Just … why?  I still don’t get the permaculture world vs. the master gardener world hate-thing going on around me.  I understand that master gardeners are trained in the use of chemical insecticides, but I also know from attending trainings that for both insect and wildlife nuisance, exclusion is always the number one choice.  Plus, no one is standing over me in my classes saying, “Hey you, you must use these chemicals!”  It’s insane.

So what does exclusion mean?  It means that if you don’t want deer eating your tulips, don’t plant tulips!  And if you don’t want rabbits in your veggies, plant hot pepper plants as barriers.  No, they don’t always work, but then nothing does.  Even trapping and killing only lasts until the next creature comes along.

Maybe it’s because I’m in a very rural county and our little class of nine students understands the value of saving nature and saving money all as one?  I’m not sure.  What I do know is that this fight is only hurting those unwilling to learn.  I know for certain that I’m not the only one in my course that sees “weeds” as beneficial foods and medicines.  It’s been open discussion in our classes!

I mean really, do you support every single thing you’ve ever been taught?  One of our instructors supported GMOs, that doesn’t mean that I have to.  And even though I don’t agree with some of her beliefs, I still gained some great in-depth knowledge on plant science from her.

Time to share some love people!