- Author: Penny Pawl, UC Master Gardener of Napa County
Hi, my name is Wanda/Willie Red Wiggler Worm (Eisenia fetida), and I live in a worm bin. The bin is cared for by a local garden lover who uses the end product to fertilize her plants.
My bin, where I live with 1,500 to 2,000 relatives, is an old plastic garbage can with half-inch holes drilled all over for air circulation. A lid on top keeps our bedding as damp as a wrung-out sponge, although occasionally water has to be added. The bin is kept under trees, so we don't overheat.
If the bedding gets too wet, we will try to escape. That is why, when it's raining, you may see some of my relatives on roads trying to find a dry spot.
I really like this living arrangement. Red wigglers eat decaying organic matter, and if we're not in a bin, we may have to travel far to find food we like. Those of us that don't live in bins typically live under rocks, pots, leaves, and mulch.
A professor at Michigan State University, Mary Appelhof, came up with the idea of using red wigglers to compost kitchen garbage. Her book, Worms Eat My Garbage, was published in 1982 and made us very popular.
My name is Wanda/Willie because all worms are hermaphrodites. We can all be mothers if we have a partner to fertilize our eggs. Eggs take about two weeks to hatch, and in only three months, a baby worm can lay eggs and produce its own babies. So, we reproduce quickly. Eight of us can produce 1,500 adults in six months. However, our lifespan is only about one year.
Other types of worms include ground worms that sift soil through their gut and night crawlers who come out at dark and forage. We all contribute to a healthy ecosystem.
We live in the dark because our skin is sensitive to light. If a shovel brings us to the surface, we'll immediately crawl back under the dirt.
Our keeper was very careful when she built our home. She built it like she was making lasagna, with layers of dried leaves, rice hulls, shredded strips of newsprint, plain cardboard, chicken manure and other organic matter. We particularly like cardboard because we like the glue that holds the layers together. She didn't even have to remove the tape from the cardboard. We do that for her, and she removes the tape when she harvests our castings (manure). After she made all the layers, she moistened them and covered them with a plastic bag to keep the moisture in. Then we got to work, mixing all the layers as we moved around the bin.
We live on kitchen garbage, but we especially enjoy melons of all kinds. We'll eat just about anything except dairy products and meat. We like eggshells and love coffee grounds. We don't eat seeds as they are living and not decaying. Our keeper never puts sick plants or weeds in the bin. Apart from tomato vines, all the remains of the vegetable garden go in the bin, and we appreciate that. But if we are fed too much at one time, the bin can get smelly. Not feeding us for a couple of weeks and adding more bedding usually clears up the problem.
Sow bugs sometimes join us in the bin. They eat the same things, and their castings are just as nutritious. We don't like ants, however. If they move in, our keeper stops feeding us for a couple of weeks and they usually disappear.
We're happy in the garbage can but other containers work, too. Napa County Master Gardeners and the City and County of Napa give bins, worms, and some bedding away at their compost workshops. These are large plastic bins that can be kept in the garage or under a tree.
Every two to three years, our keeper checks the bin to see if we have reduced the contents to compost. If so, she'll “bait” the bin with mesh bags of food to entice us to move in. Then she can move us to a new bin with new bedding and harvest the contents of the old bin.
Regular compost is a great soil conditioner, but because worm compost includes castings, it has some nutrient value and can be used as a mild fertilizer. Worm castings are sold commercially and are expensive. I have heard the product called “worm gold.”
If you would like to try worm composting or just regular composting, plan to attend the workshop (details below) on Saturday, September 7. Compost bins will be available for purchase, and worm bins with bedding and worms will be given away. Sorry, but you have to provide the kitchen garbage. Red wiggler worms are available online. One pound of worms is about one thousand.
Workshop: Join UC Master Gardeners of Napa County for “Growing Cool-Season Vegetables” on Sunday, August 18, from 2 pm to 4 pm, at Yountville Community Center, 6516 Washington Street, Yountville. From lettuce and carrots to more exotic greens and vegetables, many delicious choices await the fall and winter gardener. This hands-on workshop provides growing tips from planning and planting to harvest and into the kitchen. Register through Yountville Parks and Recreation. After clicking the link, find the registration page at
Adult Activity > UC Master Gardeners > Fall & Winter Gardening.
