Insectary plants near fruiting crops increase pollinator and predator visitation.
A good hunch A person has checked it against its sources. If you skip this, it still grows, just less well. The planner suggests it.
How it works
The flowers supply nectar and pollen that adult predators and parasitoids feed on, so a patch of them near a fruiting crop keeps those beneficial insects fed and close by to work the crop. The effect is real but not guaranteed. An insectary patch does not always suppress pests.
The evidence
Evidence: checked against 1 source in the research-based literature.
The source
Insectary plants are those grown to attract, feed, and shelter insect parasites (parasitoids) and predators to enhance biological pest control. Insectary plants provide nectar and pollen, which the adults of many natural enemy species need to consume.
Plant teams that rest on it
- Blackberry hedge
- Currant ring
- Forage strip
- Four Sisters
- Fruit tree ring
- Fruit tree ring (dwarf)
- Tomatillo pair
- Tomatillo pair (small bed)
Folklore it answers
Read next
How this rule has changed
Every change is dated, newest first. The full record, with each reason, is in the data download.
- Sources updated
- Wording made clearer
- Sources updated
- Details updated
- Sources updated
- A person read the sources and confirmed it
- Added to the rules
Plan a bed with Blackberry hedge ›
Companion planting charts encode real relationships. · What can I plant now?
More ways Milpa can help
When do I plant? · What grows well together? · Plan my garden · What can I plant now? · Something wrong in the garden? · Keep a garden diary · Heard a tip?
Cite this page
Milpa Gardens. “Insectary plants near fruiting crops increase pollinator and predator visitation.” Evidence grade: A good hunch. https://milpa.garden/rules/insectary-plants-near-fruiting-crops-increase-pollinator/
A garden planner built on graded evidence. Every claim states its evidence grade and links its sources on the page. Cite it with the grade, and add the date you read it.
Report a problem with this claim
How we grade evidence
- Well established
- The rule names its mechanism and is settled, by sources a person has read and checked or by plain arithmetic and geometry.
- Promising
- The mechanism is named and the literature backs it. A few questions are still open.
- A good hunch
- Plausible by its mechanism, but field studies are thin, so treat it as a lean.
- Contested
- The evidence points both ways, or no study has tested it, so the planner does not enforce it.
- Refuted
- The claim did not survive its sources. It is kept so the folklore can be answered.