It's hot outside, so like a lot of people, you try to park your car under a tree in parking lots and on the street for some shade. You choose to park under a big hackberry tree, but when you return to your car, you notice droplets on your windshield and sticky stuff on the sidewalk, other cars, and the parking lot. What is this?
The sticky substance is called honeydew. The honeydew is excreted by a number of sap-sucking insects such as aphids, whiteflies, mealybugs, certain scale insects, and few others. On hackberry trees (widely planted in some cities), an insect called the woolly hackberry aphid produces a large amount of honeydew.
If you examine the tree's leaves, you may see bluish-white masses that are actually...
- Author: Igor Lacan
- Author: Cheryl A. Wilen
- Author: John A Roncoroni
[From the May 2017 issue of the UC IPM Green Bulletin]
It's among every landscape professional's worst nightmares: returning to a landscape recently treated with an herbicide to find previously healthy trees looking “strange.” These strange findings could be leaves with bleached-out veins, twisted shoots, dying twigs, or stunted new growth appearing in unusual places.
This nightmare situation occurred several years ago on coniferous trees in many Midwestern landscapes where a presumably “safe” herbicide labeled for use...
/span>[From the December 2016 issue of the UC IPM Green Bulletin]
The Polyphagous shot hole borer (PSHB) (Fig. 1) and Kuroshio shot hole borer (KSHB) are invasive wood-boring beetles that attack dozens of tree species in Southern California, including commercial avocado groves, common landscape trees, and native species in urban and wildland environments. Both beetles spread a disease called Fusarium Dieback (FD), which is caused by pathogenic fungi. Trees that are FD-susceptible may experience branch dieback, canopy loss, and tree mortality (Fig....
/span>Completely revised and expanded, Pests of Landscape Trees and Shrubs, 3rd Edition, is a comprehensive, how-to integrated pest management (IPM) resource for landscapers, arborists, home gardeners, retailers, and parks and grounds managers. This easy-to-use guide covers hundreds of insects, mites, nematodes, plant diseases, and weeds that can damage California landscapes.
The book's 435 pages present the practical experience and research-based advice of more than 100 University of California (UC) and industry experts, including:
• Pest-resistant plants and landscape design:
• Planting, irrigating, and other cultural practices that keep plants healthy:
• Conserving natural enemies to...
- Author: Dennis Pittenger
[From the August 2015 issue of the UC IPM Green Bulletin]
Q. How much water do landscapes use in California?
A. Landscape irrigation accounts for only about 9% of total statewide developed water use, but the percentage varies widely among communities. Water applied to landscapes is estimated to account for about 50% of residential water consumption statewide, but the amount varies from about 30% in some coastal communities to 60% or more in many inland suburban communities.
Q. Does a landscape have to...
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