Good King Henry

Pests & beneficial insects

🐛 Prone to: Aphids

Aphids

Aphididae

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

, Leaf miners

Leaf miners

Agromyzidae

Pale trails inside the leaf — mostly harmless, and out of reach of any spray.

.

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.

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

Growing from seed

Direct-sow Good King Henry outdoors around your last frost date, keeping seeds in cooler soil (around 10–18 °C). Seeds usually come up in around 21 days. Grow in partial sun, spaced about 45 cm apart. Expect to harvest in roughly 365 days.

Keep track of the seeds you own.

Companion Planting

• 
  African Marigold
  

  African MarigoldGood pair

  • ❧African Marigold attracts Hoverflies and Lacewings and more, which prey on the Aphids that attack Good King Henry
  • ❧African Marigold suppresses pests that trouble Good King Henry
• 
  French Marigold
  

  French MarigoldGood pair

  • ❧French Marigold attracts Hoverflies and Lacewings and more, which prey on the Aphids that attack Good King Henry
  • ❧French Marigold suppresses pests that trouble Good King Henry
• 
  Bird's-foot Trefoil
  

  Bird's-foot TrefoilGood pair

  • ❧Bird's-foot Trefoil attracts Ladybugs and Parasitic wasps, which prey on the Aphids and Leaf miners that attack Good King Henry
  • ❧Bird's-foot Trefoil fixes nitrogen in the soil that Good King Henry feeds on

How to grow Good King Henry

1. Sow0 weeks from frost
2. Germinates21 days
3. Space45 cm apart
4. GrowPartial sun
5. Harvest~365 days

Water: Medium · Height: 60 cm · Soil: Moist, fertile, well-draining