This year I decided to try a variety of experiments in the raised bed garden. I am trying to incorporate as many permaculture principles as I can into these conventional rows.

One of these experiments was to inter-plant buckwheat with squash and peppers. I am really quite impressed with how this experiment is going so I wanted to share.

When I started this experiment some of the questions I wanted to answer included:

• Would it help with pollination?
• Would it help with the nitrogen deficiency?
• Would it help repel pests?

I planted a few peppers and squash plants and spread buckwheat all around one bed. We were hit by three big bouts of heavy frost well after our "last frost date" this year. The plants in this bed started our looking pretty rough. After about of week into being planted they were pale in colour (nitrogen deficiency in soil and I'm sure other things as well - we struggle with our soil) and frost bitten.

As the buckewheat had grown I've been pulling it up when it starts to crowd the plant to much and just dropping it around the plant. The magical thing about buckwheat is that it pulls up nutrients from the soil that other plants can't access. As it decomposes it releases these nutrients in an accessible form. The plants are responding really well to this treatment. It grows really fast as well. It's already flowering since we scattered those seeds a month ago.

The Pepper Plants with Buckwheat (Beginning through the End of June)

Pepper in the first week of planting. Not too bad other than a chew marks on the leaves.

The sad little 'King of The North" pepper plant after the stress of bad weather. Leaves are very pale citrus colored and frost bitten.

Here's the same pepper after chopping and dropping some buckwheat around it and letting it grow. It's vibrant, dark green, healthy and there are no chew marks on the leaves either. This looks really promising.

The Squash Plants with Buckwheat (Beginning through the End of June)

The leaves are crisp around the edges from frost and also paler than they should be.

The plant is thriving, nice deep green and it's starting to spread and sprawl through and wind it's way through the buckwheat with no help from me. It's completely camouflaged in there and I am hoping it might keep away the squash beetles.

Cucumber beetles

In a bed across the garden, the teeny little yellow and black cucumber beetles (they seem to adore ALL Cucurbits) are feasting and casing me trouble. I've had to put netting over the entire bed just to get a break from them. There are NONE over in the bed that's inter-planted with buckwheat. These fast flying little monsters have take down a plant and all of it's flowers in no time at all.

I'll show you later what happened in the other squash beds while my back was turned. Those teeny little bugs are such trouble makers.

There's a lot going on in this raised bed

It's hard to believe that two squash plants and two peppers (and some rogue onions & wild flowers) are living in this jungle. Maybe that's why the little squash eating bugs haven't found these plants!

There are a lot of other cover crops to choose from, each with their own benefits. It's really worth reading about the options and which will best suit your needs.

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