Diviner's Sage

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.

, Spider mites

Spider mites

Tetranychidae

Fine pale stippling in hot, dusty, dry weather. Visible webbing means you are already late.

.

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.

, Predatory mites

Predatory mites

Phytoseiidae

Too small to see without a hand lens, and the main thing holding spider mites down.

, Minute pirate bugs

Minute pirate bugs

Small but fierce — pierces thrips, mites and insect eggs.

to keep them in check — plant African MarigoldGood, CosmosGood and French MarigoldGreat nearby.

Growing from seed

Start Diviner's Sage indoors about 10 weeks before your last frost. Seeds usually come up in around 30 days. Move seedlings out once the danger of frost has passed, in partial sun, spaced about 90 cm apart. Expect to harvest in roughly 365 days.

Keep track of the seeds you own.

Companion Planting

• 
  Bird's-foot Trefoil
  

  Bird's-foot TrefoilGreat pair

  • ❧Bird's-foot Trefoil attracts Ladybugs and Parasitic wasps, which prey on the Aphids and Whitefly that attack Diviner's Sage
  • ❧Bird's-foot Trefoil fixes nitrogen in the soil that Diviner's Sage feeds on
  • ❧Bird's-foot Trefoil acts as living mulch, keeping soil moist and weeds down around Diviner's Sage
• 
  Clover
  

  CloverGreat pair

  • ❧Clover fixes nitrogen in the soil that Diviner's Sage feeds on
  • ❧Diviner's Sage draws Bees that improve pollination for both
  • ❧Clover acts as living mulch, keeping soil moist and weeds down around Diviner's Sage
• 
  Winged bean
  

  Winged beanGreat pair

  • ❧Winged bean fixes nitrogen in the soil that Diviner's Sage feeds on
  • ❧Diviner's Sage draws Bees that improve pollination for both
  • ❧Winged bean roots deep while Diviner's Sage feeds near the surface — no competition

How to grow Diviner's Sage

1. Sow10 weeks before frost
2. Germinates30 days
3. Space90 cm apart
4. GrowPartial sun
5. Harvest~365 days

Water: High · Height: 100 cm · Soil: Moist, humus-rich, well-draining