The Daisy Look-Alike That'll Help Repel Pests From Your Garden

Looking for a natural way to repel garden pests? Feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium) may be just what you need. This flowering perennial's foliage emits a lemony scent that helps prevent infestations of aphids, whiteflies, and thrips. Aphids and whiteflies feast on the sap in stalks and stems. These pests can make plants so sickly that they're unable to grow flowers and fruit. Thrips cause similar problems and spread pathogens such as the tomato spotted wilt virus. Feverfew is also good at warding off mosquitos that want to feast on you while you pull weeds and water your flowers. A substance this plant produces, pyrethrin, may discourage moths, roaches, and ants from visiting your garden as well. Feverfew even deters non-insect pests such as deer, which detest its fragrance and the texture of its leaves.

Feverfew's white-petaled flowers with yellow centers look like little daisies. This plant grows quickly, forming mounds that are 1 to 2 feet wide. It isn't fussy about soil pH, accepting neutral, acidic, or mildly alkaline conditions. Feverfew isn't very fond of clay in the ground, which tends to promote water pooling. If grown in ideal conditions — full sunlight and soil with good drainage in USDA hardiness zones 5 through 8 — feverfew may go berserk trying to reseed itself. In other words, make sure it's not spreading outside of its intended area. Deadheading the flowers can keep the plant from overproducing seeds. When you care for feverfew properly, it will offer an additional layer of pest protection to your garden.

In addition to repelling several insects with its potent aroma, feverfew offers an additional line of defense by inviting beneficial insects to your yard. This plant is especially appealing to hoverflies. Before they grow wings, these bee-like creatures will eat aphids. When they take flight, they'll pollinate your flowers. The more feverfew blossoms the hoverflies pollinate, the more scent the plants can produce to fend off bad bugs.

Feverfew's two-pronged assault on aphids can help safeguard a wide range of plants. In vegetable gardens, aphids are drawn to pumpkins, cucumbers, potatoes, tomatoes, and a host of leafy greens. In flower beds, they're likely to target roses and sunflowers. They're big fans of fruit trees, too. Aphid damage isn't limited to sap extraction, either. According to horticulture experts at the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Division of Extension, some types of aphids transmit potato virus Y, which can significantly damage not only potatoes but peppers, tomatoes, and landscaping plants. Aphids also spread mosaic viruses that strike cauliflower, cucumbers, lettuce, and turnips, as well as pathogens that hinder the development of melons, squash, beans, and other crops. 

Want a third pest deterrent in your garden? Your spice rack has another aromatic tool to try. Cinnamon can help banish aphids if you mix it with water and spray it on your plants. Or, plant garlic in your garden to repel pests such as aphids, armyworms, and the main insect that bothers feverfew: spider mites.