- Author: Monique Garcia Gunther
With a potential increase in avian influenza this fall when wild waterfowl migrate south from their northern breeding grounds, chicken owners should be extra vigilant to help avoid their birds contracting or passing the virus.
Protecting their birds against disease should be a priority for chicken owners, no matter what size the flock, according to Maurice Pitesky, a UC Agriculture and Natural Resources Cooperative Extension specialist in the School of Veterinary Medicine at UC Davis.
“Wild birds are the biggest risk because they can carry the virus but look completely...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
Many forest areas burned by wildfires this year are now facing a new threat – erosion. A UC Agriculture and Natural Resources expert says there are steps landowners can take to reduce the risk of losing soil and polluting waterways when rain falls.
“The loosened soil and ash can move quickly under proper storm conditions,” said Greg Giusti, a UC ANR Cooperative Extension forestry advisor. “Property owners should take immediate action.”
A longstanding practice in the West has been spreading grass seed after a fire, however, the seed is slow to germinate and grow during the cold months that follow fire...
Did you know that it is illegal to feed wildlife? As tempting as it is to put out bread crumbs for birds or deer chow for Bambi, there are downsides to feeding wild animals, says a UC Agriculture and Natural Resources expert in human-wildlife conflict resolution.
California law states: “Except as otherwise authorized in these regulations or in the Fish and Game Code, no person shall harass, herd or drive any game or nongame bird or mammal or fur-bearing mammal. For the purposes of this section, harass is defined as an intentional act that disrupts an animal's normal behavior patterns, which includes but is...
The South Asian country of Bangladesh, bordered on three sides by India, contains more than 22 million acres of agricultural land, with the No. 1 crop being rice. The average farm size is one acre or less, and each farm produces about 4,000 pounds of rice per year.
Vonny Barlow, a UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) entomology expert and affiliated advisor with UC ANR's Statewide Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Program, traveled to Bangladesh in September to instruct pesticide dealers, pesticide retailers, rice farmers and other growers in...
Farmers who have managed their soil with cover crops and conservation tillage are in better shape to weather El Niño this winter than those who have used traditional soil management methods, says Jeffrey Mitchell of UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR).
“The soil-water interaction under various soil management practices will be quite clear if we do get the increased rainfall this winter that has been forecast,” Mitchell said. “Soil high in organic matter and covered by plant residue will allow increased water infiltration and storage, less water runoff and, on a large scale, increased groundwater...