May is Lyme Disease Awareness Month, giving us an opportunity to shine a spotlight on a serious illness transmitted by certain ticks.
Lyme disease is often associated with the northeastern and upper Midwestern areas of the United States. However, the disease has been found in some northern California counties, which means the risk of contracting the disease is possible in California.
Lyme disease can be transmitted to humans and pets through the bite of infected ticks. In California, the tick capable of transmitting Lyme disease is the western blacklegged...
Last Saturday, UC IPM staff greeted a swarm of visitors at their Picnic Day booth. Picnic Day, UC Davis' annual Open House event, invites people to visit the campus and interact with fun and educational exhibits. UC IPM has participated in Picnic Day for more than a decade and this year attracted visitors to their booth with live insects like hissing cockroaches, a termite colony, and crane flies. UC IPM staff answered many questions about pests, pesticides, and cleared up misconceptions about some common insects.
What did we talk with people about?
Snails and slugs can be destructive pests in gardens and landscapes when they devour entire seedlings or chew holes in leaves, flowers, fruit, and even the bark of plants.
Manage these pests by getting rid of their hiding places, setting up traps, or planting resistant plants.
For more information about effective ways to manage snails and slugs, read the newly revised Pest Notes: Snails and Slugs by Cheryl Wilen, Area IPM Advisor, San Diego, Orange, and Los Angeles counties; and Mary Louise Flint, Extension Entomologist Emerita, UC Davis and UC IPM.
This Earth Day, Sunday April 22, help natural enemies by growing insectary plants. Natural enemies, also called beneficials or biological control agents, include lady beetles (ladybugs), lacewings, spiders, parasitic wasps, and even some mites! These natural enemies feed on pests in the garden and landscape and may reduce the need for insecticides. Protect natural enemies by avoiding the use of pesticides that kill them and keeping ants out of pest-infested plants.
Insectary plants provide nectar, pollen, and shelter throughout the year for natural enemies. In order to provide a year-round source of food for them, choose plant species and cultivars that flower at different times and are well-adapted to your area. Here are a...
- Author: Karey Windbiel-Rojas
Come visit us at the UC Davis annual Picnic Day event this Saturday April 21, 2018! Every year, the UC Statewide IPM Program sets up informational tables as part of the Entomology Department events at Briggs Hall.
As in past years, we will give out ladybugs (lady beetles), have preserved insects on display, showcase our publications and outreach materials, and be there to answer people's pest questions.
Stop by and say hello and check out all the fun activities and information UC IPM and the Entomology Department has to show you!