- Author: Chris M. Webb
On the morning of Tuesday, April 3 Oleg Daugovish will hold a fumigant alternatives and soil-borne pathogens field day. This event will be simultaneously translated into Spanish.
Scheduled topics include:
- Regulatory update on soil fumigation
- Alternative fumigants research update
- Soil borne pathogens Macrophomina and Fusarium: biology and management in strawberry
- Advances in steam application technology for soil disinfestation
- Update on Anaerobic Soil Disinfestation studies
- Research update from the California Strawberry Commission
- In-progress results from experiment on display
- View the plots with fumigant alternative treatments
Continuing education credits have been approved from DPR (Department of Pesticide Regulation).
Lunch and refreshments will be provided. Additional details can be found on the agenda.
To insure your participation, or if you have questions, please contact Oleg Daugovish at (805) 645-1454 or odaugovish@ucdavis.edu.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Cottony cushion scale, Icerya purchasi, is an easy pest to spot. Cottony cushion scale can infest a number of woody ornamentals and some crops.
While the pest themselves are orangish brown to red throughout their life stages, attached to the females are elongated, white cottony egg sacs. Each sac contains 600 to 800 red eggs. The egg filled sac may become two to three times as long as the body of the female. Combined the length can reach close to ½ an inch.
After the eggs hatch into crawlers, they settle along leaf veins and begin to produce the white cottony secretion they are known for. Each time they increase in size, they shed their outer skin leaving it behind before starting the process over.
To learn more about these pests and how to manage them, please see UC ANR’s Cottony Cushion Scale Pest Note.
Topics include:
- Identification and life cycle
- Damage
- Management
Commercial growers can find pest resources by crop on this page of the UC IPM Online website.
Additional information can be found in the related publication, Stages of the Cottony Cushion Scale and its Natural Enemy, the Vedalia Beetle (Rodolia cardinalis).
- Author: Chris M. Webb
UC Postharvest Technology Center mission is “To reduce postharvest losses and improve the quality, safety and marketability of fresh horticultural products”. They are dedicated to providing relevant information to California growers, shippers, marketers, carriers, distributors, retailers, processors, and consumers of fresh horticultural crops.
At their site you will find much information and resources available online. In addition to their online resources, the center will be holding the following workshops in 2012.
- Annual Fruit Ripening & Retail Management Workshop will be held March 27-28
- UC Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) Practical Skill-Building for On-Farm Assessments Workshops will be held twice in 2012. The first workshop will be held April 2-3, and the second November 5-6.
- Postharvest Technology Short Course will be held June 18-29.
- Fresh-Cut Products: Maintaining Quality and Safety Workshop will be held September 18-20.
- Emerging Postharvest Technologies for California Produce Professionals Short Course is tentatively scheduled for Winter 2012. More information will be available soon.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Spider mites are among the most common pests found in California. Preferring hot, dusty conditions, and plants under water stress, these tiny pests can produce rapidly between June and September. In some areas of our state, populations stay active year round.
Because spider mites are so small, damage is often the first visible clue of an infestation. Damage is caused by sucking cell contents from leaves. Visual signs of damage to leaves can include: light dots on the leaves, which may turn the leaves a bronze color; leaves may turn yellowish or reddish and drop off; and/or large amounts of webbing may cover leaves, twigs, and fruit.
Luckily cultural controls and natural enemies are often all that is needed to reduce spider mite infestations.
To learn more about spider mites in the home garden and landscape, please see UC ANR’s Spider Mites Pest Note.
Commercial growers can find pest resources by crop on this page of the UC IPM Online website.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Presented by the Ventura County Ag Futures Alliance last month’s agricultural summit set out to increase connections and support between the local agricultural industry and the larger community.
Approximately 250 community stakeholders (farmers, ranchers, distributors, buyers, chefs, policy makers, public health advocates, community planners, and others) attended the Making Connections: How the Local Food Movement Can Support Ventura County Agriculture themed event.
Agriculture is an important part of our local economy. Like any other industry, agriculture has its share of challenges and opportunities. Shared dialog between producers and consumers within our area provides a wonderful bridge to reduce and minimize challenges while finding ways to increase awareness and collaboration. Attendees discussed distribution systems, public health, land use, childhood obesity, urban encroachment, pesticides, labor needs, water, and the need for fresh food education and marketing,
Additional information about the summit, and the issues discussed, can be found at the Ag Innovations Network website, this Ventura County Star article, and this radio piece by KCLU.
Support for this program came from many in the community. Sponsors include the UC Thelma Hansen Fund. The purpose of the Hansen Fund is to support and maintain University research and extension activities for the sustainability and benefit of agriculture and natural resources in Ventura County. A complete list of donors can be found here.