Composting Workshop: Join UC Master Gardeners of Napa County for a free workshop on “Worm or Backyard Composting: Choose Your Own Adventure” on Saturday, September 7, from 11 am to 1 pm, at University of California Cooperative Extension, 1710 Soscol Avenue, Napa. Learn the basics of hot and cool composting, worm composting and grass cycling. At the conclusion of the workshop, you may purchase a backyard compost bin for $20 (one per household) or get everything you need to build your own worm composting bin, including the worms. Registration required. You can register for this workshop at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/free-worm-or-backyard-composting-workshop-tickets-853077075497?aff=oddtdtcreator .
Fall Faire: Join the UC Master Gardeners of Napa County for an entertaining and educational event on Saturday, September 28, from 1 pm to 4 pm, outdoors at University of California Cooperative Extension, 1710 Soscol Avenue, Napa. Enjoy exhibits on composting, monarch butterflies, succulents, water conservation, bees and more. The program includes activities for kids, a scarecrow contest, giveaways, and music. Admission is free.
Help Desk: The Master Gardener Help Desk is available to answer your garden questions on Mondays and Fridays from 10 am until 1 pm at the University of California Cooperative Extension Office, 1710 Soscol Avenue, Suite 4, Napa. Or send your questions to mastergardeners@countyofnapa.org. Include your name, address, phone number and a brief description.
Become a Master Gardener Volunteer: UC Master Gardeners of Napa County is now accepting applications for the Class of 2025. Visit napamg.ucanr.edu to read the informational brochure, then register to attend a mandatory information session for applicants. Application deadline is 5 pm on September 25.
![worm-5032596 1280 Pixabay worm-5032596 1280 Pixabay](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/108427.jpg)
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
During his 37-year UC Davis career, Leigh was based at the Kern County Shafter Research and Extension Center, also known as the U.S. Cotton Research Station. At Shafter, Leigh focused his research on the biology, ecology, host plant resistance, control and management of insects and spider mites on cotton.
He stood at the forefront of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) of cotton pests, according to an article in the summer 1994 edition of American Entomologist. He taught courses on cotton IPM and host plant resistance. He researched pest and beneficial arthropod management in cotton fields, and host plant resistance in cotton to insects, mites, nematodes and diseases.
Leigh joined the UC Davis Department of Entomology in 1958, retiring in 1991 as an emeritus professor. However, like many emeriti, he continued to remain active in his research and collaboration until his death on Oct. 26, 1993.
His work as an agricultural inspector with the Riverside County Agricultural Commissioner's Office from 1944-1945 sparked his interest in entomology. He received his bachelor of science degree in entomology from UC Berkeley in 1949, and his doctorate in entomology there in 1956. His thesis was on the influence of light, temperature and humidity on flight activity of the butterfly, Colias and involved both field and laboratory investigations.
Leigh served as an assistant professor at the University of Arkansas from 1954 to 1958, where he worked on the biology, ecology and control of pink bollworm and boll weevil, using chemicals and cultural means. He joined the UC Davis Department of Entomology, advancing from assistant entomologist to associate entomologist in 1963. In 1968, he was promoted to adjunct lecturer and entomologist.
During his career, he advised many graduate students who went on to become renowned entomologists in cotton IPM around the world,” wrote Charles E. Jackson of Uniroyal Chemical, Clovis, Calif., and J. Hodge Black, UC Cooperative Extension, Bakersfield in the American Entomologist. For his achievements in teaching and research, Leigh received the James H. Meyer Recognition Award for Distinguished Achievement Service Award in 1988.
Leigh served as president of the Pacific Branch of ESA in 1981. He also served on the ESA Governing Board and was a founding member and past president of the American Registry of Professional Entomologists (ARPE). In 1981 he received the ARPE Outstanding Entomologist Award. Leigh was elected as a director to the Board Certified Entomologists' certification board in 1993.
In addition, Leigh was active in the American Association for the Advancement of Science and was the founding president of the San Joaquin Entomology Association. He held membership in several other associations, including the Association of Applied Insect Ecologists, the Ecological Society of America, and the American Archeological Society. The UC Davis entomologist was a past president of the Shafter Rotary Club and also active in the Boy Scouts of America.
During his 37-year career, he authored more than 127 peer-reviewed publications.
“His many colleagues considered his research and teaching to be outstanding,” wrote authors Jackson and Black in the American Entomologist. “Leigh's caring, enthusiasm, intellect, expertise and professionalism were regarded highly by all who knew him.”
