All the Dirt on Gardening

To spray or not to spray? Jessica Walliser's Good Bug Bad Bug answers the question. When lily leaves are chewed and the squash vines wither and die, chemical warfare comes to mind as the only way to rescue your hard work. Many products are available for wholesale attacks on insects but maybe that's not the first approach to try. Jessica Walliser teaches organic pest management and has a new book out, Good Bug Bad Bug, in which she identifies the difference between the good and the bad. The weather protected, laminated pages of her book describe and picture 24 destructive pests and 14 of the most beneficial insects. "This book has been a dream of mine for years," Walliser said in a telephone interview. "Students in my classes asked for an easy to use, affordable bug guide and St. Lynn's Press was willing to work with me to produce exactly what they need." Walliser said that the book is geared toward anyone who is looking for safer and more natural soluti...

I set out with the camera this morning to get photos for this week's column on the new book, Good Bug Bad Bug. It's a great book and my conversation with author, Jessica Walliser was a delight. This Swallowtail beauty sat on the grass in front of me long enough to show off for the camera. By the way, click on What's That Bug to identify butterflies you see around your place. It is annoying how many Bradford Pear trees the birds plant on our place. Some of them escape our notice until they are too big to easily remove. They are making fruit now and I have to admit that they are very pretty. Last night's rain was still on the berries when I captured this shot. John Leonard, co-owner of Organic Gardens said in this week's email, "At the present time we are planting nearly 2 dozen varieties of fall crops including: winter squashes (I'm talkin' some crazy lookin' stuff!), pumpkins, cabbage, broccoli, & cauliflower. We'll cross our fingers, say a...