Garden Insects

Organic farmer/filmmaker Chris Korrow introduces the ants and aphids, bees and wasps, beetles and butterflies, and other little critters living in or near his backyard in rural Kentucky. Divided into 12 insect family segments, and shot in the style of a nature documentary with plenty of wonderful close-up footage, Garden Insects focuses specifically on how various insects benefit or harm the garden. When it comes to pests, Korrow points out that predators often work better than chemicals: the dreaded aphid, for example, is the preferred meal of lacewings, hoverflies, and ladybugs (viewers see each of these insects in their egg, larval, and adult stages, so that gardeners can easily identify them). Korrow dispels myths about maligned arthropods such as black widow spiders, which tend to be shy, or wasps, which help keep the insect population in balance (and sometimes eat black widows). Korrow's comments are aimed at the layperson (no use of Latinate scientific nomenclature here), and exhibit a deep respect for the natural world's complex interrelationships. A fine program for amateur gardeners and nature enthusiasts alike, this is recommended. Aud: P. (J. Wadland)