In his memory, his family and associates set up the Leigh Distinguished Alumni Seminar Entomology Fund. When his wife, Nina Eremin Leigh (1929-2002) died, the alumni seminar became known as the Thomas and Nina Leigh Distinguished Alumni Seminar.
He will speak on "Our Changing Menu: Using the Power of Food to Confront Climate Change" on Monday, Oct. 14 in the Putah Creek Lodge, 685 Putah Creek Lodge Drive. The event begins at 4 p.m. and will include a social, lecture and dinner. The event is open to department faculty, staff and students. (See news story.) The lecture will be recorded.
Hoffmann was selected the 2020 recipient of the Leigh Seminar Award, but the COVID pandemic intervened and other dates conflicted. This is the first Leigh Seminar since 2020.
A native of Wisconsin, Hoffmann holds a bachelor of science degree (1975) from the University of Wisconsin, and his master's degree from the University of Arizona (1978). He received his doctorate in entomology from UC Davis in 1990, studying with Professor Ted Wilson and later Professor Frank Zalom, an integrated pest management specialist and a past president of the Entomological Society of America. Hoffmann served with the U.S. Marines in Vietnam from 1967 to 1971, attaining the rank of sergeant.
He remembers well his experiences at UC Davis. “I was privileged to work with many dedicated faculty in entomology and several other departments.”
1996: Michael Irwin
1990: Lowell "Skip" Nault
2004: Kenneth Yeargan
2008: Mary Purcell-Miramontes
2010: Murray Isman
2011: Gary Felton
2011: Brian Fisher
2012: Marc Tatar
2013: Kenneth Haynes
2015: Tim Paine
2017: Jennifer Thaler
2018: Robert Page Jr.
![A display of harvested cotton balls. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey) A display of harvested cotton balls. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)](/blogs/blogcore/blogfiles/108424.jpg)
- Author: Genoa Starrs
R and Python together at last, the AI takeover, and Quarto ups its game.
Posit::Conf, Posit's annual conference, was held last week in Seattle, WA. While the name might be unfamiliar, many of you might recognize Posit's previous iteration, RStudio. Posit has produced many products R users know and love, including RStudio, Shiny and the Tidyverse. After a whirlwind three days, here are some takeaways from the conference!
A New All-in-One IDE
Togetherness was a key theme, with Posit rolling out the beta version of Positron, an IDE that combines elements of RStudio, VS Code, and introduces its own unique features. While switching IDEs is generally not at the top of any coder's to-do list, Positron is multilingual, enabling users to code in R, Python, and Julia within a single project. It also introduces new ways to interact with your data, such as readily available summary statistics, the ability to filter or sort data by multiple fields while retaining the active query in the window at all times, and the option to resize graphs and figures in the plots pane through a simple user interface. Positron also leverages many new and existing VS Code extensions, offering a wealth of customization and additional capabilities. Rstudio is by no means leaving the picture– Positron is still in beta, and Rstudio will continue to be supported for a good, long time. However, if you (like me) crave a unified interface for your R and Python coding, Positron may be worth trying out.
Helping R Users Learn Python
For Py-curious R coders, a session on “Python Rgonomics” suggested some packages to make the transition easier for those of us spoiled by the tidyverse.
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Polars for exceptionally fast data wrangling and dplyr-like syntax
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Plotnine and seaborn for ggplot-like syntax when making graphs and figures
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Great tables for producing functional, readable tables (also available in R as the gt package).
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Pyenv for environment management.
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Pins (for R and Python!) publishes objects to “boards” that allows users (or multiple users) to access them across projects. Boards can include shared/networked folders, like DropBox or Google Drive.
AI for All
Melissa Van Bussel provided practical tips for using generative AI. She highlighted some new capabilities of ChatGPT 4o, including the ability to transcribe handwritten notes and tables, preserving colors and formatting. GPT can even convert these into HTML or Quarto formats.
She shared insights on prompt engineering (i.e., how you ask questions to AI engines), noting, “Writing effective prompts goes hand in hand with your existing expertise.” Achieving correct and effective output requires providing specific prompts and making corrections when errors occur. She recommended structuring prompts in a way that mirrors coding practices. For example, to generate a graph, start by specifying the data, then define how to map each axis and assign colors. Next, specify the graph or chart type and indicate any grouping by other variables. Finish with aesthetic (eg palette, theme, title, legend) preferences.
