Agriculture

PPE in short supply for farm work during the COVID-19 crisis While most Californians are staying home to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, California farmers, farmworkers and other agricultural professionals are out in the fields and packing houses working to produce food.

While most Californians are staying home to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, California farmers, farmworkers and other agricultural professionals are out in the fields and packing houses working to produce food.

Empty grocery store shelves are troubling enough to California consumers who are accustomed to abundant supplies. To hear about farmers dumping milk, crushing eggs and plowing under crops when demand for food is strong just doesn't make sense to most consumers.

Laurel Wilt Disease of Avocado and the relatives of avocado in the Laurel Family has devastated the the forests along the east coast from North Carolina down to Florida and along the Caribbean into Texas. It has caused significant losses to wildlands and to the Florida avocado industry.

Pacific Branch, Entomological Society of America (PBESA), presented its annual awards at a virtual ceremony on Monday, April 20. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, no physical gathering took place, and the congratulations and applause bestowed were online only.

Given California's ongoing shelter at home order, in response to the COVID-19 crisis, most of the ranchers I know are no longer gathering at a local coffee shop to catch up on how the neighbor's calf crop looks! Thanks to the wonders of modern technology, however, I held my first-ever Virtual Coffee...

Last summer, I was called out to view what appeared to be a herbicide drift incidence in a commercial tomato field. The leaves of affected plants were distorted with cupping and twisting that is characteristic of the growth regulator herbicides such as 2,4-D and dicamba (Figure 1).

This week marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. This year, consider celebrating the day with gardening and other stay-at-home resources curated by your local UCCE office. Earth Day was launched in 1970.

What's a picnic without insects? And what's the canceled 105th annual UC Davis Picnic without virtual insects? The Department of Entomology and Nematology annually hosts dozens of insect-themed Picnic Day events at Briggs Hall and at the Bohart Museum of Entomology.

If you missed the 105th annual UC Davis Picnic, you're not alone. We missed it, too. So did the ants and other insects. The Department of Entomology and Nematology annually hosts dozens of popular Picnic Day events at Briggs Hall and at the Bohart Museum of Entomology.