- Author: Lauren Fordyce
Did you know that disinfectants and sterilizers are pesticides? Any substance that claims to kill, destroy, prevent, or repel a pest, including germs, is considered a pesticide. So cleaning products that claim to sterilize or kill germs on surfaces or be effective against bacteria like E. coli or others, must be registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The EPA ensures pesticide products are effective and do not pose unreasonable risks to consumers when used according to the label, among other things. Recently, the EPA settled a lawsuit against Grocery Outlet Inc. for selling unregistered cleaning products claiming to be disinfectants and sterilizers. To know whether a product is a registered pesticide, look for the EPA registration number on the label. As with any pesticide product, always read and follow the label so the product can be used as safely and effectively as possible.
UC IPM is committed to educating the public on pesticides and their alternatives. View some of UC IPM's resources about antimicrobial pesticides and pesticide safety below, as well as in-depth resources from the U.S. EPA.
- What You Need to Know About Disinfectant Wipes (blog post)
- Using Disinfectants and Sanitizers Safely (blog post)
- Disinfectants are pesticides–so use safely! (blog post)
- What to Wear When Using Pesticides (blog post)
- EPA Registered Disinfectants (webpage)
- About Pesticide Registration (webpage)
- Using Disinfectants and Wipes Safely (webinar)
- What is a Pesticide? (video)
- Why do you need to read the pesticide label? (video)
- Author: Lauren Fordyce
The new year brings new webinars from the UC IPM Urban and Community Program! Mark your calendars and register now for these informative presentations, held every third Thursday from 12:00-1:00pm PST.
January 19, 2023: Houseplant Problems – Is your houseplant not doing so well? Want to learn how to be a better plant parent? Join us to learn about some common pests and problems of houseplants, and how you can prevent and control them. Presented by Lauren Fordyce, Urban and Community IPM Educator. Register for this webinar
February 16, 2023: Dealing with Pantry Pests – Pests can sometimes get into our pantries and food. Join us to learn how you can prevent and control these pests at home. Presented by Karey Windbiel-Rojas, Associate Director for Urban & Community IPM/Area IPM Advisor. Register for this webinar
March 16, 2023: Preventing Pest Problems at Seeding – Damping off and fungus gnats are common pests encountered when starting seeds indoors. Join us to learn how to prevent seedling problems and grow healthy transplants. Presented by Lauren Fordyce, Urban and Community IPM Educator. Register for this webinar
April 20, 2023: Aphids, Scales, and Mealybugs, Oh my! – Honeydew producers can create a mess when they infest houseplants, garden, or landscape plants. Join us to learn how to identify, prevent, and control these troublesome pests. Presented by Karey Windbiel-Rojas, Associate Director for Urban & Community IPM/Area IPM Advisor. Register for this webinar
Can't make a webinar? Don't worry, all presentations are recorded and posted on the UC IPM YouTube channel! More webinars will be announced in early 2023.
Follow us on social media @ucipmurban for the latest IPM content and news.
- Author: Belinda J. Messenger-Sikes
- Author: Karey Windbiel-Rojas
- Posted by: Lauren Fordyce
While venomous spiders like black widows are well-known, there are many harmless spiders that live in and around our homes and outdoor areas. Spiders are beneficial because they prey on insects and other pests. Most spiders are not likely to bite you and are not dangerous.
Types of Spiders
Spider families vary by body shape, web type, hunting or other behavior, and the arrangement and size of their eyes. There is a wide range of spiders you might encounter in your home or landscape in California.
One of the most recognizable is the cellar spider. Cellar spiders have long, skinny legs and hang upside down in dark corners, often indoors, sometimes bouncing when disturbed.
Another common type of spider is the cobweb spider, which includes widow spiders. Cobweb spiders hang upside down in sticky, irregularly spun webs waiting for prey. Most cobweb species are small and harmless, except for the western black widow. Most black widow bites come from mature adult females which can usually be recognized by a red hourglass on the underside of the abdomen. The adult male is lighter-colored and smaller than the female. Brown widow spiders are becoming more common in California as well.
