There are many outdoor pests you may be keen to avoid, but flies can very easily become the most annoying when you're trying to enjoy your outdoor spaces, the insect you're most eager to deter. Adult flies can circle your head, buzzing endlessly, while you're trying to enjoy your garden or patio—and worse, they're prone to sneaking in the house and becoming an even bigger hassle to get rid of. We spoke with Amber Noyes from Gardening Chores to get her recommendations on some of the best plants that flies like to avoid, and her top tips for getting the most pest-deterring power from them. Meet the Expert Amber Noyes is an expert horticulturist and editor at Gardening Chores. She holds a Master's degree in horticulture from the University of California and has experience working on and caring for organic farms. 01 of 10 Basil (Ocimum basilicum) A plant Noyes says truly "worked wonders" for her own garden is one you might already grow, or want to. Basil (Ocimum basilicum) is a very popular herb found in many kitchen gardens and adds dynamic, delicious flavor to a huge range of meals. Noyes stresses that the aroma of basil, which most humans like and associate with a good meal, is actually highly unfavorable to some of the most common garden pests, like flies and mosquitoes. If you want to be successful at repelling flies you'll need your basil plants thriving outdoors as well as indoors. Name: Basil (Ocimum basilicum) USDA Hardiness Zones: perennial in 10-11 Light: Bright, 6-8 hours per day Soil: Well-drained 02 of 10 Lavender (Lavandula) Another plant Noyes recommends highly is also popular with many gardeners. Lavender (Lavandula) is sought-after for its relaxing, spa-like scent and is also popular for drying or use in essential oils. While we tend to love this beautiful flowering plant, a perennial that can live up to 20 years if given the right conditions, flies are repelled by its scent and will likely stay far away. Lavender can also deter moths and mosquitoes, so it's a multi-functional bug-repellent plant that looks and smells lovely in your garden. Name: Lavender (Lavandula) USDA Hardiness Zones: 5-9 Light: Full sun Soil: Well-drained, slightly alkaline 03 of 10 Catnip (Nepeta cataria) This herbaceous perennial may be a favorite of housecats around the world, but it's also an option that may help you keep pesky flies out of your yard or patio. Low maintenance and fast-growing, this plant can spread quickly around your garden if left unchecked, so opt for container growing if you want to control its size. Flower spikes appear from late spring through fall, with clusters of white and purple blooms. While the dried leaves of this plant are popular for cats, note that the oils of the fresh plant can be toxic to them. Regardless, the scents and oils of this plant can deter pests and is a great option for those seeking natural bug repellant. Name: Catnip (Nepeta cataria) USDA Hardiness Zones: 3-7 Light: Full sun Soil: Well-drained, loamy, sandy 04 of 10 Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) A relative of mint with a citrusy profile, lemon balm is a lovely addition to home gardens with a bright scent that gardeners usually love—and plenty of insects avoid. Packed with the key compound citronellal, which is used in most natural insect repellants on the market, it's a natural solution for driving away flies, mosquitoes, and other unwelcome garden visitors. Name: Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) USDA Hardiness Zones: 3-7 Light: Full sun, partial shade Soil: Well-drained Tip Keep in mind that lemon balm, like its close relative mint, is a rapidly growing plant that will quickly overtake your other plants, so most gardeners keep this one container-bound. 05 of 10 Marigold (Tagetes spp.) Another favorite recommendation of Noyes, marigolds are a popular flower known for their bright, cheerful colors and plentiful array of blooms throughout the summer. They come in a range of size and color varieties, but all include the compound pyrethrum, which is used in many insect repellants, and is what makes this plant valuable in your efforts to keep flies away. Marigolds are a true annual, growing quickly and reaching maturity in only a couple of months, providing plenty of flowers throughout the summer before dying off when frost arrives. Name: Marigold (Tagetes spp.) USDA Hardiness Zones: 2-11 (annual) Light: Full sun Soil: Well-drained, moist 06 of 10 Carnivorous Plants It's possible your first thought when it comes to getting rid of flies was a Venus