Last week I talked about the discovery of how returning keystone species to an ecosystem can help to restore balance. I have found similar findings in a book recently published by Tao Orion, called Beyond the War on Invasive Species.
While I was going through the Master Gardener course in 2005, I was surprised and dismayed that they promoted the use of herbicides to control invasive species. I simply did not buy that as a viable solution to the problem. As an organic gardener I was in the habit of seeking out alternatives and natural means to deal with weed and pest challenges in the garden. I was recently invited to join a local garden club where a member from the extension service gave a talk. Pesticides were still being recommended to fight the proliferation of grasshoppers, and herbicides to contend with the endless “weeds”.
The real problem of course, is lack of biodiversity. Humans want to categorize everything into good – or bad. They want to treat unwanted plants as enemies that are out to take over their garden, when in fact; these plants are simply responding to the conditions that we have unwittingly provided for them. Ms. Orion suggests, “Invasive species are not acting alone to threaten biodiversity. They are not, by themselves, to blame.” As with keystones, scientists think that by isolating one species, they can control it. But, nature does not work in isolation. Plants are not in competition with each other, as the general populous believes, but in fact, they work together in a fashion, in order to maintain balance. Darwin said that it is those species that are most adaptable to change, that thrive, and not the ones that are the strongest or the most intelligent.
As long as we continue to look upon nature as something that must be fought against and controlled, we will keep adding insult to injury. When we learn to respect and revere Nature’s infinite intelligence, working with her and not against her, we will see that she is capable of healing the damage we have done – with or without our help. We must learn to adapt to change as well, and abandon our unquenchable desire to control.
