Many books addressing insect and disease control problems would have you believing gardening is chemical warfare! Following their advice, I acquired an arsenal of chemicals in my garage that would kill virtually any creepy crawly thing that dared slither into my garden.
What these books failed to tell me is the more you use these chemicals the more you need to use them. In a sense, your garden becomes addicted to them, as they kill all or most of the natural organisms in the environment that help your plants combat natural occurring bacteria, viruses and insects. Eventually your plants' only defense to such pathogens is your habitual spraying.As The Organic Gardener's Handbook of Natural Insect and Disease Control explains, if left to its' own devices, nature will frequently correct the imbalances that caused the disease or insect problem long before any serious damage is done. This book clearly explains how plants naturally defend themselves against pathogens and how we can help them without harming the environment. It's no-nonsense, common sense approach to gardening makes you wonder what the human race was thinking of when we created all those dangerous chemicals.Every gardener wants his or her garden to be perfect. However, sometimes we get carried away, forgetting that earthly gardens are not sanitized portraits of heaven. This book brings us back to reality and reminds us to enjoy nature, not fight it.
This is definitely one of the best gardening books I have read in a long time!
