Re: Jerry Baker, "America's Master Gardener"

**Jeff Ball j*@usol.com**

Susan,
I had heard several years ago that Jerry whatshisname was very ill  
with cancer.  His son has taken over the store and the sales of books  
and videos.

Jeff Ball
jeffball@usol.com
810-724-8581
Check out my daily blog at www.gardeneryardener.blogspot.com
Check out my extensive web site at www.yardener.com

On Apr 11, 2006, at 4:07 PM, Susan Harris wrote:

Hi.  I just joined and have enjoyed catching up by reading your  
archives - lots of interesting stuff.
I've been in discussions with lots of folks recently about Jerry  
Baker, whose gardening how-to videos sell like crazy and also run on  
PBS during their fund-raising months.  Problem is, he's universally  
recognized as a quack - well, by everybody except people who make  
money off his looney, environmentally hazardous concoctions.   
Example:  He tells us to spray our gardens every two weeks with a  
mixture containing antiseptic mouthwash, to make our gardens "clean"  
and every three weeks with a mixture containing chewing tobacco  
juice, which obviously contains nicotine, probably more toxic than  
anything on the shelves of Home Depot.  In some markets environmental  
and possibly master gardener groups have gotten him removed from the  
PBS programming but I'm frankly amazed at his staying power in most  
markets, including the D.C. market.
My garden club and another environmental group in the D.C. area will  
be writing our local PBS affiliates to request they stop showing this  
harmful advice but before we do, does anybody know anything else  
about the situation?  Here's an excellent article about him from a  
1999 USA Today article, but I'm curious why my deep Google search  
revealed nothing else like it, just pro-Jerry marketing stuff.   
http://www.coopext.colostate.edu/4DMG/Whats/jbaker.htm
Thanks for any info.  Susan
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