So far, this observation with technical support has worked, but I’m still feel
ing the need to more clearly understand how to give my plants the best feeding
possible within natural sustainable guidelines.
My local knowledge friends tell me that I may never really understand, be
cause the health of an individual plant can be affected by weather, pests, and
windborne disease, and the best soil in the world, while it will defi nitely help,
isn’t an absolute guarantee of a healthy plant.
So I observe and I measure and I record the results. I’m concerned. I weed
and I feed, and in so doing, I’ve discovered a truly rewarding connection to my
garden.10. Pest Control and Plant Diseases
Of course, I’m not the only one who looks hungrily at my beautiful plants. Th ere’s
an army out there with tiny legs, furry bodies, scampering feet, fl uttering wings,
and bright slimy trails.
Since we have deer and rabbits, we put up a fence with 12-foot-high posts
and 8-foot-high plastic netting. As I mentioned earlier, I’m told that deer have
poor eyesight and see only the 12-foot posts, not the top of the net at only 8 feet.
We also buried 2 feet of plastic netting in a trench, since, I am told, rabbits don’t
burrow any deeper than 2 feet.
Slugs can be drowned in beer (an apparently or
ganic death) by setting out small paper cups of your
least favorite brew on their happy trails. A simpler
answer is Sluggo, an aptly named organic substance.
I was advised to patrol the garden each morning
and look out for bugs ’n’ beetles on and under leaves.
These can be handpicked into a small pail and de
stroyed. As it happens, I usually take a morning
walk in the longer-light days at 8 a.m. and simply
extended my routine with a 10-minute patrol.38 • GROWING AT THE SPEED OF LIFE