Backyard Orchard News
Good Day for Bugs!
It was a good day for bugs. But isn't every day a good day for bugs? The Bohart Museum of...
This tarantula was popular at the Bohart Museum on Biodiversity Museum Day. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Entomology student Stephanie Wu holds walking sticks. These are Those are thorny stick insects, Aretaon asperrimus, from Borneo. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
These are male Valley carpenter bees, shown here by native pollinator specialist Robbin Thorp, distinguished emeritus professor of entomology. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A collection of moths at the Bohart Museum. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Visit from Down Under
It was a good visit from "Down Under." Australian beekeeper/pollination specialist Trevor...
Apiarist/pollination specialist Trevor Monson (left) talks bees with pollination ecologist Neal Williams, associate professor, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Trevor Monson (second from left) and nephew Reece and son Jonathan chat with native pollination specialist Robbin Thorp (far right), distinguished emeritus professor of entomology. They are looking at a Valley carpenter bee nest. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The Australian trio and two UC Davis scientists are in front of "Miss Bee Haven," the ceramic mosaic sculpture in the UC Davis honey bee garden. From left are Trevor's nephew, Reece; UC Davis native pollinator specialist Robbin Thorp, emeritus professor of entomology at UC Davis; Trevor Monson and his son, Jonathan, and in back, pollination ecologist Neal Williams, associate professor of entomology at UC Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Students explore science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) career pathways at Kearney.
UC ANR Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center is providing fun learning opportunities to Fresno Unified School District 4th grade students and W.E.B. DuBois & Carter G. Woodson Public Charter Schools' students.
The teachers get lesson plans on experimental design and integrated pest management strategies prior to the students coming for their field trip. Each field trip has a tour where students learn about different crops, issues, and experimental designs. After the field trip, the students learn about how UC helps people and the environment. They are also exposed to “the more you learn, the more you earn” concept and given examples of great local STEM related career opportunities.
Elementary students finish their visit with role playing scenarios that demonstrate the importance of integrated pest management strategies, as well as why pesticide runoff should be prevented.
High school students finish their visit with more advanced experimental activities including a tour of the post-harvest lab and hands-on study of fruit samples using refractometer, penetrometer, and sensory evaluation techniques.
Elementary students learning about IPM strategies in role playing scenarios at Kearney.
She’s a Peach of a Permanent Resident
Roll over, Rosie. Make room for Peaches. Rosie, the popular 24-year-old Chilean rose-haired...
Peaches is the newest tarantula at the Bohart Museum of Entomology. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
UC ANR Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center welcomes a new nematologist.
Andreas Westphal, UC Assistant Cooperative Extension Specialist in the Department of Nematology at UC Riverside and UC ANR Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center started January 15, 2015. Westphal obtained his first two degrees from the University of Göttingen. He received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Riverside under the supervision of J. Ole Becker. After some postdoctoral experience at UC Davis, and some faculty experience with Texas A&M University and Purdue University, he moved back to Germany. He was recruited by UC after Mike McKenry retired.
Westphal's research program will focus on nematode problems of tree and vine crops. He will explore a multitude of cultural, biological and chemical strategies for managing nematodes in almond, grape, peach, walnut and other crops. Westphal moved here from the Julius Kühn-Institut, Braunschweig, Germany where he researched nematode management on field crops, and was responsible for determining plant resistance to plant-parasitic nematodes in the official cultivar release program.
Andreas Westphal in his nematology lab at Kearney.