Backyard Orchard News
Luck Be a Lady (Beetle)
Overhead in the lady's restroom of a restaurant at the Sausalito marina: Mother to daughter:...
A lady beetle, newly rescued from the bathroom of a restaurant in Marin County, crawls on an Iceland poppy in a Solano County bee garden. Freedom! (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Which way is up? Which way is down? A rescued lady beetle exploring its surroundings. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
From a Caterpillar to a Butterfly; Don't Eat 'em--Here's Why
Visitors to the UC Statewide Integrated Pest Management Program (UC IPM) display in front of Briggs...
The Pipevine Swallowtail caterpillar is black with red spines. This one was displayed at the UC Davis Picnic Day. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The human touch: young fingers touch the Pipevine Swallowtail caterpillar. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
An adult Pipevine Swallowtail nectaring on Jupiter's Beard. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A bird's eye view of the UC IPM display in front of Briggs Hall during the 101st annual campuswide Picnic Day. Staffing the tables are Extension entomologist specialist emeritus Mary Lou Flint (left), former associate director for urban and community IPM and Karey Windbiel-Rojas who replaced Flint. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Pardon Me, There's Something on Your Shoulder!
Pardon me, there's something on your shoulder! And yes, there was. A Madagasar hissing cockroach...
A Madagascar hissing cockroach rides the shoulder of Wade Spencer, entomology major at UC Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Vedder Wright Jr. of Davis photographs a Madagascar hissing cockroach at the Bohart Museum of Entomology. His father was a friend of the museum founder, noted entomologist Richard Bohart. The Celeste Turner Wright Hall is named for his mother, the first female English professor at UC Davis. It houses the Department of Theatre and Dance. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Close-up of a Madagascar hissing cockroach. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Learn How to Make an Insect Collection--Online and During UC Davis Picnic Day
So, you want to make an insect collection? How do you begin? Where do you start? Distinguished...
If you're interesting in collecting insects, stop by Briggs Hall on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. to learn how to make an insect collection. Here a leafcutter bee is targeting a Gulf Fritillary butterfly. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Bohart Museum of Entomology associate Jeff Smith spreads the wings of a tiger moth, Ctenucha rubroscapus. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
New videos from UC IPM help stone fruit growers and PCAs tackle pest problems.
Spider mites, fruit moth and twig borer larvae, aphids, and bark cankers are just a few pests that can wreak havoc on stone fruit trees. With spring well underway and trees in full bloom and beginning to develop fruit, it's time to monitor and take action before these pests get out of hand.
UC IPM teamed up with UC farm advisors to develop a series of how-to videos that can help growers and pest control advisers monitor for pests and damage and determine if and when treatment is needed.
In one video, Sacramento Area IPM Advisor Emily Symmes gives a brief overview of how to monitor for webspinning spider mites. Spider mites build up in stone fruit trees as the weather warms up. Late spring through summer is the ideal time to monitor for mites and their damage, which includes leaf stippling and webbing. If mites build up too much, leaves can drop, fruit may not fully develop, and branches and fruit can be exposed to sunburn.
Shoot strikes, or dead drooping leaf tips, are often seen on young peach and nectarine trees. In a second video, UC Sutter and Yuba County Farm Advisor Janine Hasey explains how to monitor for shoot strikes and how to distinguish the culprits, oriental fruit moth and peach twig borer. Although Oriental fruit moth and peach twig borer can bore into both foliage and fruit, they cause the most devastating damage by feeding on fruit. Early season monitoring and treatment can prevent future fruit loss.
In plum and prune orchards, leaf curl aphids and mealy plum aphids cause leaves to curl and become distorted. Aphids produce honeydew, which can lead to the development of sooty mold, causing fruit to crack and blacken. Aphids are often present when leaves start to grow. In his video, Rick Buchner, UC farm advisor for Tehama County, discusses how to monitor for aphids and explains how to decide when treatment is warranted.
In a final video, UC Sacramento County Farm Advisor Chuck Ingels teaches how to distinguish Phytophthora root and crown rot from bacterial canker. The two diseases are often confused because they both cause bark cankers. Phytophthora root and crown rot is confined to the lower trunk, but when a bacterial canker infection occurs in the tree trunk, the diseases can often be confused. Bacterial canker can be confirmed by cutting away the outer bark and looking for characteristic red flecks on the inner bark. Correct identification of these diseases will help in choosing a management strategy.
You can find all of these how-to videos on the UC IPM video library page. For specific information about managing pests in stone fruits or other crops, see the Pest Management Guidelines.
Webbing caused by webspinning spider mites.
Shoot strike caused by oriental fruit moth.
Leaf distortion caused by leaf curl plum aphid.
Reddish flecking symptoms of bacterial canker.