[CH] Tobacco
Byron Bromley (Byron.Bromley@gsd-co.com)
Wed, 16 Dec 1998 19:42:35 -0500
Margaret Lauterback
Maybe you think Jerry Bakers stuff is crazy, but put yourself in my shoes.
In 1995 I had 127 bugs listed in Rodels Handbook of Garden Insects
Plus 1 that Rodel and the USDA could not identify. I was spraying
so much Malithion, Diazinon, Methoxichlor and Sevin that it was
burning my plants. with no relief. Some seeds would not even
poke thru the ground because of seed maggots. My carrots and parsnips
would only grow a 5 or 6 inch tops because of aphids.
In 1996 I switched the Jerry Bakers bug spray.
In 1998 I found 1 Spotted Cucumber beetle, 1 European corn borer, 6
Japanese
Beetles, a handful of grasshoppers. Instead of Rodale's way, I am now
planting
16 feet of row to get enough beans instead of 100 ft of crop. I got 2 1/2
in by 9"
carrots, Parsnips 4 ½ dia by 2 feet long. I get more than enough tomatoes
out of 6 instead of planting 24 to get enough. I now plant 10 Sweet bells
instead
of 30 to get enough
And speaking of cockamamie ideas, Rodale's idea of handpicking aphids off
plants is stupid, If it takes 10 hours to pick aphids off 1 pepper plant
what are you
going to do for the rest of your garden. ?? Washing aphids off with water
??
Their back as soon as they dry off, Even try to catch a Squash vine borer
or a cabbage worm butterfly ?? Thats stupiditous maximus
Someone in Organic Gardening said you can kill wireworm with 5 handfulls
of wood ash in 5 gal of water to cover 5 sq feet. By the time you do that
you change the soil ph from 6.5 to 8. So alkaline the plants die
Rodale's idea and organic gardening boils down to this
Plant
One for the Cutworm
One for the Crow
One to Die
One to grow
I do not have to room
Another thing I find with organic gardening books and articles, if they
don't have a half-assed method of control they will not acknowledge
that that type of bug exists. I have tried most of them. I am not
professing to be an expert, I just have had my hands in the soil for
50 years and I know what "Works for Me"
There are 138 different garden bugs, in the Northeast, that attack veggie
gardens.Rodales acknowleges 127
Here's an example, find in any organic publication a mention of a "Twig
Pruner"
I had some Habanero's attacked by these bugs, the bug damage was
confirmed by my County Agent.. There is no listed chemical controls
These bugs normally attack young Oaks and Popular
Excuse me as far as I am concerned Jerry Bakers Tobacco Juice formula
has work the best for me since DDT was banned. and I will continue to use
until I run into problems with it.
"Illigitimous non Carborundum"
Byron