Ongoing research

I've always liked wild birds, but am relatively new to the world of bird feeders. I hung my first bird feeder a couple of years ago, filled it with a generic wild bird mix, and attracted a few limited species of birds.

Farmers, financiers, people from government agencies and nonprofit organizations who work with UC Cooperative Extension advisors, as well as beginning farmers seeking to contact their local UCCE advisors visited the UC ANR exhibit at the EcoFarm Conference Jan.

Advice for the Home Gardener from the Help Desk of the UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County Client's Request: The photo shows an example of navel oranges that are splitting and falling from our large orange tree. It's occurring at a rate of about 1 a day.

Katherine Soule was recently recognized for her work in San Luis Obispo as one of the county's Top 20 under 40! Always humble, Katherine says the award is truly a reflection of the hard work, creativity, and innovation of the amazing YFC team members and volunteers that she has the opportunity to wo...

Sure, this time of year, your Gilroy lawn looks pretty amazing. Cooler temperatures and a little rain can do wonders. It's probably lush and thick and green and ready for mowing. But you know it won't last.

After all the work home gardeners have done preparing garden beds, pulling weeds and irrigating, summer is normally a time of plenty.

Our water bills are on the rise! And, although we had a very wet winter last year, predictions are for more dry years to come. As you may know, most of our water usage approximately 50 percent goes to our landscapes.

If you want to stay ahead of the game in the garden, now is a good time to do some, or all, of the things on today's list. Fruit-tree pruning Fruit-tree pruning is best done this month and in February. Trim off dead or damaged branches. Open up the tree's canopy by removing crossing branches.

Dandelions are broadleaf plants easily recognizable by their bright yellow flower and puffball of white tufted seeds heads.

(Editor's Note: The UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology will showcase three museums or collections on Feb. 17: Bohart Museum of Entomology, Hagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, and the Nematode Collection.