- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
In yesterday's Fresno Bee, reporter Dennis Pollock opened a story about aging farmers with a vignette of Shigeo Yokota, who at 89 years old and suffering from arthritis still climbs on a tractor to till orchards and vineyards around his home. Yokota's son, Glenn Yokota, is a staff research associate in Kent Daane's lab at the UC Kearney Agricultural Center.
The article says that a fourth of American farmers are 65 or older. Half are 55 or older. The average age of California farmers went from 53.2 years old in 1974 to 56.8 in 2002, the last year the federal government conducted an agricultural census, according to the story.
For his story, Pollack...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
More humid weather and slightly cooler temperatures are helping firefighters get a handle on California fires, according to media reports like this AP story which appeared in yesterday's Los Angeles Times. But concerns about fire prevention, suppression and associated costs won't die out soon.
A recent article in the Trukee Times said Tahoe residents were forewarned about fire danger. The Tahoe blaze was the most damaging in the state so far this year, with about 250 homes destroyed.
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
The Amador Ledger Dispatch reported yesterday on a recent meeting in Martell in which the sponsor, the Amador Resource Conservation District, provided grass-fed and conventional beef at lunch for a taste comparison.
The article, by Jennifer Gee, quotes Steve Cannon, director of the Amador Resource Conservation District.
"Some people have this view that grass-fed livestock meat is yellow and the meat isn't tender," Cannon is quoted. "We want to try and dispel some of this."
The article didn't say whether the participants could tell the difference, however, a
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
The Los Angeles Times reported yesterday that West Nile virus is off to an early start in 2007 with cases of infected mosquitoes, horses or birds having been found in 26 of California's 58 counties. The newspaper said three Kern County residents are the only known human cases. However, a day later, a story in the Sacramento Bee reported a human case of West Nile infection in Stanislaus County.
The state could be on its way to beating the record for the disease set last year. In 2006, California recorded 276 human West Nile virus infections and seven...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
A little piece on spiders in the UC Master Gardener column of the Contra Cost Times last month caused quite a stir. In answering a question about brown recluse spiders, the writer said: "Brown recluse spiders are not found in California, except in the far southern eastern desert regions, and it is highly unlikely that you have a population in your backyard. As of now, there has not been one confirmed brown recluse spider bite in the state."
The UC Integrated Pest Management Program reports similar information on its Web site: "There are no populations of...
