"Janet Baraclough.." wrote in
message ...
The message
from "Franz Heymann" contains
these words:

These "natural" ways of controlling the local
balance of nature are mostly hyped up codswallop.

You're talking nonsense again Franz...you did say you wanted to be
reminded when it happens :-)

Janet, I may have exaggerated a little for the sake of the effect, as
is my wont, but I do believe that the principle of what I said is
correct. The real point is that the balance desired by a gardener is
only rarely the balance nature would achieve if left to itself. I,
too, was once a keen young supporter of organic methods. After many
years of "good practice", the penny dropped: In spite of me doing my
best to nurture the friendly insects and the birds, my garden usually
suffered worse from pest infestations than those of friends who
gardened the traditional way, namely, to poison the unwanted
freebooters.

Franz