Re: master gardeners and Scotts?

**j* e* m* s* <h*@sbcglobal.net>**

Here in Marion County (Indianapolis), Master Gardeners provide 
answers to e-mail questions and phone calls, as well as analyze live 
(sometimes dead) specimens brought in for diagnosis...insect, 
disease, freeze, lack of water, plant habit, etc.

I answer e-mails on Mondays, and as a general rule, we are not really 
allowed to provide specific recommendations for pesticides. Rather, 
we refer people to Purdue University (or other university or .org's) 
publications that deal with a specific topic...weeds in lawns, 
growing tomatoes, Japanese beetles, for instance. And, the 
publications have been or are being rewritten to reflect the new 
thinking, which is as someone described earlier, no-low toxicity, 
stepping up as needed.

I am a natural gardener and rarely use synthetics...I have two dogs 
and I watch the birds nip at the blades of grass, which are enough to 
convince me to shun these products. However, as I'm sure we all know, 
just because something is organic or natural doesn't translate into 
safe. Nicotine anyone?

I sat in on the teleconference on water conservation. The best one 
was a few years ago when there actually was a teleconference on 
Scotts changing its advertising to encourage consumers to identify 
the problem before using broad products, such as Weed B Gon or Bug B 
Gon. It was the mantra when I took Master Gardener classes that you 
identify the problem before treating anything and you started with 
the no-least toxic first, such as a strong spray of water from the 
hose to knock of aphids. I asked the Scotts guy specifically if we 
would no longer see ads for these products and was told we would not.

I've heard that Hagedorn's wife was the one interested in organics 
and that was the reason the company introduced a line of products.

Every spring for six weeks, I work in an independent garden center 
that is part of Do-It Best, a cooperative. Ace and Tru Value also are 
cooperatives, with each store independently owned and the members 
share in overall corporate profits. I have been trying for three 
years to get the owner to stock Bradfield Organics, corn gluten or 
even Milorganite, but he doesn't. This year, the first day I worked, 
three customers asked if we had any organic lawn care products. I 
told them no, but asked them to ask the owner. The other employees 
also have been pushing for it, this year more than ever. I'm hopeful 
about next year.

jems

________________________________________
Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp
Garden writer, speaker, author, photographer
Region III Director Garden Writers Association
Phone: (317) 251.3261
Fax: (317) 251.8545
E-mail: hoosiergardener@sbcglobal.net
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