I remember a history teachers comment on my essay, when I hadn't done enough home work to make the essay the requisite length.... but spun it out anyway that I could.... My Fathers garden, built and planted over circa 50 years, contained about 12000 species of plants. Built on approximately three acres, It is one of the most bio diverse sites in Scotland. For most of its existence it was built and maintained by one person, with one helper, though the individuals changed with time. Chemicals were kept to a minimum during periods when my father, or I ran it. It was always apparent when chemicals had been used in an area. There would be a disproportionate number of problems. Plants would recover more slowly from damage, others would die out inexplicably. Fauna would become unbalanced, leading to infestations- rust, canker, caterpillars, weeds, aphids, slugs. Chemicals such as glyphosate are certainly useful to me as a gardener, but with minimal use. I have seen symptoms on annual weeds years after applying it to perennial weeds in the same site, though unknown to me the brand may have had other poisons in it. I am aware that I cannot know all the effects that my actions will have on plants, bacteria, bryophytes, mites, nematodes, insects, mycorrhiza and other inhabitants of the soil and its surface. Most of them I will have never seen or heard of. These organisms interact to create the growing environment in which I garden, so it well behoves me to be cautious with potent chemicals. When I do apply glyphosate, it is as a weak solution, and repeated, and I rarely spray. I drip it onto the leaves of the plant I am attacking, or run the leaves through the wetted fingers of a gloved hand, very effective for rhizomatous grasses in the roots of other plants. I keep about ten acres of garden for myself, and clients, I rarely use a pint of glyphosate solution in a year. Peter (UK) _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/…