flytrap or other carnivorous varieties—and not for no reason. While these plants won't keep flies from entering your home or garden in the first place, a healthy carnivorous plant will kill any fly that lands on it, helping take care of some stragglers, especially those who sneak inside. There are more carnivorous plants than just Venus flytraps, including pitcher plants, butterwort, and cobra lily. Each has unique structures that trap insects and immobilize or even consume them. Carnivorous plants are typically tropical and unlikely to survive outdoors in most of the U.S., but they can thrive indoors if given proper care and growing environment. Name: Various carnivorous species USDA Hardiness Zones: 3-9, depending on species Light: Typically full sun Soil: Usually boggy, acidic soil 07 of 10 Rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus) This fragrant perennial herb is an easy-to-grow and popular plant, both for kitchen gardens and as a larger, border shrub when given space to thrive outdoors. Edible needle-like leaves grow on woody stems, with flowers blooming most often in spring and summer, as well as occasionally throughout the year. Rosemary is popular in cooking and baking, but also happens to have a scent that naturally deters pests like flies and gnats. Name: Rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus) USDA Hardiness Zones: 8-10 Light: Full sun Soil: Well-drained, sandy, loamy 08 of 10 Sage (Salvia officinalis) Popular kitchen herbs are a theme among plants that repel flies and other garden pests. That's because oftentimes the lovely flavors and aromas of these plants, which we value highly for cooking, baking, and essential oils, are repellant to flies. Sage is another great option—this easy-to-grow semi-shrubby perennial herb grows moderately quickly and does well both in the ground and in containers. Name: Sage (Salvia officinalis) USDA Hardiness Zones: 4-10 Light: Full sun Soil: Well-drained, sandy, loamy 09 of 10 Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis) Bay laurel, also known by names like bay leaf, sweet bay, or laurel tree, is a Mediterranean shrub or tree known for its leaves, which are commonly used in cooking. But this lovely plant's aroma also helps deter a host of frustrating garden pests, like flies. It's especially helpful if you plant a larger bay laurel tree, or a series of them next to each other, which will create almost a wall that pushes flies away. Name: Bay laurel (Laurus nobilis) USDA Hardiness Zones: 8-10 Light: Full or partial sun Soil: Well-drained, moist 10 of 10 Mint (Mentha spp.) Popular and often included in home and kitchen gardens, mint is available in a wide range of varieties with different flavors and specific uses, and grows rapidly if given the right conditions. You may have heard mint described as growing like a weed, taking over any garden bed it's given access to. For this reason, many gardeners keep it in containers, preferring to be able to manage its size and grab leaves as needed in cooking, mixology, and aromatherapy. While we may love the bright, refreshing scent of mint plants, many pesky insects like flies will steer clear of it, so it's another great aromatic to help you keep your outdoor zones fly-free. Name: Mint (Mentha spp.) USDA Hardiness Zones: 3-11 Light: Full or partial sun Soil: Well-drained, moist, loamy Why Deter Flies? In their larvae state, many fly species will be a menace to your garden plants—prone to developing into a soil infestation and eating plants until they can no longer thrive. For both of these reasons, most gardeners and outdoors lovers are keen to keep the common pests at bay. Thankfully, doing so can be as easy as being strategic about what you plant in your own garden. Here are the 10 best plant varieties to grow for natural fly repellent. Additional Tips to Repel Flies Not only is it important to include the right plants in your garden, but Noyes also suggests these tips: Plant in strategic spots, like near your seating areas, around doorways or windows of your home, and around outdoor tables—anywhere you want flies to stay clear from Remember that effectiveness will depend on many factors, including the health of your plants, your climate, and the seriousness of a fly infestation. These plants will all help deter sporadic flies, but won't be able to eradicate a complete existing infestation. You'll need additional fly traps or exterminators for that. Including several plants from this list is more likely to be effective; the more the better!

