So consumer spending on pesticide is going to grow by 4.8% to 1.7 billion by 2011. At first blush this sounds like we are going backward when it comes to sustainability. What the study doesn't seem to reflect, or I couldn't find is what type of pesticides we are talking about. I would assume this includes all pesticides including organic and synthetic. I would like to know if organics are a big portion of this increase or are we talking about more Scotts synthetic products for the lawn? My guess it is probably a combination of the two types.
Billy Goodnick over at Garden Wise Guy has figured out the secret! If you want to increase your web site traffic nothing like a little sex to help. He says his post “Have they no shame?Erotica on the streets of Santa Barbara.†increased traffic five times! As soon as I read the headline I made a beeline over to his site since Monica and I had just returned from that fair city. I thought maybe Billy had been snooping around the motel or something. No, it was a case or "hort-erotica" concerning a fig and a Canary Island date palm that have “embraced†right on the streets for everyone to see.
Billy as well as the rest of us that have blogging for a little while know that if you put a sexy title on a post its bound to get more traffic. I like it! Gardening is all about being sexy. Just about everything we do in the garden is about helping our plants in their reproductive urges. We wouldn't be eating if it wasn't for the birds and the bees and the plants frolicking in the garden. Somewhere along the line, I would guess Victorian times, gardening became something of a prudish pursuit in the eyes of many. We may not feel sexy while digging in the ground, or pulling weeds but thats our own fault. It's perception. I say bring back the sexy allure of gardening and watch interest grow.
You might think I am being tongue and check about this subject but I believe the secret to getting more people involved in gardening is through sex appeal. We are already hearing about how good gardening is for weight control and overall health but what about its mental benefits, which would naturally include ours and the gardens sex lives. Nothing like the sound of buzzing bees and tomato plants with big, plump, juicy fruit to set the scene. We're talking about more than just the visual cues that some plants might give, but the more subtle sexuality of the garden. The fragrance of a freshly cut musk melon enjoyed in the garden, while the sound of buzzing bees and bird calls fill the air. The feel of the warm sun on our bodies (naked or not), and the knowledge that growing our own delicious healthful fruit will only make us feel better about our selves, but the world too. Now that's sexy!
P.S. I think the sexier gardening is the less likely you are to use synthetic pesticides. Synthetic pesticides are about the end result, while organic and natural products are more about the "process", and the end result. I use all natural products in the garden. The garden and I wouldn't have it any other way.