Companion planting guide › Coriander (cilantro) flowers to attract hoverflies

Coriander (cilantro) flowers to attract hoverflies: does it work?

Q: Does coriander (cilantro) flowers to attract hoverflies work?

Evidence rating: Promising. Flowering coriander attracts hoverflies and lowered aphids on cabbage, but only early in the season in one study.

Sources (0)

All sources (works cited) →

Promising Some peer-reviewed or extension evidence, but limited, conditional or mixed.

Flowering coriander attracts hoverflies and lowered aphids on cabbage, but only early in the season in one study.

Ben-Issa R., Gomez L., Gautier H. (2017). Companion Plants for Aphid Pest Management. Insects 8(4):112 (peer-reviewed review).

Mechanism

Insectary: flowers feed adult hoverflies whose larvae eat aphids.

What the research found

Coriander intercropped with cabbage in New Zealand attracted adult hoverflies and decreased aphid numbers only early in the season; flowering must match natural-enemy activity (reviewed in Ben-Issa et al. 2017).

Caveats

Coriander bolts quickly; succession sowing is needed to keep flowers.

How to try it

Let some cilantro flower near brassicas; resow every few weeks.

Other Promising pairings (4)

Evidence summary checked 2026-10-14. We cite only peer-reviewed studies, university extension and USDA/ARS sources; results may differ in your region. Not professional advice.