Learning how to grow watercress gives you a tasty, water-loving plant option with a peppery taste that can enliven a sandwich or salad. Ann McCarron will show you how easy it is to grow and share our tips for caring for this perennial herb. Who can resist the hot, peppery taste of watercress in a salad, a sandwich, or even garnishing a burger, but did you know that watercress is very easy to grow yourself? Read on to learn how to grow watercress at home in your own garden. As a water-loving perennial, it’s often assumed that watercress can only be grown in fresh flowing water. While this is true, you’ll be happy to learn that recreating these growing conditions using containers is straightforward. You can even grow watercress on a sunny windowsill if you follow our tips! Watercress has been cultivated since Roman and Greek times, and there are good reasons for its long success. Those small fresh leaves are packed full of vitamins A and C, iron, calcium, and folic acid, making watercress a nutritional powerhouse. It’s not just for salad mixes, either. Add a handful of leaves to smoothies for a healthy vitamin boost, or try your hand at making watercress soup or pesto sauce to add to pasta. Either way, this incredibly versatile leaf is going to taste delicious. What is Watercress? Watercress, also known as garden cress, comes from the cabbage or mustard family Brassicaceae. With the botanical name Nasturtium officinale, it would be easy to confuse watercress with the land-grown, colorful nasturtium ornamental flowering plant, Tropaeolum majus. To add even more confusion, both plants are edible and have a strong peppery flavor, but they are not related botanically. Native Area Watercress is native to Europe and Asia and is naturalized across North America growing in streams, springs, slow-moving rivers, and marshland. As a semi-aquatic herb, watercress thrives in permanently wet conditions, either partially submerged or grown in soil regularly refreshed with clean, clear water. Watercress cannot grow in a stagnant environment. Characteristics Watercress has a dense, sprawling growth habit, propagating freely from leaf nodes which is why you sometimes see fine hair-like white roots on your bagged watercress salad from the supermarket. Leaves are mid-green, alternate, pinnately compound ranging between three to nine leaflets growing on hollow stems. Clusters of four-petalled white flowers are borne on dark green/brown stalks protruding slightly above the carpet of leaves and are a magnet to water insects, hoverflies, and bees. Flower production is stimulated by day length and tends to occur in mid to late summer. Seed pods are similar in appearance to other brassica family varieties: long, thin, and upright, turning brown when ready to harvest. Pods remain elevated above the water, bursting when ripe, falling close to the parent, and usually germinating within a week, providing continuous crop throughout the season. Seeds are tiny, oval, brown specks that are best broad-sown. Each pod contains 20+ seeds, and each cluster of flowers has around 20 seed pods. Watercress has both basal roots to secure it to the location and advantageous roots that float and assist in progressing colonization. Watercress has a vigorous growth rate, allowing harvests in as little as four to seven weeks. Treated as a cut-and-come-again salad, watercress rewards you with continuous lush growth from spring to late fall. Leaves become bitter and unpalatable after flowering, so frequent harvesting will keep your watercress producing new leaves for longer. All parts of the watercress, including the flowers and roots, are edible, but the latter parts tend to be bitter. Watercress is grown primarily for its tasty leaves, which are best consumed raw to get the most nutritional value. Leaves can also be cooked in soups and stir-fries or wilted like spinach. Planting Plant shop-bought watercress outdoors from March if no harsh frosts are forecast. Young plants may suffer from a sudden change in temperature so it’s best to acclimatize them over a few days. If growing in containers, keep indoors until the first frost-free date. Sow watercress seeds outdoors from spring when average daily temperatures are between 50-60°F (10-16°C) or indoors and plant outside once they have become established. Seeds require this temperature range to successfully germinate. If using store-bought transplants in garden ponds, simply place watercress into aquatic pots filled with compost or soilless potting mix and topped with gravel to prevent the growing media from floating away. Sow seed directly along the edges of ponds as long as the soil is saturated, as they grow naturally in that sort of environment. No access to a garden pond? No problem. Grow in containers outside or even on a windowsill. Grow transplants or sow watercress seeds on the surface of the soil and place the pot into a deep saucer filled with water. Keep the saucer topped up at all times using rainwater whenever possible. Place the container in a bright sunny location and watch your watercress grow! Although watercress is a perennial, when growing in containers, it should be treated as an annual. Watercress will not tolerate stagnant conditions which encourage bacterial growth. To avoid this flush your pots at least twice a week simply by removing the saucer and watering the container with fresh water allowing the excess to drain away. Do this a couple of times and return to the saucer topping it up with clean water to keep the soil moist. How to Grow Watercress is self-sufficient with few issues when grown in the correct habitat. Follow the tips below to learn how to grow watercress! Maintenance Generally, pruning is not necessary for growing watercress, although they benefit from regular snipping to encourage new lush growth for continual harvest.

