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Welcome to the Center for Landscape and Urban Horticulture (CLUH), an information resource of the University of California Cooperative Extension (UC Cooperative Extension). The CLUH supports UC Cooperative Extension educational and applied research programs serving California's environmental horticulture industry. This site features science-based information on:

Please review our Mission Statement.

For the latest science-based information on landscape water needs, please visit our pages under Landscape Water Conservation and Irrigation Management.

Information is contributed by University of California Cooperative Extension scientists. All content is reviewed by these or other experts to assure it is authoritative and science-based. Featured are summaries of technical topics, fact sheets, newsletters, reports, commentary, and web links.

THE 9%: Landscape irrigation accounts for just 9% of water use in California, yet landscapes are under relentless attack as California confronts ongoing drought. The facts presented here show how these attacks are misguided and that there are ways to conserve water without degrading landscape plantings.

Does the landscape you manage have a water budget or water conservation goal that seems impossible to meet? Read about Five Simple Steps for Conserving Landscape Water.

For Home Gardening information and resources, please visit the University of California Garden Web.

UPCOMING EVENTS

What's new in Landscape and Urban Hort?

Rodent Awareness Week

Rodent Awareness Week (October 18-24) is a campaign created by the National Pest Management Association to educate the public about the potential harm associated with rats and mice. In addition to damage to structures and property, rodents can transmit...

Fall Weed Management in Lawns and Landscapes

As the days get shorter and the temperatures begin to cool, now is the time to practice weed management for annual cool-season weeds. It's also not too early to consider management for weeds that emerge in springtime. Using integrated pest management...

Flies in Prime Time

Adult house flies mating (Credit: LL Strand)

We don't often find flies such a popular topic of conversation, but given recent events, we'd like to seize the moment to share some science-based information about their status as both pests and beneficial insects. Flies can be nuisance insects...

Finding Soot Afoot? It Could be Sooty Mold

Pomegranate leaves and fruit covered in sooty mold (Credit: D Carroll)

Sooty mold is a black fungal growth that looks like a layer of soot covering the leaves of a plant or a sidewalk. The aptly named disease is common in gardens and landscapes, appearing wherever a large infestation of plant-sucking insects are...

Itching and Infestations: Explaining the Unexplained

Person scratching from an itching sensation (Credit: AJ Sikes)

Most of us have experienced itchy skin from a biting insect at least once in our lives. Insects and spiders such as mosquitoes, ticks, mites, bed bugs, fleas, and head lice can and do bite people. But have you ever felt like something bit you, but you...