be metaphoric, so much as practical; the efforts we put forth to have tomatoes for a salad can also can also have carrots and parsley too. Dennis would have approved. Note: for those who did not know Dennis, he was a part-time employ- ee of the town parks department, a Master Gardener since 1985 and instructor for the Master Gardener Class. He passed away in 2018. chemicals that prevent pests from attacking its companion. The list of companion DEADLINE : WED. JUNE 14 TH for June 21 st edition Desert Messenger News Email: editor@DesertMessenger.com 928-916-4235 www.DesertMessenger.com

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