Yesterday we posted an “Easter egg hunt” challenge, and as promised, here are the adult insects and spiders with their matching eggs or egg cases pictured. How did you do?
We welcome your feedback, so please sign in and post a comment below to tell us if the egg hunt was easy or difficult, and how many answers you guessed correctly. Or, you can write us a note about the challenge on our UC IPM Urban/Community Facebook page.
Now for the answers:
A. Harlequin bugs are...
Easter often brings to mind colorful eggs hiding in the landscape for children to find. At UC IPM, we thought you'd want to know about eggs already hiding in your yard: insect and spider eggs!
Many insects and spiders have strangely shaped and colorful eggs that you may have never noticed. Below are some photos of these interesting eggs and our own version of a spring time egg hunt.
We challenge you to guess which adult insect or spider belongs to the following eggs and egg cases. Some are beneficials, while others might be pests. Extra “points” awarded for being able to know the difference! Answers will be posted on Tuesday afternoon. Good luck!
Insect and Spider Eggs and Egg...
- Author: Janet Hartin
[From the Spring issue of the UC IPM Retail Nursery & Garden Center News]
Most disorders impacting landscape trees result from abiotic (non-living) disorders rather than attacks from biotic (living) pests like plant pathogens, insects, and vertebrates. Damage caused by abiotic and biotic disorders can appear similar, making diagnosis difficult at times. For example, discolored leaves on a Ficus nitida tree could be due to drought stress, a fungus, or a nutrient toxicity or...
/span>In mid-March, many people use clover-themed decorations in preparation for St. Patrick's Day. Many gardens and landscaped areas are “decorated” with clovers too, especially with recent rains and mild temperatures in much of California. For some people, clovers are considered weeds, but others enjoy the green color they bring!
Clovers begin to germinate in the fall and continue throughout winter and early spring. Their bright green leaves can blemish the look of lawns and may be unsightly when found in ornamental plantings.
Clovers growing in lawns or landscapes are often a sign of low soil nitrogen, so changing fertilization can help prevent their growth. Read the UC IPM publication
Online marketplace Amazon.com was recently fined $1.2 million by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) for selling and distributing pesticides not registered for sale in the U.S. The EPA discovered nearly 4,000 violations dating back to 2013. The illegal products included misbranded or unregistered insecticide baits and pesticide products that can be mistaken for blackboard chalk.
Amazon immediately removed these illegal products from their marketplace, prohibited foreign sellers from selling pesticides, and increased monitoring for illegal products. The company contacted the affected customers to urge proper disposal of the illegal pesticides and reimbursed them for the purchases.
As part...