Thinking of adding some Turnips to your garden this season, but aren't sure where to start? Turnips can be a great addition to any harvest, and make great companion plants for certain vegetables. In this article, organic gardening expert Logan Hailey walks through every step you'll need to follow in order to plant, grow, and care for turnips. Traditionally, turnips haven’t been the most elegant or romanticized of garden vegetables. But in foodie and gardener circles, turnips are finally enjoying a stylish comeback. New cultivars with delicious flavors and textures, coupled with an impressive nutritional profile, are redeeming qualities for this humble root. Grown and eaten for at least the last 4,000 years, turnips are a root vegetable closely related to radishes and cabbage. They have been grown for both livestock feed and human consumption. For some, turnips seem to insight memories of their grandmother’s mashed or boiled turnip dishes. For others, modern turnips are a culinary delicacy so crisp, sweet, and tender that they can be enjoyed as a snack straight from the garden. These brassica-family roots are easy to grow and tolerant of spring or fall frosts. While most people are only familiar with the strong-flavored, purple-topped winter turnip, there are in fact dozens of varieties of turnips that give even the tastiest radish or sweetest apple a run for their money. From buttery white ‘Tokyo’ turnips to mild fuchsia salad turnips, there is a vast array of untapped potential for garden-fresh meals. If you’ve been wanting to try a new spring or fall crop in your garden, turnips are the perfect root for beginners. They are easy to grow, quick to mature, and far more delicious than their reputation may have led you to believe. Let’s dig into how to grow the tastiest turnips you’ve ever tried! History and Cultivation Humans have been cultivating turnips since ancient Roman times. In fact, they are one of the oldest known vegetables. But the humble root was not very highly regarded by upper class Europeans for many centuries. Historically, only the rural country peasants ate turnips, or they were fed to cows and pigs during the winter months. Ironically, the qualities that made turnips important to these populations of country folk are in fact what make this vegetable such an excellent addition to the garden. Turnips could withstand cold, damp winters and hold for a long time in storage. They were easy to grow and yielded prolifically without much fertility or tending. The roots and greens are also nutrient-dense and widely adapted to a diversity of uses in the kitchen. While turnips were reserved for the rural poor in Europe, they became highly regarded in Asia as a delicate, nearly fruit-flavored snack. Today, specialty varieties of salad turnips (specifically the Asian types) are all the rage amongst locavore chefs and “foodie” circles throughout America. What Are Turnips? Turnips (Brassica rapa) are a hardy cool-weather, biennial root crop in the Brassicaceae family. They are closely related to mustards, radishes, broccoli, cabbage, and kale. Turnips are mostly grown in spring or fall. They can be as sweet as carrots or as starchy as potatoes. The greens are also edible and loaded with nutrition. Best of all, turnips thrive in gardens in almost any region. Turnip plants send most of their energy down to their roots to yield the healthy, fibrous, carbohydrate-rich bulbs loved by ancient farmers. But the bulbous rounded base of the turnip is botanically considered a swollen hypocotyl (not technically root tissue). This is basically an edible storage organ of the plant that is a medley of root, stem, and tuber. All scientific jargon aside, turnips look a lot like their radish cousins. They average 2-4” in diameter with mustard-like greens that can grow up to 18” tall. Turnips have a more mild, unique flavor than radishes and take longer to mature. However, both radishes and turnips are cultivated in a similar way. As I’ll explain below, there are many shapes, textures, and colors of turnips, each with their own unique flavor profiles.They can be globe-shaped, elongated, or flat and long. They can be tender and crisp for raw eating or firm and crunchy for winter roasts. The skins can be purple, red, green, white, or mottled. And turnips range in flavor from mild to pungent to slightly bitter to spicy and even sweet. Needless to say, you can’t judge a turnip by its cover! Where