- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
UC Cooperative Extension developed an online interactive map that allows Californians to see how close they live to citrus trees infected with huanglongbing disease, reported Jeanette Marantos in the Los Angeles Times. This information is critical for the more than 60% of Californians who are growing their own backyard orange, grapefruit, mandarin, lime and other citrus trees.
Huanglongbing is an exotic citrus disease that kills every tree it infects. An exotic insect, the Asian citrus psyllid, spreads the disease from tree to tree. If the disease makes its way into California's commercial citrus...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
Coyote sightings are on the rise in San Francisco, even taking naps in patches of green spaces in the city, reported Uma Chrobak in Popular Science. However, it is unlikely they indicate a change in wildlife behavior, said UC Cooperative Extension human-wildlife interactions advisor Niamh Quinn.
Officials believe the increased sightings may have more to do with a change in human behavior. Many people are at home and bored, so they may staring out the window and going on more walks in their neighborhoods.
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
"I'm a huge believer in garden therapy right now," famed chef Alice Waters told FastCompany.com reporter Aimee Rawlins. To find out how to dig in, Rawlins turned to the director of the UC Master Gardener Program Missy Gable.
"Start modestly and in a way that you can manage it,” Gable said. “If you've never done this before, don't transform a quarter acre.”
She recommends beginning by assessing space you have available for gardening - whether in the backyard, front yard or the corner of a balcony.
“Get...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
UC Cooperative Extension advisor Scott Oneto and retired insurance executive Staci O'Toole are researching conditions in a Placerville hazelnut orchard that best support the production of highly prized Perigord truffles, reported Becky Grunewald in the Sacramento Bee.
“Whether this will be the next big commodity in California? I would love to say yes, but that goes with a lot of hesitancy and uncertainty," Oneto said. "There's a ton of things we need to figure out to make this industry successful.”
O'Toole had asked Oneto for...
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Coronavirus: Valley farmers offering roadside stands with fruits and vegetables
(ABC 30) Dale Yurong, March 31
…Heulong Siong has already opened his stand across from Clovis Community College. Consumers were urged to follow the recommended safety guidelines due to COVID-19.
UC Cooperative Extension Small Farm Advisor Ruth Dahlquist-Willard explained, "Things like keeping the minimum six-foot difference from customers, not touching any produce that you're not planning to buy, leaving as soon as you've made a purchase and washing the produce when you get home would be some good guidelines. Similar to what we're seeing at farmers markets...