Every cannabis grower knows that there are lots of pests and diseases which can screw up those plans for a big harvest. Some live in the soil, and some are airborne. They can be barely visible, like spider mites or thrips, or they can weigh hundreds of pounds, like deer.

Cultivation expert Ed Rosenthal’s new book, Marijuana Pest & Disease Control, offers a serious look at 21 pests and diseases likely to strike not only cannabis crops, but flower and vegetable gardens as well. While the book’s focus is marijuana-specific, the book covers problems faced by all gardeners.

A partial list of pests covered includes aphids, spider mites, ants, whiteflies, powdery mildew, stem rot, and mammals such as gophers and rats. While your Cousin Bob — the stoner who thinks that, since you grow a couple plants, you’ve taken him to raise — isn’t covered in the book, practically every other marijuana pest is.

By understanding your opponents’ strengths and weaknesses you can make smarter decisions about how to combat them. Appropriately, the first part of the book details the life and times of the pest or disease: what and how it eats, reproduces, and its idiosyncrasies and vulnerabilities. Then it shows you how to repel or kill it.