Of everything that came back into view once I started clearing the overgrowth, this is the combination that stood out most: kale and marigold, planted together, and it’s turned out to be both very successful and genuinely beautiful.
The bright orange calendula heads against the deep, ruffled kale leaves make for one of the nicest-looking beds in the whole garden right now — this wasn’t really planned as a visual pairing, but it works.
Marigolds are a classic companion plant for brassicas — they’re meant to help deter some of the pests that go after cabbage-family crops — and judging by how clean these kale leaves are, it seems to be doing its job here too.
Definitely repeating this pairing next year, both for the pest benefit and just because it’s such a nice-looking bed to walk past.
