IT is interesting to note which plants are thriving on our soggy allotment and indeed surviving the invasion of this year’s worst pest, slugs.

Celeriac is soaking up the moisture with pleasure and the lettuce and herbs – coriander, parsley, chives and oregano – are thriving, as are the Calendula.

Such a shame though that you can only eat the Calendula petals (a few scattered in a salad will add colour) as the self-seeded plants with itheir lovely bright orange flowers are enjoying the moist soil immensely.

Calendula is used as a companion plant next to the peas and beans to not only attract bees to pollinate the flowers but also to attract hoverflies.

The larvae of hoverflies are predators of aphids so by making a home for the adults you have a natural solution.

There are other flower plants that work like this too and my favourite is the poached egg flower (Limnanthes douglasii) sown in corners of the allotment as it is low growing and does not get in the way of vegetable plants.This too is attractive to both bees and hoverflies.

Because Calendula selfseeds every year, it doesn’t necessarily appear where you want it and I frequently dig up a plant and move it nearer to the plants I want it to help.

The notion of companion planting, growing certain plants close together to benefit one or both, is not set in stone and some of the planting I have tried has not always proved the point (I have not had much success with planting Tagetes or African marigolds near carrots to deter root fly), but I am confident with Calendula and poached egg plant and next year I am going to grow onions next to carrots.

According to HDRA, the organic association, you need six rows of onion growing to one row of carrots and it is only a success when the onions are growing strongly.

The smell of strongly growing onions should keep carrots free of rootfly attack.