Question
I have noticed that you have some interesting, back to basic theories about some common gardening problems. I try to keep pace with new developments but I can't seem to find anything about the use of sugar in the garden, other than as a way to attract ants. Would you perhaps direct me to the research for this? Where did you originally find this cure-all? I try to keep an open mind. But I guess I am little conservative, too.

Answer
Hi Victor;
You aren't going to find any documentation about sugar.
about 8 years ago, I read Howard Gerrett's column in the Dallas morning News, about using dry molasses. If you couldn't get dry molasses, ( which very few nurseries carried then) plain table sugar would work.
I couldn't find dry molasses, so I used sugar.
The weeds I had ruined a perfectly good back and pair of knees trying to battle for over 40 yeras, started to just disappear.
Like a shark in a feeding frenzy, I ran to the store and got more sugar and threw it down and watered it in.
I had heard everything from pouring beer to bourbon on your lawn, and it sounded nutty to me, but howard Garrett is a degreed Horticulturist, and a scientist, so i paid attention, and got what was the closest thing to dry molasses I could get at the time.
When dry molasses was available, i used it for a year or two, but didn't like the results as well as the results i got with sugar, so i went back to the sugar.
Sugar doesn't attract ants, because you water it into thesoil well.
Besides, after you get rid of the chemicals and go to total organics ( you can 't go halfway, or you cancel out the organics), and you have a healthy enviornment for lawn critters such as toads, lizards, and grass snakkes, they will eat every ant that comes into your yard.
howard Garrett's website is   www.dirtdoctor.com
I paid the annual fee for complete access to his website, the forums and video library, and am learning much more about organics.
Fot 8 years, I have put NOTHING but sugar on my yard, and I have a full lawn of thuick, green grass, and no weeds.
Results are the best evidence.

Try it, you'll like it.
Another benefit to the organics, besides a much better lawn and garden, and less cost and labor, my asthma is 90% or more better.
I had to apply fungicide once a month to keep black spot off my roses, and insecticide to keep the aphids under some sort of control.
Now, at first new growth in the spring, and after a rainy season that is cool enough and enough no sun to make it grow, I spray thoroughly with baking soda disolved in water.
That takes care of the black spot and powdery mildew for the whole season, and the lizards eat all the aphids.
With the chemicals, I got some aphid damage to almost every rose that opened.
Now, I haven't seen a damaged rose in years.

Using herbs in my house, I never see a cockroach or an ant, silverfish, earwig, nothing in my house.
I wouldn't use a chemical again if you paid me a million dollars. Truly.
Charlotte