- (Focus Area) Yard & Garden
It's hot. Tomatoes like heat, right? Actually, tomatoes like warm weather, between 65 and 85 degrees. When temperatures soar past 95, tomatoes stop growing. In that kind of heat, their flowers fail to pollinate and instead they dry up and drop off, putting a pause on the production of new fruit. Tomatoes that have begun to color will halt at orange and fail to turn red.
We can't control the sun, but there are a few things we can do to help tomatoes stay productive in our hot valley summers. In the first place, plant tomatoes in a spot that gets sun in the morning and filtered sun in the afternoon. If tomatoes are sitting in the blazing sun all day, create afternoon shade for them with a sheet of row cover material or...
- Author: National Pesticide Information Center (NPIC)
Acetic acid, also known as vinegar, is used in products for weed control. Many people choose it because it is natural. However, acetic acid can damage skin and eyes, especially at concentrations commonly found in weed killers.
What is the difference between acetic acid, vinegar, and horticultural vinegar?
You may know acetic acid best as vinegar. Vinegar is a solution of acetic acid in water. Acetic acid is a naturally occurring substance that is found in all living things. It is formed during fermentation. Acetic acid can also be made industrially. It is used in many industrial processes, including the manufacture of dyes, plastics, some drugs, and other industrial chemicals. It is also used in textile...
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Let's go mothing!
What's mothing? The National Moth Week website describes mothing as "a hobby for nature enthusiasts who use light or bait to attract moths to a location for observation and data collection."
So, in keeping with National Moth Week, the Bohart Museum of Entomology is hosting its annual Moth Night from 7 to 11 p.m. on Saturday, July 20 at its headquarters in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, 455 Crocker Lane, UC Davis. Outside, Bohart research associate John "Moth Man" De Benedictus will set up a blacklighting display, complete with white sheet and a UV light to attract moths...
- Author: Belinda Messenger-Sikes
Exotic and invasive pests threaten California's natural environments, agricultural production, structures, landscapes and gardens. Exotic pests are organisms introduced into an area beyond their natural range and become pests in the new environment. Most introductions have been unintentional and accidental, but some invasive plant problems began as ornamental plants for sale.
Invasive species prevention is the most economical and desirable approach to invasive species management. However, when prevention isn't successful, pesticides may be needed to eradicate or control invasive species.
What are some problematic invasive species?
Aedes mosquitoes can transmit...
/h2>- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
(Continued from the July 13th Bug Squad)
Our resident crab spider, family Thomisidae, appears to be an extremely poor hunter. She waits, camouflaged in the lavender patch, as bees buzz around her. They dart away when she lunges at them.
So here I am, a crab spider, as hungry as can be
Does anyone out there feel sorry for me?
"Yes," say the arachnologists. The apiculturists say "no."
Well, I'll just hang out in the lavender and keep lying low.
Hey, looky there! I'm going to fast-track that bee.
Sorry, I am who I am, and...