Topics in Subtropics

Date growers in the California deserts have many insects to worry about such as carob moth, hibiscus mealybug, and giant palm borer. Now the industry is under threat from another potential pest, the highly damaging and invasive South American palm weevil (SAPW) (Rhynchophorus palmarum).

HLB Confirmations The number of trees confirmed as being infected by HLB has reached 520 (300 in Orange County, 217 in Los Angeles County and 3 in Riverside County). All were in residential settings, not commercial groves.

This month, the Citrus Pest & Disease Prevention Program is hosting free workshops in the Central Coast to educate front-line leaders about best practices to prevent the spread of Asian citrus psyllids in the field.

Firefighters from all over the country worked around the clock to put out fires throughout the state of California. Fires could be devastating to growers and, in some ways, they could be beneficial by reducing populations of weeds and unwanted vegetation.

I recently came across a library of all kinds of images of pests, diseases and crops. It has lots of entries, such as Bees of the United States: https://www.ipmimages.org/browse/projectsubject.