Understanding the Insects

 

People save money for months, spend weeks preparing, and then travel for hundreds of miles in order to see and enjoy some of the wonders and beauties of Nature-all the while overlooking one of the most interesting and fascinating wonders that Nature has to offer, one that wouldn't cost a dime or a mile of travel. A few of these wonders may even be found in your house; many are found in your yard, especially your garden.

The number of these wonders is great. They are slapped at, sprayed, stomped on, dusted, trapped, feared, played with by little boys, shrieked at by little girls, and cursed at by grownups. However, if closely observed and studied, they are never boring.

In spite of their small size, insects are among the most interesting and fascinating creatures known to man. Yet most of them are looked upon just as a nuisance. Few people understand their reason for being here.

The number of insect species is estimated to be in the millions, and scientists find most of them to be beneficial to man in some way. Only one percent are considered pests, but because of these few, over 1.9 billion pounds of pesticide are sold each year in this country. That means that if you loaded 100,000 pounds per box car, your pesticide train would be 19,000 cars long!

Scientists tell us that destructive insects could destroy all crops and vegetation regardless of the volume of poison we could use-if it weren't for natural, biological checks and controls. Chief among these natural checks are the insects themselves, the predatory and parasitic species commonly called "good bugs."

When people use poison and try to eradicate or kill all, they destroy the good and the bad, prey and predator. The laws of Nature do not allow a predator or other natural check, to eradicate a species; they only control or keep in balance, and there are reasons for this.

Every living thing on earth is interdependent upon other living things for its existence. In Nature, everything eats and is eaten; the weak, the sick, the old, the dying, and the dead are used as food. Every living thing has a natural enemy, but every living thing also has a means of defense. Only when that living thing is in prime condition will its defenses keep it out of the clutches of its enemy.

In a natural environment (where a pest hasn't been introduced without its natural check), there is a perfect balance between the predator's ability and the prey's defense. The predator animals catch the weak and the sick; the insects are attracted to and destroy the plants that are unhealthy and unfit. This serves a useful purpose, since only the best adapted, healthiest, and strongest of each living species have been able to survive through the centuries to feed and serve man.

Making silk and pollinating are some of the insects' services, but when they eat our crops, we look upon it as a disservice. Could the insects be showing us that our crops are being grown improperly and are under stress? Research has shown, and I have seen it proven again and again, that properly grown, healthy plants are not susceptible to insect attack and damage.

This proves that destructive bugs are here for the purpose of censoring, and the many good bugs are here to help Nature keep the number of censor bugs in balance so they only do their job sufficiently and not overdo it. When the insects become a problem, its usually because man has violated a law of Nature.

When using insecticides we are only treating symptoms, we are not getting at the cause. The plant may not be adapted; the soil may be out of balance, or perhaps the plant is stressed because of bad weather conditions. Using insecticides of the wrong type or at the wrong time may upset the prey-to-predator balance and create a need for still more insecticide. Soon we have a plant that has been doused many times with poison, then we eat the plant-one that Nature saw unfit and was trying to destroy-and wonder why we get sick. Have you ever wondered why we should need poison to grow the food we eat? Was Nature designed that way? I can't believe it was.

 

The Garden-Ville Method - Lessons in Nature