Smith & Hawken: Pests: A Practical Guide to Natural Management of Garden Pests--From Borers and Nematodes to Rabbits and Deer (Smith & Hawken--The Hands-On Gardener)

Beginning with the soil, where 80 percent of insect problems originate, this environmentally enlightened book shows how to prevent, manage, and combat pests in the garden.

Healthy, Balanced Soil

The first and best defense. Humus, minerals, green manure, and compost. The foliar feeding program for stronger plants.

Prevention, Prevention, Prevention

Crop rotation. Protective herbs and companion planting. Organic sprays and dusts, including rotenone, sabadilla, pyrethrin, neem, ryania, and quassin.

Good Bugs, Bad Bugs

Ant lions, ladybugs, predatory thrips, and ichneumon wasps vs. aphids. Cabbage loppers and cutworms. How to identify and employ beneficial bugs.

Other Wildlife

Attracting birds and bats. Repelling rabbits and deer. Moles and voles, and why snakes really are your friends.