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Organic gardening
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| This has been the best year in memory for certain fungal diseases. Thus many Seattle sycamores and planetrees (Platanus spp.) look dreadful. Some rose bushes are wholly defoliated by blackspot. My McIntosh apple tree is as scabby as it has ever been. I once had no qualms about spraying fungicides, thinking that to kill a disfiguring fungus was sort of like getting rid of an itch by using an ointment, or eliminating noxious weeds from one's yard. In other words, a simple, straightforward chore. But then a few unrelated incidents swayed me, caused me to rethink my position, and indeed to change my ways. |
| The first cause for pause and reflection was when I poisoned myself accidentally with a garden pesticide. The brew was a mixture of petroleum oil and calcium polysulphide fungicide. It was to battle scale insects, scab and the like. I applied it correctly, spraying it in proper dilution over the naked branches of my apple trees. But soon thereafter I determined to uproot all the sod beneath the trees. In doing this I became quite intimate with the spray residue, which made me feel terribly sunburnt and aching in my joints. It was thoroughly alarming. |
| Next, an experienced, thoughtful and learned gardener, Carl Elliott, pointed-out that the fungicide I was using (tetrachloroisophthalonitile) to control the powdery mildew and rust afflicting my Oregon grape --could not discriminate between "good" and "bad" fungal organisms-- it killed all. This sort of endeavor, then, contributes to a degradation of natural processes in the soil and the web of life. I had not realized that, but it made sense. Just like insecticides such as Raid¨ kill beneficial butterflies as well as pesty mosquitoes. Moreover, plant diseases as well as insect pests can gradually develop resistance to poisons. |
| The third reason I now avoid poisons in gardening is because there are so many perfect plants available for our use and enjoyment that we really don't need to endure ones so ill-suited or weak that they cannot be presentable unless they're doused with toxins. It's illogical to spray roses all spring when disease-resistant roses smell as sweet, look as lovely, and bloom as long. So why spend the time and money spraying? |
The world is a very large place, and certainly we can all live with some imperfection --including pollution. But wherever it is wholly optional and unnecessary, why not avoid using poisons? And if using them, why not use the weakest, and in sparing quantity? That is my rationale. I still use some poisons, as slug bait that kills only slugs and snails, and some low-toxicity insecticidal soaps for aphids. But I am convinced the organic approach is ultimately the safest.
(originally published in The Seattle Weekly, July 1996)
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