Test PB Collection: FTE

For months, I've been waiting ah, so patiently (well, not always s-o-o-o patiently) for the gulf fritillary butterfly to touch down on our Mexican sunflower, Tithonia. A perfect match, I figured.

This is the third in my series of posts outlining current University of California weed science research published in the California Weed Science Society (CWSS) Research Update and News (June 2013, Volume 9, #2).

Along the coast, it is very common to see windbreaks protecting the citrus and avocado groves. Invariably the first two rows next to the eucalyptus trees are shorter and less thrifty than the citrus further away from the windbreak.

Look at the Xylocopa on the Xanthorrhoeaceae. If that sounds like a mouthful, think of the mountain or foothill carpenter bees, Xylocopa tabaniformis orpifex, on bulbine from the genus Bulbine in the family Xanthorrhoeaceae.

A repost of an article by Luis Espino (UCCE Farm Advisor, Colusa Co) on the UC Rice Blog. You can see the originl post HERE He also had a post on a similar topic earlier HERE that had some results from Albert Fischer and Jim Eckert's research on smallflower umbrella sedge.

It's been a dry year and you don't expect it, but there's been a lot of "tear staining" of fruit. It has become most apparent this spring with the dew along the coast and the humidity. I've had a number of calls from growers this year because it has downgraded their fruit.

Take one nationally celebrated artist and one nationally renowned entomologist. Blend together. Add their deep concern for the declining honey bee population. Then just add bees. Ceramic bees.

Join UC Farm Advisor Janet Caprile for an overview of weed management techniques for perennial and annual cropping systems that don't rely on synthetic herbicides or chemicals. Wednesday, July 31, 2013 Livermore, California For more information, click HERE.

How fast can a honey bee fly? We captured these photos today of a honey bee nectaring on catmint (genus Nepeta). The bee was moving fast. To blur the wings, we set the shutter speed at 1/640 of a second with an f-stop of 13 and IS0 of 800.

I've been getting calls about sedge surviving propanil applications. Last year, research conducted by Albert Fischer showed that there are populations of smallflower umbrellasedge that are truly resistant to propanil (read the article here).