4: Don’t kill the defenseless

The Bible gives us dominion over “over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth” (Gen. 1:26). That is a responsibility to care, not a permission to destroy. Do not use pesticides, period.

Worried about fire ants? Yes, those are the only creature that may need to be poisoned, since they are invasive, not from here. But not for long – after your yard is shaded by trees and turf replaced with native plants, the fire ants will disappear. When you obey the rules of Creation, miracles happen, trust us.

Worried about mosquitoes? Make sure you don’t have random water bodies around. That is always the problem! Just remove the places where mosquitoes breed. Spraying poison around doesn’t kill them anyway. We recommend this fun and short video: mosquitoes DO have place in the greater context of creation, and what you can do about them in Florida’s backyard.