Grow This Plant Next To Peppers In Your Garden To Keep Bugs Away

Nothing beats growing your own produce, but it's not all fresh herbs and berries warmed from the sun. Just as much as you like all the good things growing in your garden, lots of pests and critters like it, too. But, keeping bugs out of your garden — and, specifically, away from your peppers — might be as simple as planting more plants.

There are plenty of herbs, vegetables, and even household items that keep bugs and animals out of your garden. Planting specific species of plants that support each other's growth near one another is called companion planting, and it's a natural and effective way to deter pests, encourage nutrient absorption, and support optimal growing conditions amongst different plants. 

When it comes to peppers plagued by bugs, green onions (or scallions) should be your go-to. Peppers are susceptible to damage from all kinds of creepy crawlies, including aphids, army worms, cucumber beetles, hornworms, pepper weevils, and more. The strong aroma from green onions deters many of these bugs, giving your peppers the chance to thrive so you can literally enjoy the fruits of your labor. The popular marigold flower also eliminates pests from your garden thanks to its strong floral smell that bugs like hornworms and aphids despise. And you can beef up your pepper security even more by sprinkling empty pistachio shells around your garden bed to make the terrain difficult for critters like snails and slugs to infiltrate.

Not only are green onions effective bug repellants, but they're also unbelievably easy to grow. Stop throwing out your green onion roots, and instead slice them off just where the white roots begin to transition into long, green fronds. Place the root end into a glass filled with a few fingers of water and leave it somewhere that gets lots of sunlight. Soon enough, you'll have a few healthy green onions that can then be replanted in your garden's soil. From there, you can either plant them around the entire perimeter of your garden, just as a barrier around the peppers, randomly sprinkled throughout the entire garden, or right at the base of your pepper plants. Check your onions and peppers regularly to ensure that the bugs are indeed deterred, and enjoy your natural insect repellent.

Green onions are great for much more than just keeping bugs away. Not only are they a fabulous garnish that brings a light onion essence to nearly any kind of dish, but they can also be the main event. Once you've harvested your successfully protected peppers, harvest the green onions and make this simple, 3-ingredient green onion dip. There are lots of creative ways to use green onions that you've maybe never thought of before, like infusing olive oil, baking into scones or biscuits, adding to waffles or pancakes, or even battering and frying up whole for a delicious appetizer. If you're not convinced by now to grab a green onion bunch on your next grocery trip, then we don't know what to tell you.