Pest Management & Plant Health

Have you ever seen the larva of a lady beetle (aka ladybug) dining on an aphid? Lights! Camera! Action! So here is this charming little immature lady beetle chowing down on an oleander aphid that has the audacity to infest the milkweed in our pollinator garden.

[Reblog from Pests in the Urban Landscape] If you were to ask an audience of more than a few people if they or anyone they know has ever seen or been bitten by a brown recluse spider in California, many hands would be raised.

If you were to ask an audience of more than a few people if they or anyone they know has ever seen or been bitten by a brown recluse spider in California, many hands would be raised.

Spring is here and so are the pests. The University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources has the books that can help you learn about the insects, diseases, wildlife, and weeds that might be causing problems in your garden or landscape.

Rachael Freeman Long treasures her memories as a graduate student in entomology at the University of California, Davis. She remembers eating fried grasshoppers at a party. "They're okay with a lot of spices!" She remembers watching Professor Harry H. Laidlaw Jr.

When Alejandro Del Pozo-Valdivia started his new job as UC Cooperative Extension entomology advisor in the Salinas Valley last year, he immediately faced an urgent problem in organic lettuce production. Pest control advisers were finding lettuce aphids in plants that were supposed to be resistant.

Rachael Long, UC Cooperative Extension advisor covering integrated pest management for field crops in Yolo, Solano and Sacramento counties, is the recipient of the 2019 Bradford Rominger Agricultural Sustainability Leadership Award. Long will receive the award at a presentation at 4:30 p.m.

James R. Carey, UC Davis distinguished professor of entomology, will deliver an educational, innovative and entertaining presentation titled African Odyssey: Wildlife Adventures, Natural Wonders and Indigenous Peoples at 4:10 p.m., Wednesday, May 22 in 122 Briggs Hall.

UC Davis entomology alumnus Rachael Freeman Long, UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE) farm adviser for field crops and pest management for the three-county area of Yolo, Solano and Sacramento, is the recipient of the 2019 Bradford-Rominger Agricultural Sustainability Leadership Award.

Home gardeners often become concerned when their fruit trees begin dropping fruit prematurely. In some cases, fruit drop is nature's way of reducing a heavy fruit load. In other cases, premature fruit drop may be caused by pests and diseases, adverse weather conditions or poor cultural practices.