Are you’re a sprayer, or a stayer? Do you instantly reach for a trigger pack at the first sign of pests, or do you take a patient, wait and see approach? Is your garden shed full of bottles labelled with caution signs, or does it contain substances you might purchase in the cleaning and cooking aisles of the supermarket? I’m not trying to create an unnecessary division but it think it’s instructive to consider what pest management actually means.
To me, the concept of garden health is similar in practice to the use of antibiotics and probiotics. The word antibiotic means “against life”. When a patient develops a bacterial infection, antibiotics may be administered to kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria, restoring health. The argument in favour of probiotics is that they are “pro life”, and when used in adequate amounts promote good health and help prevent illness.
The same general principles are true in the practice of gardening. Spraying an insecticide, herbicide or fungicide, whether organic or not, is literally “anti-biotic” in effect because living organisms are killed or inhibited by the action. For this reason, there are gardeners that suggest spraying is never warranted. My views tend to be more pragmatic. Because I’m growing food, I’d argue that the use of a fungicide or insecticide is sometimes warranted in order to produce a decent yield. In such a situation my first thought is always to use an organic spray that will do the job while causing the least amount of harm.
I should clarify what I mean by organic. The word itself has become a weasel word in our cultural landscape, much like the term “climate change”, or even the term “pro life”. All have lost their meaning and potency because they are vague. They are open to false impressions and misleading claims. This is unfortunate in the case of organics, because the term derives from the word organism, which suggests a living, organised system. When Lord Northbourne invented the term “organic farming” in 1940, he described a holistic, balanced approach to agriculture that avoided the use of chemicals and viewed the farm as a living system.
So when I use the term organic spray I refer to any non-synthetic formulation that is an allowable input under the Australian Organic Standard. Sometimes I make these sprays up at home from simple ingredients, and on other occasions I’ll buy a ready made product that carries official organic certification, as indicated on the label. If you’re unsure as to what is and isn’t allowed under the Organic Standard, I’d suggest downloading the most recent copy from the website www.australianorganic.com.au for your reference.
Products aside, the main point I want make about organic gardening is this: as gardeners, we’ve been taught to reach for a spray at the first sign of trouble. The chemical companies love such automatic behaviour because leads to whopping great profits. But as far as I’m concerned, we owe the big chemical companies nothing. In fact, considering the human and environmental damage that’s been caused by the toxic products of such companies, they probably owe us. It’s time we made positive, life affirming choices.
Genuine organic gardening is pro-biotic in its application. It’s positive and preventative. It takes a long term view and sees the garden as a living system, an organised collective. In practice, this means that the building of well structured, humus rich soil full of thriving micro-organisms will head the organic gardener’s list of priorities. Healthy soil is the key to a healthy garden. It also means that the organic gardener will seek to create an ecosystem that contains a broad diversity of plants and animals. Biodiversity remains the best means of controlling horticultural pests and diseases, because it creates a sense of balance and order.
The next time you notice a pest or disease outbreak in the garden, think twice before you act. Consider the garden as an organism. Think about the ramifications of different actions. If it’s appropriate to spray, use the gentlest spray available for the task at hand and realise that you’re probably spraying because an ecological balance has been thrown out of whack. If spraying isn’t necessary, don’t do it. Do something pro-biotic instead. Make some compost, build a frog pond, add some plants to attract bees. Choose life, in all its complexity and diversity, and you won’t go far wrong.
First published in The Chronicle 14th November 2009. Photo by Justin Russell.
