OG Quiz

by Kathy Purdy on March 2, 2008 · 20 comments

This quiz was developed by Timber Press, based on information in Jeff Gillman’s The Truth About Organic Gardening. Provide your name and email, answer each question True or False, and then click the Send! button. One winner will be chosen at random from all correctly answered entries. One entry per person.
CONTEST HAS ENDED. NO MORE ENTRIES WILL BE ACCEPTED. This remains up for your general amusement and education. Answers are here.

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1) Beer traps are an effective way to control slugs.
2) Manure is always a desirable soil amendment.
3) Garlic not only repels vampires, it will also repel whiteflies, aphids, and many beetles.
4) Corn gluten meal can suppress weeds when applied to the soil.
5) Any kind of mulch is good for the soil and for plants.
6) Japanese beetle traps are an effective way to control this pest.
7) Praying mantids are useful for controlling insect pests in the garden.
8) Natural fertilizers such as bone meal, blood meal, seaweed extracts, and fish emulsions are a safe source of nutrients.
9) Kaolin clay can prevent attacks from a number of insect pests.
10) Rotenone, because it is organically derived, is a safe pesticide.
11) Compost tea and manure tea are great ways to provide nutrients and control diseases.
12) Choosing disease resistant plant varieties is one of the most effective ways of ensuring a healthy garden.
13) Beneficial nematodes can dramatically lessen Japanese beetle infestations.
14) Insecticidal soaps are completely benign.
15) Vitamin D3 can be effective in controlling rodent populations.

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Take this organic gardening quiz and win a free book | Cold Climate Gardening
March 2, 2008 at 12:11 pm

{ 19 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Lynn March 10, 2008 at 10:14 am

i think i at least got the first one right. We used to put pie tins of beer in the yard when I was a kid, and it would draw snails buy the 100s! poor things got intoxicated to death.
Thanks for the fun quiz and look forward to the review :)

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2 Karen Sloan March 9, 2008 at 2:03 pm

I know I have a lot to learn, but I’m very keen to garden organically. It seems that when we use chemicals, we not only kill the “bad bugs”, but the beneficial ones as well. Then the birds eat them, and it is a chain that effects all life. Now that I live in a rural area, and have a well for water, I am concerned about what goes into the ground because my family and I will end up drinking it!

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3 Commonweeder March 7, 2008 at 9:42 am

Kathy,
A great post. I am all too familiar with Japanese beetles although I do credit milky spore disease with having controlled them in my garden. I also agree that the test was a little tricky in places – after all fresh uncomposted manure can harm plants. I’ll be interested in the answers! This was fun.

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4 Cynthia March 7, 2008 at 9:23 am

My Dad would be so disappointed with my lack of organic gardening knowledge.

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5 PlantingOaks March 6, 2008 at 12:26 pm

Not known in Texas?!
*considers moving*

I hope even if you don’t post the scores, that you’ll let us know what the easiest/hardest questions were. It was a fun quiz, though a lot seems to depend on what your definitions of ‘effective’ or ‘harmful’ were. Everything in moderation is a good motto.

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6 Kathy Purdy March 4, 2008 at 5:19 pm

Corinna, Japanese beetles are an insect pest common to many areas of North America, as you probably guessed. They are so common where I live that I was surprised to learn they are unknown in Texas.

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7 Corinna March 4, 2008 at 3:38 pm

I’m glad you are not publishing results. For example, I have no idea what Japanese beetles are, let alone how you control them. (I’m pretty sure however that I got the one on the slugs right because I’ve simply tried everything on them.)

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8 Shady Gardener March 3, 2008 at 4:47 pm

Thanks for not identifying me with my score! ;-)
It will be good to have access to the answers, though. Great idea for a post.

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9 Jenn March 3, 2008 at 3:13 pm

Well, that was interesting.
Some of them I had no knowledge of at all.

Vitamins and rats? Huh?

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10 Jane March 3, 2008 at 11:08 am

that was fun but I totally guessed on most of the questions so I doubt I’ve done very well.

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11 sherry March 3, 2008 at 10:38 am

I’m sure I flunked, but it was alot of fun, and sparks my curiosity!

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12 CJ March 3, 2008 at 9:41 am

I enjoyed the very challenging quiz as I am new to learning about organic gardening. But…I was really hoping that the correct answers were going to reveal themselves to me after I took the quiz. I’d also love to know what my score is… in private without everyone else knowing how little I know about organic gardening. LOL. Thanks for the fun & informative quiz.

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13 Mahdi March 3, 2008 at 3:51 am

Kathy, my first language is not English. but i think for some question we can not answer absolutely True or False.these questions are very good and never bother me. these questions encourage me to learn more about organic farming and increase my knowledge.

thank you

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14 jodi March 2, 2008 at 11:35 pm

This was really, really fun, because it made me stop and read the questions carefully and think about what we take for granted or don’t challenge. A couple of them made me say to myself, “well, it depends”…I’m going to look forward to the answers. And I’m going to bug Timber about a rep in Canada, too.

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15 Kathy Purdy March 2, 2008 at 9:27 pm

Mahdi, if English is not your first language, some questions may have idioms that are confusing. Also there could be some words that aren’t familiar to you. For this I am sorry. But the quiz is meant to be fun and I don’t want anyone to feel bad.

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16 Mahdi March 2, 2008 at 9:13 pm

i think some questions are not clear.
anyway this quiz is so amazing for me.

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17 Kathy Purdy March 2, 2008 at 6:28 pm

Diana, you are absolutely right. The word “traps” was missing. The question has been corrected, and everyone who filled out the survey before the correction was made will get that question marked right.

And, no, Jane Marie, I am not printing anyone’s score, but I will publish all the correct answers when the contest is over.

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18 Jane Marie March 2, 2008 at 3:36 pm

I hope you don’t print our score. I am so embarassed. I had to guess at a lot of them.

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19 Diana March 2, 2008 at 2:41 pm

I think question #6 is missing something! It didn’t make sense to me, at least!

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