Bush Early Girl

Pests & beneficial insects

🐛 Prone to: Aphids

Aphids

Aphididae

Curled leaves, sticky honeydew and ants on patrol — usually with something already eating them.

, Whitefly

Whitefly

Aleyrodidae

A puff of white when you brush the leaf, and stickiness underneath.

, Cutworms

Cutworms

Noctuidae

A seedling lying beside its own stump in the morning, cut clean through at soil level.

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Attract Hoverflies

Hoverflies

Syrphidae

The adults only drink nectar. It is the larvae that eat the aphids.

, Lacewings

Lacewings

Chrysopidae

Golden-eyed adults that mostly drink; larvae that hunt like small alligators.

, Ladybugs

Ladybugs

Coccinellidae

The one predator here where the adults hunt as hard as the larvae do.

, Parasitic wasps

Parasitic wasps

Braconidae, Ichneumonidae and relatives

Pinhead-sized, stingless, and lethal to aphids and caterpillars from the inside.

, Ground beetles

Ground beetles

Carabidae

Night-active ground hunters, taking slugs, cutworms and leatherjackets at soil level.

to keep them in check — plant French MarigoldGreat, Bird's-foot TrefoilGreat and African MarigoldGreat nearby.

Growing from seed

Start Bush Early Girl indoors about 6 weeks before your last frost, keeping seeds in warm soil (around 20–25 °C). Seeds usually come up in around 7 days. Move seedlings out once the danger of frost has passed, in full sun, spaced about 45 cm apart. Expect to harvest in roughly 55 days.

Bush Early Girl seed rarely stays viable beyond 4 years — track what's still worth sowing.

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  Growing Tomatoes: From First Sowing to the Last Ripe Fruit

  Tomatoes are the crop most gardeners fall for first — and the one that most rewards getting the timing right. This is the whole arc: sowing, planting out, the one pruning decision that actually matters, keeping them fed and even, and coaxing the last fruit to colour before the cold.

  Read the guide

Companion Planting

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  French Marigold
  

  French MarigoldGreat pair

  • ❧French Marigold attracts Hoverflies and Lacewings and more, which prey on the Aphids and Whitefly that attack Bush Early Girl
  • ❧French Marigold suppresses pests that trouble Bush Early Girl
  • ❧French Marigold acts as living mulch, keeping soil moist and weeds down around Bush Early Girl
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  Candytuft
  

  CandytuftGreat pair

  • ❧Candytuft attracts Hoverflies and Parasitic wasps, which prey on the Aphids and Whitefly that attack Bush Early Girl
  • ❧Bush Early Girl draws Bumblebees that improve pollination for both
  • ❧Candytuft acts as living mulch, keeping soil moist and weeds down around Bush Early Girl
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  Clover
  

  CloverGreat pair

  • ❧Clover fixes nitrogen in the soil that Bush Early Girl feeds on
  • ❧Bush Early Girl draws Bumblebees that improve pollination for both
  • ❧Clover acts as living mulch, keeping soil moist and weeds down around Bush Early Girl

How to grow Bush Early Girl

1. Sow6 weeks before frost
2. Germinates7 days
3. Space45 cm apart
4. GrowFull sun
5. Harvest~55 days

Water: Medium · Height: 90 cm · Soil: Rich, well-draining, slightly acidic (pH 6.0–6.8)