Companion planting: regrets, I have a few...

 I've never really tried companion planting before, so I did a little research (dangerous) and decided to plant borage and nasturtium with some of my vegetables.  

The borage is supposed to be an all-around good companion for many vegetables.  It adds trace minerals to the soil, attracts pollinators by the droves, and is supposed to repel tomato worms (verdict - after picking about 40 hornworms off my plants yesterday, I'd say that's a myth).  All parts but the roots are edible, and it's said the leaves have a taste like cucumber.  I have eaten a few of the flowers and they are sweet delights, but the leaves and stems are covered with prickly little hairs that make me itch like I've been infested with fleas.  They sting a bit, too.  That might just be me and my uber-sensitive skin, but I can't imagine trying to choke down a leaf of this plant.  Also, nobody really let on that they may overtake whatever you're planting them with.  

Back in late May/early June, I planted five tomato plants in my big planter and peppered in a few borage and nasturtium seedlings.  Won't they be lovely when they bloom, in amongst the tomatoes?

 

Oh my aching head...

There are tomato plants in there, I swear.  I did have to pull the center plant as I inadvertently pinched the wrong leader and rendered it worthless, but the other four are doing well despite these thugs.  Trying to get water to the tomatoes is a feat; if it's early morning or late evening, there are sleepy bumble bees to watch out for on the borage flowers.  If it's middle of the day, there are hyperactive bumble bees, honey bees, hornets, and hawk moths to avoid.  In this area I've already had run-ins with a paper wasp nest on my porch railing, and an underground yellow jacket nest in the lawn.  I've become so petrified of being stung (two stings on the same ankle, one on the thigh) that I mostly avoid this area altogether, and it's become a bit of an overgrown jungle at this point.

So neat, so tidy.

Two months later...

Yikes.

As for the nasturtium, I was pleasantly surprised by the flavor of the blossoms.  I'd read they had a "peppery" taste; in truth they are more like a really good radish.  I love radish, so I've eaten quite a few of the blossoms.  I've also read that they will self-sow and run rampant and honestly, I'm ok with that.  They're pretty flowers and beneficial plants for insects, and are often used as a sacrificial plant to lure aphids and damaging beetles away from main crops. 

A few years ago I planted some creeping thyme in with my strawberry plants as a "living mulch" if you will.  Worked great the first year, ok the second year, and now...well, 

I've tried to pull what strawberry plants I could find out of that ridiculous mat, but most have been lost.  I had planned to try a xeriscape lawn with the creeping thyme, but went with wildflowers instead.  I still hope to pull this up and transplant it somewhere that it can expand its territory unbothered by my silly restrictions.

I also tried companion planting vegetables with vegetables, but a hungry woodchuck kept mowing down whatever I planted, so I kind of gave up trying.  There's always next year.