Wolf spiders have long, hairy legs and are often found running along the ground. They don't build webs to capture prey but can have a silken retreat. Females carry their young on their backs. Wolf spiders are frequently mistaken for the brown recluse spider, which does not occur in California.
Crab spiders have enlarged front legs and look like tiny crabs. They are also known as flower spiders since they are often found on flowers, hunting insect prey. They hunt during the day and don't make webs.
Dwarf spiders are tiny, hunt during the day, and produce sheet-like or irregular crisscross webs on surfaces.
Jumping spiders hunt during the day, stalking and pouncing on prey. They are hairy, sometimes iridescent, and don't spin webs.
Sac spiders hide in silk tubes in places such as corners, beneath plants, or on bark, and stalk prey at night. They occur both indoors and out and are usually pale colored.
Orb weaver or garden spiders, such as the western spotted orb weaver are often large and colorful. They spin elaborate webs in concentric circles in the garden, waiting in their webs or nearby for prey to become entangled.
Many people dislike spiders, but generally they are not harmful and are useful to have around. Unwanted spider in your house? Trap it and take it outside.
- Author: Elaine Lander
As the weather warms up, we see more insect activity in gardens and landscapes, and you may also notice more activity of insect pests in your home. Common insect pests found indoors in springtime can include carpet beetles, fleas, fungus gnats, and boxelder bugs.
In our recent post on carpet beetles, we shared that the adults of these beetles prefer to be outdoors but the immature larvae can feed on fabric, carpet, or other natural materials in your home. See our Pest Notes: Carpet Beetles for more management information.
Cat fleas are the most common parasite on cats and dogs in California and you may find more fleas on your pets in spring and early summer. More than just a nuisance, fleas can transmit tapeworms or other diseases to pets or humans. Our Pest Notes: Fleas has more information on managing fleas.
If you have indoor plants, fungus gnats that infest soil and potting mix can be a nuisance. These small, delicate-looking flies are similar in appearance to mosquitoes but are smaller and do not bite. Instead, fungus gnats feed on fungi and organic material but can also chew roots of houseplants. You can find more information on these flies in Pest Notes: Fungus Gnats. You may also find our Pest Notes: Houseplant Problems helpful.
While boxelder bugs tend to group together outdoors, they occasionally come indoors and may be annoying. The adult females lay eggs in cracks and crevices of the box elder tree's bark in spring so you may be seeing more of these black and red bugs if you have host trees like box elder, maple, ash, apple, cherry, peach, pear, or plum. Learn more about these pests and their look-alikes in Pest Notes: Boxelder Bug.
Looking for more management information for springtime insect pests in the home? Join us for our upcoming webinar on Thursday, May 20 at 1:00pm with Dr. Andrew Sutherland, Area Urban IPM Advisor for the San Francisco Bay Area. Click here to register for our upcoming webinar and see the webinar website for more information about our webinar series.
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- Author: Elaine Lander
While you are outside gardening or inside doing your spring cleaning, you may have recently found small, round, speckled beetles you've never seen before. We've had several questions this past week about insects crawling around windowsills, found on screens, or noticed on outdoor plants, or fuzzy, oblong insects on carpets or rugs. What are they? While there are many insects starting to emerge from their winter rest, if you are finding small beetles like these, they could be carpet beetles!
Carpet beetles are pests of homes, warehouses, and museums. In California, there are 3 species that damage fabrics, carpets, and stored foods including the varied carpet beetle, Anthrenus verbasci. The beetles are round like lady beetles (“ladybugs”), but much smaller in size. Varied carpet beetles are about 1/10 inch long, with black, white, brown and dark yellow patterns.
Carpet beetles adults feed on pollen and nectar of flowers. They often fly into homes from flowers in the landscape or may be accidentally brought indoors on cut flowers. A few adult beetles inside your home are typically not a problem. However, if you find larvae, the fuzzy immature beetles on fabric, carpet, or other natural materials in your home, you may need to manage the infestation.
See our Pest Notes: Carpet Beetles for more identification, prevention, and management information.
We're looking for your feedback! Please consider taking a quick, anonymous survey to help us serve you better: https://bit.ly/2ZJJVEI
