Saturday, January 28, 2012

So Help Me, I'll Turn off the Comments if Y'all Act Ugly

There has been a lot of anger in the garden blogging community about a certain nonprofit and a certain corporation hooking up.  I don't have ties to either organization and am not here to comment on them.  I am going to voice my opinion  about pesticides, herbicides and fertilizer.

I am an organic gardener.  I have been since I was 12 years old and my dad made me sick putting a synthetic pesticide on my first little vegetable garden.  I have used organic pesticides off and on and now only use soap and diatomaceous earth and only when I absolutely have to.  I have found that it is smarter to plant when the bugs are not active.  Tomatoes in the spring/early summer before the red spider mites show up and squash and beans in late summer/early fall after the squash bugs have moved on.  Your results may vary.  This way I hope not even to need soap next year.  The DE is used as needed against fire ants.  Fire ants are from the devil. I don't know of one single pesticide organic or synthetic that only kill one kind of bug.  If it can kill your cabbage looper it can kill your butterfly caterpillars.  I want my butterflies to live here, make babies here and let those babies eat my passion vine.  I also want bees to come and visit my flowers.  I want lady bugs to eat the aphids.  I want to want praying mantis, but they sort of scare me.  Look up and one of them is staring at me like I might be good for lunch.  Shudder.

The only herbicides I use are my own two hands and mulch.

Fertilizers I love me some fertilizer.  I use blood meal, bone meal, bat guano and liquid fish.  These are great products that don't reek of ammonia.  Well, the bat guano reeks of ammonia.  And here is where I take a stand, ANY of these things can pollute if they are used incorrectly.  Algae in our lakes doesn't care if that nitrogen is organic or not.  Nitrogen is nitrogen is nitrogen.  I take extreme care in making sure I use my products properly and keep it out of the water.  Never never never intentional fertilize before a rain event.  Don't dump anything down the drain.  Never over fertilize.  Make sure I water it in well when I do.

Finally, compost compost compost.  Make it, turn it , use it.  Good for the garden and the landfill.

12 comments:

  1. I am with you on this. Nicely said!

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  2. I love the bit about the praying mantis. Those bugs WILL stare you down! :) I once was taking super close shots of one and had several great ones--right before she leapt out on me like a ninja! Good times with the bugs. :) I'll have to try your advice about the squash--though I don't think the bugs ever move on here in Pensacola. :(

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  3. Thanks Meemsnyc

    Becca, I found they are not around after July when it is really hot. Give it a shot, it can't hurt.

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  4. If you had said something about the spiders being your friend I would have been really hateful.

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  5. Brenda, cut it out. bwahahaha. I love my spiders.

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  6. Glad to see this post and not surprised by your determination. We need yo keep the pressure and awareness up.
    And in your spare time you're

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  7. Invited to join bloominganswers.com, my new website. All are welcome.

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  8. Great post Debbi.

    I wish I lived in a place where praying mantis were part of the local scenery!

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  9. Jodi, I did the initial thing for bloominganswers.com and then got distracted. I'll go back and finish.

    Thanks VP

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  10. I'm so glad you wrote this post! I don't know if you've found this but I've found that little birds also are great aphid-eaters. The bushtits come in little mini flocks and scour over my rosebushes. I haven't had aphid issues in years because of them.

    Cindy at Rosehaven Cottage

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  11. Thanks Cindy. I have not paid that much attention to my birds. my bad. I've got so many lady bugs and their larvae every year that the aphids don't last long.

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  12. Attractive portion of content. I just came across your blog in addition to in accession capital to say that We get inside fact appreciated account your blog posts. Anyway I will certainly end up being subscribing in your augment and in many cases I being successful you connection consistently rapidly.


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