In article ss,
"gunner" wrote:

Teaming with Microbes: A Gardener's Guide to the Soil Food Web
Jeff Lowenfels and Wayne Lewis
http://www.amazon.com/Teaming-Microb.../dp/0881927775
/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1206815176&sr= 1-1

Jeff Lowenfelds: EDUCATION: Harvard University, geology; Northeastern
University, law

Finally! Thank you, Billy,that was not hard was it?
Hard? I posted it within seconds of seeing your post. You are easy to
deal with gunny, when you step out of your cloud of acronyms, and
innuendoes.
---

cite |s?t|
verb [ trans. ] (often be cited)
1 quote (a passage, book, or author) as evidence for or justification of
an argument or statement, esp. in a scholarly work.
€ mention as an example : medics have been cited as a key example of a
modern breed of technical expert.
€ Law adduce a former tried case as a guide to deciding a comparable
case or in support of an argument.

I hope this clears up your confusion with the English language.
now I know who to
look up and
find his bona fides and what actual research he bases his thesis on. I can
finally verify this bold comment. So I will check to see if this
statement is based on actual research or just opinion.
Got to admire the brave face you put on, gunny. Go gettem boy. Have fun
;O)


What else can you do for this peabrain? You can damn well wait until I get
back to my computer.

Ah, some people want too much. You aren't getting a wee bit testy are
you, gunny?

When you return, I may not be available (us DSs have demanding
schedules, y'know), so let me now direct you off into the writings of
Joe Schwarcz.

Schwarcz is one of North America's foremost educators and is the
director of McGill University's Office for Science and Society, which is
dedicated to demystifying science for the public, the media, and
students. Schwarcz is also a professor in the chemistry department and
teaches nutrition and alternative medicine in McGill's Medical School.

He may even be able to rouse that dormant organ between your ears, gunny.

Quotes from Joe Schwarcz:
1) Pesticides and nitrates from fertilizer enter ground water with
potential environmental and health consequences.

2) When they are not protected by pesticides, crops produce their own
chemical weapons. Some of these, various flavonoids, are antioxidants
which may contribute to human health. Organic pears and peaches are
richer in these compounds and organic tomatoes have more vitamin C and
lycopene.
When French researchers compared the differences in lycopene, vitamin C
and polyphenol content of organic versus conventional tomatoes, they
found that the organic tomatoes had somewhat higher levels of vitamin C
and polyphenols, which was not surprising given that the tomatoes
probably produce these to fend of pests. If they get no help from
commercial pesticides, they will produce more of the natural variety.

3) Synthetic fertilizers, with their high levels of nitrogen, potassium
and phosphorus, encourage rapid growth, but this results in more water
being taken up from the soil. The produce is bigger, but it is bigger
because it has a higher water content. Organic crops, fertilized with
manure, take up nitrogen more slowly and have a lower water content. In
a sense they are more concentrated in flavourful compounds.

Some, but certainly not all, studies have shown that organically grown
foods are higher in antioxidants. This isn't surprising because crops
left to fend for themselves without outside chemical help will produce a
variety of natural pesticides, some of which just happen to have
antioxidant properties.
.. . . . According to a four year long study carried out at the
University of Newcastle, organic food is some 40% richer in antioxidants.

If cost is not an issue, organic may indeed be an appropriate choice.
There is no doubt that it is environmentally a more sound practice.

4) All ways of reducing pesticide risk are examined, with great emphasis
on Integrated Pest Management, or IPM, which is aimed at reducing the
reliance of pesticides as the sole approach to pest management. IPM is
geared towards taking action only when numbers of pests warrant it and
uses a mix of biological, physical and chemical techniques. (This is
Canadian, not American)

But can even such a rigorous system ensure that we will have no
consequences from the use of pesticides? Absolutely not. There may be
subtle effects in humans that show up only after years of exposure.

One of the developing concerns about the use of insecticides and
herbicides is a possible effect on the immune system. Laboratory
evidence indicates impaired activity of immune cells after exposure . . .

5) Analytical chemists, armed with their gas chromatographs and mass
spectrometers, heightened our fears by revealing that it was not only
farmers or agro-chemical producers who were exposed to pesticides, we
all were! Residues of these chemicals were found on virtually
everything we ate.

6) Would a pesticide-free world be better? For people who have to
handle pesticides occupationally, and for the environment, yes.

7) The World Health Organization estimates that there are roughly three
million cases of pesticide poisoning world wide every year, and close to
a quarter million deaths!

Pesticide companies, in some cases, pay their salespeople on commission
so it is in their interest to push product even when it may not be
necessary. In Sri Lanka pesticides are advertised on radio to the
public, often painting an unrealistic picture of magical, risk-free crop
protection.

Even though there may be no immediate effects of such exposure, there
are enough studies suggesting a link between pesticide use and
neurological problems, developmental delays, Parkinson's disease and
cancer to cause concern.

An often-quoted study at Stanford University found a link between
Parkinson's disease and domestic pesticide use. People with as few as
thirty days of exposure to home insecticides were at significantly
greater risk; garden insecticides were somewhat less risky. Because of
the large variety of products available, the researchers were not able
to zero in on any specific ingredients.

Great caution must be used with insecticides in the home and I think
their use during pregnancy should be totally avoided.

These quotes were taken from writings posted here in rec.gardens.edible.
You should be able to find them in "Google Groups".

I don't spend my life in front of it like you do DS.

Why use acronyms as a crutch? Don't you want to write the words? The
sentence is a little longer, but it gives clarity to your thoughts, when
you have any. Thanks, anyway, for the compliment,
yes, I am a "Darling Stud" ;O)
--

- Billy

There are three kinds of men: The ones that learn by reading. The few who
learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence and
find out for themselves.
Will Rogers

http://green-house.tv/video/the-spring-garden-tour
http://www.tomdispatch.com/p/zinn