This is a Santolina in bloom. They grow about twenty inches tall and can spread about thirty inches wide. They are perennial.
Lorna

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Hi Lorna, I have used companion planting and square foot gardening in my veggie garden. This year its going to be mostly flowers though. I think I will still plant lettuce but that will probably be it. I used marigolds, garlic and onion and nasturtiums for companion planting.

You can easily avoid being over run by plants that self-seed by simply dead-heading. I dead-head the flowers just because I don't like the look of to many spent flowers. I also pull all the annual flowers at the end of the season...so I just don't have those problems.

Sierra

Oh, Sierra, you had me laughing out loud with your comments about deadheading. I do spend many hours deheading. There is simply no way to keep up with the volume I have. For the two months of their flowering season, I probably spent an hour and a half a week just deading sunflowers last year. Those aren't so bad because they are easy to reach. But honestly, I'd rather yank them than break my back bending over to deadhead those low growing marigolds. Though I have to admit they were rather spectacular, flowering in that volume. That many marigolds have a distinctly skunky odor.

They've all been pulled out of the plot and burned, but there are nonetheless thousands of seeds left behind. This spring, early on, I'll water to encourage sprouting, then I'll dig them in as green manure.
Lorna

I like all those marigolds! My premise is better to have all ground covered with plants so the weeds can't find a spot to grow; better flowers than weeds.

I have never grown santolina but it is a pretty plant.

This is very interesting -- does the santolina repel Japanese Beetles ? I have such a problem with those on our ornamental cherry trees and our roses.

Cameron

I'm not sure about Japanese beetle, in specific, Cameron. I did see a few during my first couple of years here, but I haven't seen them since. The Sanotlina seems to have warded off spiders, as well as insects. My strawberry bed is surrounded by rounded brick blocks. There are lots of crevices which the spiders were loving. This past year I didn't have to break through any webs to get to strawberries.
Lorna

It's worth a try and I have the space for plants that are drought tolerant.

Thanks