Do Turnips Originate? Turnips likely originated in temperate parts of central Asia and western Europe. Wild forms of Brassica rapa (wild mustards, wild radishes, and cousins) are also the common ancestors of modern radish, mustard, rutabaga, and Chinese cabbage. The ancient Romans and Greeks both cultivated turnips in some form, though they were mostly reserved for rural peasants or for use as livestock fodder. As agriculture evolved, turnips spread far and wide throughout the Mediterranean to Asia and beyond. Turnips are so easy to grow that they readily adapted to most every region farmers tried to grow them. Turnips made their way to the Americas in the late 1500s and early 1600s when explorer Jacques Cartier brought them to Canada and Virginia colonists planted them around the same time in Virginia. Settlers quickly realized how dependable the humble turnip was amidst brutally cold winters when they really needed storage vegetables. Turnips vs. Rutabagas While they share a common ancestor, there is a lot of confusion about the difference between turnips and rutabagas. Turnip (Brassica Rapa) is a different species than rutabaga (Brassica napobrassica), but similar in both culture and cooking uses. Turnips mature faster and have thinner skins than their waxy rutabaga cousins. While turnips are usually harvested at 2-4” in diameter, rutabagas tend to be harvested at 4-6” and need to be cooked a bit longer due to their tougher texture. Rutabagas are often called “suedes” or “swedes” in Europe and Canada. This European “swede” (the same as the American rutabaga) was developed by crossing a cabbage and a turnip. Swedes remain very popular in England, Sweden, and Scandinavia to this day. Whether you prefer turnips or swedes, both species are grown and cooked in very similar ways. They can even be used interchangeably in many recipes. Propagation and Planting Like most brassicas, turnips are propagated by seed and easy to sow. Seeds tend to be on the larger size of mustard-seed, making them great for beginners. They germinate rapidly in 7-10 days and grow fast in consistently moist soil. Turnips are usually directly sown in the garden because their roots don’t particularly like disturbance. They are also moderately frost tolerant even as seedlings in the spring garden. However, if you prefer, they can be transplanted. But I’ve found that transplanting turnips or radishes just adds another unnecessary step. They like to grow in place. How to Direct Seed Turnips Turnips can be seeded in the spring approximately 2 to 3 weeks before your region’s last frost date. They can be sown in succession every few weeks for a continuous harvest through spring. In warmer climates, turnips usually have a harder time growing in the hottest months of June through August. For a fall harvest, you can begin seeding turnips again in late summer or early autumn. First, prepare a fertile well-drained garden bed with a thin loamy surface layer. Rake it flat and then use the handle of a garden tool to draw furrows in the soil about ½” deep with rows 12-18” apart. Sprinkle the turnip seeds about 1” apart for smaller turnips or 2” apart for larger turnips. You can always thin later if needed. Keep the seeds consistently moist until germination. I prefer to cover with a light floating row cover directly after seeding to keep the turnips safe from insects and hold in that moisture. For more tender turnips, use overhead or drip irrigation to keep seedlings consistently hydrated. Don’t let the soil dry out, but never let it get soggy either. How to Grow Turnips Turnips are a beginner gardener’s dream. When it comes to ease of care and quick maturity (fast gratification anyone?), they are only beaten by their radish cousins in growing speed. On average, turnips take 30-50 days to mature, depending on how big you’d like them to grow. They are super easy to care for and not very finicky about their growing conditions. With a few simple steps, your turnips will take off in no time and you’ll be enjoying their nutritious roots and greens before you know it! Maintenance These roots are notoriously easygoing and hands-off once they are planted and irrigated. The only important maintenance you will need to do is thinning. To yield nicely sized bulbs, be sure that turnip seedlings are at least 1-2” apart. The more even your seeding and thinning, the more uniform your turnips will be for preparing in the kitchen.