News & Information Outreach

By Cindy Watter, UC Master Gardener of Napa County.Last year I was fired up with the urge to clean out my junk shed and turn it into my tool shed. I marched to the southwest corner of my yard and promptly fell, thigh deep, into a hole that opened beneath me. It didn’t take me long to realize what had…

My favorite fruit tree is a Japanese 'Diospyrus Kaki Fuyu' persimmon growing in our front side yard.  It was a thin, spindly 3-foot stick when we planted it around 18 years ago.  Our soil is heavy rock and clay, but persimmons are hardy trees known to tolerate less than ideal conditions, although…

 "Did you know that in one acre of almond orchard there can be more earthworms than the entire population of Los Angeles? What are they doing down there?"So asks Amanda Hodson, assistant professor of soil ecology and pest management, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematolgy, who will present a…

Climate And Agriculture: Farming in a Changing Climate WorkshopWhen: Tuesday January 20, 2026Time: 8:30 - 2:30 (lunch will be provided)Where: Ventura County Community Foundation, 4001 Mission Oaks Blvd, Suite A, Camarillo, CAUC ANR CLIMATE AND AGRICULTURE WORKSHOPCamarillo, CA…

Dear UC ANR Colleagues,I have important news to share regarding a change to our executive leadership team. Associate Vice President Brent Hales will be stepping away from his role at UC ANR, effective today, to pursue other professional opportunities. We are grateful for the contributions he has…

The Economist, a leading British news and current affairs magazine, wrote recently that “slop” is the word of the year 2025, “representative, if not of the whole year, at least of much of the feeling of living in it.” It seems that this word “slop” was first officially described in the 15th century and…

This week on In the Garden with UC Master Gardeners, we bring you a new show on the topic of “Indoor House Plants”! Master Gardener Dece Morgan met Julie Bawden-Davis, who is a fellow MG and a resident expert on indoor houseplants, at her home for a relaxed tour and conversation about Julie’s vast home…

As part of the Groundwater Monitoring Program, the Monterey County Water Resources Agency, together with the Salinas Valley Basin Groundwater Sustainability Agency, has launched a new county wide Well Registration Program.  The Groundwater Monitoring Program consists of four parts: well…

 Talk about a slugfest.Slugs took a liking to the milkweed in our pollinator garden. They stripped the leaves from one tender young plant and were munching on two other plants--until we dispatched them. We don't think they crossed the Rainbow Bridge. If they did, they left a slimy trail."Sorry,…

Forget Spotify Wrapped – can you guess which pests received the most hits on UC IPM’s Pests Notes page this year? Here are the top ten pests that made your year: (1) Carpet Beetles  For several years, carpet beetles have been in the top 5 on our playlist. Immature carpet beetles feed on…

Rain is wonderful stuff. If it comes and washes the accumulated salts of the last several years out of the root zones of citrus and avocado, that's a good thing. But what happens if there is a little too much of the good stuff? In the winter of 2005, Venture got over 40” of rain, which is 200% of what is…

 We have a winner!Drum roll...the winner of the 2026 Robbin Thorp Memorial First-Bumble-Bee-of-the-Year Contest, sponsored by the Bohart Museum of Entomology is Lesley Hamamoto of Sacramento.She photographed a black-tailed bumble bee, Bombus melanopygus, nectaring on manzanita at  9…

Blog by Paula PashbyIn my last blog (Part 1 on the Poinsettia Euphorbia pulcherrima), I was happy to report that Poinsettias are not a poisonous risk to humans and pets. I have since brought a beautiful Poinsettia to our home for the Christmas holiday season.  The plant was lovely for the first few…

A fruit tree is not a basil plant or a geranium.  It's a tree, and not only that it's a fruit tree.  Learn the basics and the intricacies of growing fruit trees of all kinds.  Sign up for a wild journey.Please join us for the 2026 Principles of Fruit and Nut Tree Growth, Cropping, and…

 Bruce Hammock, 1947-2026.I never thought I'd write that. UC Davis Distinguished Professor Bruce Hammock was an amazing scientist--a genius, really--an incredible mentor, and a good friend. He passed on Monday, Jan. 5, at age 78, and the world will never be the same.When I visited his office…

ANR Colleagues,Please join a special two-hour digital accessibility training via Zoom, 2-4 p.m. on Jan. 15, with guest speaker Sharon Goldrup, corporate accessibility trainer and curriculum design manager for Deque Systems. As we previously announced, all University of California…

FCC update (Dec. 22, 2025): Foreign-produced drones and certain “critical components” were added to the FCC’s Covered List, meaning new models in those categories generally can’t obtain FCC equipment authorization needed for import/marketing/sale. Existing, previously authorized models remain usable, and…