Friends with Benefits 🌱

Discover the science behind the stories by joining the Gardening Club! Having trouble viewing this email? [View this email on the web.]( [OFA Banner]( [Making Friends in the Garden]( [It’s more than a myth: Some plants really do help their neighbors out.]( [Hero]( Photo Credit: Benedict Vanheems Dear Reader, Your garden is a community and some of its plants have very special friendships. No. Not those kinds of friends. We’re talking more like that friend who takes your garbage bins to the curb on trash day because you share your heirloom tomatoes with them. More specifically, though, we’re referring to friends in the garden that are more commonly known as companion plants. When you grow certain ones at the same time, they can help each other out in numerous ways. You’ve no doubt heard of the Three Sisters: corn, beans, and squash. These three vegetables are companion plants, with corn providing a “pole” for beans to climb, beans fixing much-needed nitrogen in the soil, and squash leaves spreading out to limit the growth of weeds and, help to retain moisture in the soil. [Image - 3 Sisters]( Photo Credit: Benedict Vanheems Many of these companion groupings come to us from personal anecdotes, tall tales, and assumptions. But to the extent that gardening is an art, it’s also a science. And while the science in some garden combinations is somewhat evident—for instance, the nitrogen, moisture, and son on of the Three Sisters—this is not always the case. Does basil really help tomatoes? Do nasturtiums keep moths away from fruit trees, or do they just look pretty? Or do those old farmers (no pun intended) know what they’re talking about? In most cases, the answer is yes. How do we know? Because we enjoy reading through hundreds of scientific studies, exploring the writings of experts and researchers, and looking at the results of test after test after test (Hey! Who doesn’t love that?), we have found that, indeed, those gardeners and farmers were ahead of their time. My guess is that if you love gardening, you’ll also like to know about some of the science behind companion planting (although maybe without reading hundreds of research papers). It just so happens that we have a way for you to do that! [Image - Raised Bed]( Photo Credit: Benedict Vanheems When you join The Old Farmer’s Almanac Gardening Club, you get the digital edition of the 2023 Garden Guide, which includes several companion planting study highlights. Plus, you get access to our complete online library, which includes every Garden Guide that we’ve ever published. Every Garden Guide is filled with gardening tips, advice, and ideas. You can learn about garden design, trends in gardening, and landscaping, as well as get expert information on ornamental plants, like orchids! The 2025 Gardening Club is HERE! [OFIE Image]( Club Members Perks: - Receive premier gardening advice - Be the first to recieve the 2025 Garden Guide - Attend Members-Only Q&A Sessions hosted by Almanac editors - Members save over 30% and unlock digital benefits [Join Today]( Planning Your Garden [Image - radishes]( Photo Credit: Shutterstock It’s fascinating to read about garden companions, but why not take advantage of this knowledge in your own garden? Did you know that you can plant radishes near pumpkins to repel squash bugs? Worried about cabbageworms or the Colorado potato beetle? Planting dill will attract parasitic wasps and other predators that feed on these pests. However, companion planting isn’t always about placing certain plants close together. Bulb fennel, for example, emits natural chemicals that can impact the growth of its neighbors. But if you put a little distance between the fennel and the rest of your garden, you can attract hoverflies, which feast on aphids. What about marigolds? Do they repel root-knot nematodes? Do tomatoes deter diamondback moth larvae? Check out “Friends With Benefits” in the 2023 The Old Farmer’s Almanac Garden Guide Digital Edition to find out! The 2025 Gardening Club is HERE! [OFIE Image]( Club Members Perks: - Receive premier gardening advice - Be the first to recieve the 2025 Garden Guide - Attend Members-Only Q&A Sessions hosted by Almanac editors - Members save over 30% and unlock digital benefits [Join Today]( Back in Time [Image - Salsa]( Photo Credit: Shutterstock One of the great benefits of an Old Farmer’s Almanac Gardening Club Charter Membership is the library of every single Garden Guide that we’ve ever published. If you love the taste of tangy, spicy, fresh salsa, you’ll want to check out the 2016 edition (which is right there in your online library). Learn all about growing tomatillos, even if you live in a colder climate. Find out how many pepper plants you’ll need to grow, and when to harvest your cilantro. Is there anything better than homemade salsa straight from the garden? Maybe, but it would be hard to say what that would be. Oh! If you aren’t sure where to use this awesome salsa, check out Cooking Fresh, our collection of more than 160 mouth-watering recipes. It’s part of the Garden Guide online library. You’ll find recipes for Mexican Quiche, Frijoles Rio Grande, and other recipes that are perfect for pairing with salsa. New This Year LIVE Q&A Sessions with Almanac Editors! Gardening Club members recieve exclusive invitations to live Q&A Sessions Almanac hosted by the editors of The Old Farmer's Almanac! Become a member of the Old Farmers Almanac Gardening Club today, and you’ll never run out of advice, tips or inspiration! [Join the Gardening Club Today]( Here's the scoop on what's inside the exclusive club member box: [BP-IMG-OFA]( The 2025 Old Farmer’s Almanac Classic Edition Always reliable and entertaining, this handy yellow book is a “true” Almanac—a calendar of the heavens, a time capsule of the year, and an essential reference that reads like a magazine. [BP-IMG-Garden Cal]( The 2025 Old Farmer’s Almanac Gardening Calendar Our perennial best-seller for over 46 years! Rich illustrations accompany useful gardening tips on everything from planting to preserving. [BP-IMG-GG]( 2024 Garden Guide The Garden Guide is our annual publication filled with ideas, tips, plans, and sage advice for the year ahead in growing! It’s as beautiful as a coffee table book, yet so jam-packed with useful and timely information it’s like a magazine! [Image - GG]( Shipping Spring 2025 2025 Gardening Guide As a gardening club member, you'll also receive the 2025 Garden Guide hot off the press! [Image - GG 3 up]( Complete access to our online library The library packed with Garden Guides, digital Almanacs going back to 2010, over 100 issues of EXTRA! Magazine, and more! Join today you’ll be prepared for any gardening project. Whether you garden for food, for flowers, or just for fun, a membership in Old Farmers Almanac Gardening Club will keep you entertained, informed, and inspired all year long! Sincerely, Carol Connare Editor The Old Farmer’s Almanac [Join the Gardening Club]( Enjoy more Almanac wit & wisdom! [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [YouTube]( [Pinterest]( You received this email because you signed up for updates from The Old Farmer's Almanac. If you do not wish to receive our regular email newsletter in the future, please [manage your preferences](. Please do not reply to this e-mail. [Contact Us]( © 2024 Yankee Publishing Inc. 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