Tips for *general* garden maintenance (growing marigolds, keeping things clean, etc)

[GrimLore]

I don't know why but marigolds didn't seem to do much of anything, maybe proximity was more important than I'd thought...ended up moving my containerized marigolds from my backyard bonsai-nursery to my front landscape/accent beds..

Marigold attract bee's which are pollinators. So, if you have something like a Pomegranate chances for it to fruit instead of flowering and dropping the flower is better if you have plants around that attract pollinators.
Another benefit to Marigolds is you probably don't notice unless you cut them back and dead head them they produce an odor which rabbits in particular don't like here. They say they work for Deer to but not so here that much in that they are done for the season when fruits are getting ready to harvest. But, depending on location they can be useful at least a couple of ways Either way for the record we grow several types yearly as they are of benefit here

Grimmy

 

[Jorow99]

Get a lot of different plants in your garden. There is a lot of plant diversity in my area and also a lot of bug species, which attracts predatory insects which protect your trees. I find praying mantis on my trees almost every time I look.

 

[Forsoothe!]

Avoid yellow. Bug are attracted to yellow for reasons I don't know understand. Look at cars in a parking lot and you'll see the correlation. Sticky bug paper is yellow for that reason. If you want to test it, you'll see bugs clustered on the yellow whatever, but not the surrounding surfaces.

 

[Bonsai Nut]

OMG this is the perfect setup for a soil thread! And yet... nothing!!

In general, ALWAYS start with (1) soil and (2) water. The follow-up being naturally (3) sun.

Most places I know in the US (with the possible exception of the Midwest) have crappy soil. If you live in a residential area there is a good chance that you have crappy soil compounded by poor drainage, impaction from construction, invasive roots, and who knows what else that is battling your garden plans. Assuming you have decent drainage, it is critical that you prep your soil and maintain it. If you want a killer garden for at least 10 years, rototill the soil and blend in soil amendments to keep the soil open as much as possible. It varies somewhat based on where you live and your current conditions, but if you reach down and your garden soil feels more like mud or dirt... and not a good bonsai soil blend... you can do better.

Make sure your water doesn't suck. Some part of the country it isn't an issue. In California, for all the talk about 'environmental awareness', our water is almost poison for plants. My water out of the tap is 8.5 pH. Junipers would prefer it to be 5.0. If you want an amazing garden and have to rely AT ALL on irrigation, make sure you know your water chemistry, and be prepared to correct it as necessary.

My final garden point is sun. Not just sun today... but sun tomorrow and sun throughout the year. Put your tall plants / tall trees to the north of your garden or lot - so that they don't shade out your other plants. If possible, put your sun sensitive plants in positions where they will get full sun in the winter, but may get dappled sun or partial shade in the heat of the summer. Plan for changing seasons. My camellias get zero sun during the summer heat... but are in sunny locations at other times of the year.

Think like a garden.

 

[Forsoothe!]

About that sun: sun-loving plants love noonday sun, but lots of more tender plants like Japanese Maple would prefer lots of morning and lots of afternoon with shade or dappled from 11 to 1. It's an intensity thing, not a lenght of exposure thing. Hard to provide much of that condition, but if you have it for just a few, set a bench there, they will thrive.

 

[penumbra]

Marigolds (and other varieties) for attracting beneficial insects

Its unclear what beneficial insects marigolds attract. There are many who proclaim this but no good info on which insects they do attract. But marigolds do a stellar job of repelling white fly and nematodes. Also true that rabbits and other critters don't like the smell but I am reluctant to say they are effective for repelling mammals. Perhaps they are effective on the most timid ones like rabbits.