Plant disease is a huge and complex subject. This section deals with the principles of disease control, the many different kinds of plant and soil diseases, the characteristics and symptoms of disease, the various ways of preventing and/or treating plant disease and soil disease, the characteristics of the various fungicides and bactericides, the problems with the use of these materials plus an assortment of related issues.

Gardening based on ecological knowledge has a returning theme: 'feed the soil'. Once you have a soil that is rich in organic matter, contains a lot of micro- and macro-organisms, and is neither too wet nor too dry, nursing plants becomes easy. This document deals with improving and maintaining the soil quality of the home garden. Having read this information, you might start associating the concept of an ecosystem with a hand full of soil.