Baits Eliminate and Prevent Subterranean Termite Colonies

Subterranean termites (Family Rhinotermitidae) are considered the most serious wood-destroying pests in the world, causing an estimated $32 billion in global economic impact each year. California is home to both native and introduced subterranean termite species (Figure 1). Infestations of wooden structures are widespread and common. Pest control operators (PCOs) have conventionally applied liquid termiticides to control these pests, usually as soil drenches or injections around structures. These treatments may not always be effective, however, especially if good underground coverage is not achieved, if local termite...

Have you been seeing a lot of defoliated sycamore trees recently? Sparse foliage and early leaf drop on sycamore trees might be due to anthracnose. The cool, wet spring in many parts of California provided the perfect conditions for this disease. Anthracnose is a common fungal disease sometimes called leaf, shoot, or twig blight. It can cause twisted, distorted branches in American sycamore, some varieties of London plane trees, and California sycamore trees. Sycamore anthracnose is primarily an aesthetic concern since it usually doesn't kill established trees.

Symptoms

Take a close look at the fallen leaves for the characteristic irregular blotches caused by this disease. Anthracnose can...

If your company does residential landscape pest control, your employees should be trained to know what to do when they encounter a vegetable garden, or fruit or nut trees in a yard (Figure 1). Their training should include how to answer a customer's questions about the safety of their pesticides around vegetables or herbs. Talking to a customer about the edible plants in their garden so you don't accidentally spray their plants might save that account from subsequent cancellation.

Is it appropriate for a technician to recommend that a resident simply wash their vegetables after having their yard treated for say, mosquitoes, or should the vegetables be thrown away? What about a perimeter spray around the home? The answer...

Two identical looking species of wood-boring beetles, collectively known as invasive shothole borers (ISHB), have killed thousands of trees in Southern California and pose an ongoing threat to California's urban and wildland forests. These beetles, which are not native to the United States, were first identified in Los Angeles County in 2012 and have since spread to six other counties: Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara, and Ventura.

Beetles, Fungus, and Impact

The polyphagous shothole borer (Euwallacea fornicatus) (Figure 1) and the Kuroshio shothole borer (Euwallacea kuroshio) are small ambrosia beetles that have a symbiotic relationship with several species...