Pest Management & Plant Health

Spotting ants in the home or yard is no reason to reach for insecticide sprays or call an exterminator. UC Cooperative Extension experts say the insects can be managed by residents in ways that are effective, inexpensive, safe and environmentally kind. Ants are probably the No.

If you like corn, you should be concerned about a pest that's known as "the billion-dollar beetle." The Western corn rootworm is called that because its larvae ravage America's corn crops to the economic tune of $1 billion a year.

The Western corn rootworm, known as the billion-dollar beetle because its larvae ravage America's corn crops to the economic tune of $1 billion a year, may need a new nickname.

Most people are practicing social distancing due to the current pandemic, so contracting head lice might not be a top concern right now. However, many families with young children have at least one encounter with head lice at some time or another.

Have you seen Lee Allen's article in the Western Farm Press (July 15, 2020) on weed control in tree nut orchards? Here's the link: https://www.farmprogress.

When I began gardening, many moons ago, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I had this idealized picture in my head of what gardening was all about. A picture of a smiling woman, straw hat on her head, garden trowel in hand, a cute little apron tied around her waist.

Your customers want their lawns to be beautiful and functional (Figure 1) but dead patches or other problems sometimes occur. Figuring out the cause of turfgrass damage can be a challenge since many plant pathogens affect grasses as well as numerous abiotic (non-living) disorders.

From the Small and Organic Farm Advisor Blog ************** The Heat is On: Soil Solarization The days are long and the temperatures are high. This is a great time to solarize the soil in the Central Valley as a way to manage annual weeds and improve the growth of fall crops.

Upcoming online meeting on July 30th 2020 from 8:30am to 12pm. Register for this ZOOM event at: https://ucanr.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=30593 You will receive the ZOOM link for the meeting by email after the registration. Agenda for this meeting is below.

In order to stay healthy and keep our spaces clean during the COVID-19 pandemic, many people are using disinfectants and sanitizers more than they may have before.