Editor:

Local "garden supply" stores have had some wink-wink, nudge-nudge ads in the past, but the one from Bayside Garden Supply (promoting water tank sales with the caption "Don't Piss Them Off!") was really offensive, not for the implied urination image, but the overt message: "Don't let your fish-hugging neighbors narc you out!" It not only trivializes the seriousness of water issues for communities, it perpetuates the "us vs. them" tension that makes having an honest, inclusive conversation about pot-growing's impact impossible. Bayside Garden Supply could help educate its customers, but instead appeals to self-centered priorities, missing the point entirely. Retailers who cater to "215" gardeners should (read and) carry the new "Green Growers Guide," a collaborative county-wide effort that outlines best practices for environmentally responsible farmers of any crop (Redheaded Blackbelt has it up on her site).

Kathy Fraser, Phillipsville