While presenters were enthusiastic about the possibilities of generative AI, a recurring theme was the necessity for users to provide clear direction and verify the results. One presenter compared AI to hiring a new human assistant—AI can assist with tasks effectively when given proper guidance but will make mistakes and requires careful supervision. Generative AI performs best when used to quickly accomplish tasks that users already have the knowledge and skills to handle themselves.
One of the most prevalent use cases for generative AI was in combination with Shiny. Joe Cheng's presentation demonstrated integrating AI into Shiny apps, specifically into Shiny dashboards. Users could request modifications to the data displayed on the dashboard using plain language, which the AI translated into SQL queries to adjust the output based on the request. This is particularly noteworthy as the AI accessed only the schema, not the actual data, to apply the filters.
Winston Chang developed an AI assistant to help people build Shiny apps and did a live demonstration. Although still experimental, Shiny for R is widely used, and the assistant showed promising outputs.
Quarto Expands its Horizons
Quarto is a relatively new version of R Markdown (a publishing tool) that allows users to knit together code into documents, dashboards, web pages, PDFs, and even eBooks. An added advantage of Quarto is its multilingual capability– it, like Positron, supports both R and Python. Some new capabilities were highlighted at the conference:
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Dashboards: Easily build dashboards using the Quarto extension in RStudio or Positron. Each visualization (graphs, maps, tables, and even just text boxes) can be arranged like tiles or cards. Dashboards can also include sidebars and toolbars, and can support interactivity, including cards that use jupyter widgets, leaflet, and shiny.
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PDFs: Quarto now uses typst instead of LaTeX, enabling users to create customized PDF outputs with a more intuitive language.
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HTML (Websites): Quarto (like R Markdown) can produce HTML outputs. However, now it also supports more flexible HTML code chunks, and allows for HTML/CSS/JavaScript integration.
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Quarto live: A quarto extension that allows users to embed code blocks and exercises for R and Python into Quarto documents. This has lots of teaching applications, and can be used to generate exercises similar to those you find in DataCamp and other online coding courses.
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Closeread: A scrollytelling extension for quarto that enables interactive storytelling similar to that seen in fancy New York Times articles or Esri Storymaps. The gallery has some example outputs, while the guide can walk you through the process of creating your own scrollytelling page.
Finally, one of my favorite quality-of-life take homes was simply that it is possible to include emoji in your R or Python code, either using unicode or simply pasting them in. While the demonstrated use case was to make specific messages stand out in your log or printed statements, sometimes a picture can convey what 1000 characters cannot and help you enjoy coding just a little bit more.
If you love (or begrudgingly engage in) data science, I encourage you to check it out next year– virtual registration for educators and academics in 2024 was free, and hopefully will be next year too!
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- Author: Pamela S Kan-Rice
The CLEAR Center is sponsoring the first-ever Salute to Ag UC Davis football game on Saturday, Sept. 7, at UC Davis. Tailgate starts at 5 p.m. and the game kicks off at 7 p.m.
Joe Proudman,associate director for communications at the CLEAR Center, invites UC ANR members to join them. He says they have discounted tickets for the game.
If you are interested, go to goagspromo.com and enter promo code CLEAR, three different discounted ticketing options should be available:
$7 General Admission (normally $15)
$10 East Side (normally $20)
$18 West Side (normally $35)
- Author: Kendra T Rose
Dear Colleagues,
The California Cherry Board (CCB) is soliciting proposals for research found to be of highest priority by the industry and which will significantly benefit the production and post-harvest handling practices of sweet cherry in California.
Production Research Priorities:
- Pest Management with emphasis on management of spotted wing drosophila (SWD)
- New chemistry
- Timing of application
- Tree Health with emphasis on pre- and postharvest disease biology and management, soilborne and canker diseases, and orchard replant diseases with emphasis on nematode management and alternatives to fumigations.
- Variety Development
- Pruning and Tree Architecture (including mechanical pruning)
- Dormancy/Firmness
- New chemistry
- Heat Stress on Fruit Quality
Post Harvest Research Priorities:
- Marketing/Sales
- Implications of grocery store purchases on applications (i.e. pick-up) instead of in-store
- Consumer Preferences and quality including minimizing Defects, fruit quality attributes such as Brix, Acid content.
- Minimum Maturity and Grade Standards
- Crop management to match market demands
- Stem retention
- Nutrition
Applications Due: September 30, 2024
Please see the RFA for specific details: https://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/files/401773.pdf
Proposal Template: https://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/files/401774.docx
Thank you.
ANR Office of Contracts & Grants (OCG)