Summer is here and so are annoying wasps. Yellowjackets are the most common – those one-half to one-inch-long bright yellow wasps with black strips and their signature “narrow” waist. Yellowjackets prey on other insects and scavenge on human food and garbage. They will fiercely defend their nests – in holes in the ground, inside wall […]
Watch Out for Yellowjackets! Read More »
Sometimes vertebrate animals can become pests in our homes, gardens, schools, parks, and landscapes and management efforts are needed. But figuring out what has burrowed under the porch, eaten the fruit on your trees, or caused holes in the lawn can be difficult if you don’t see the culprit in action. If you think you
What’s eating your fruit? Read More »
Seeing leaves on your fruit trees rolled up like a sandwich wrap? Could be leafrollers, a family of insects that attack the leaves of fruit trees like apples, pears, and peaches. They also target some ornamental trees like ash, poplar, and oak. Leafroller larvae feed on tender, new leaves, giving them a ragged appearance; they
What’s bugging your fruit trees? Read More »
It may seem early in the season for mosquitos, but one of the wettest years in history has left standing water across the area, creating perfect conditions for these pesky insects to develop. Stagnant water creates havens for disease-spreading mosquitoes, and mosquito experts are concerned this could be a long and intense mosquito season. These
Keep those pesky mosquitoes away Read More »
Are your roses sporting new leaves that glisten in the sunlight and are slightly sticky to the touch? See a trail of ants crawling up the trunk of your plum tree? How about powdery black stuff on your camellia bush or the garden furniture next to it? All are indicators that sucking insects may have
The Sucking Pests of Spring Read More »
Seeing mounds of soil, or open holes in your grass or flowerbeds? Could be a gopher or a mole. Both of these critters create tunnels and are active underground, improving the soil by aerating it and mixing nutrients. But they are otherwise very different. Gophers are rodents that eat only plants, favoring bulbs and roots,
There is a new worm in town – the invasive jumping worm. Also known as Alabama jumpers, Jersey wrigglers, wood eel, crazy worms, snake worms, Asian jumping worm, and crazy snake worms, they have been found in Napa and Sonoma Counties (not yet in Marin). They are smooth, glossy gray or brown and 1.5 to
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We’ve had a lot more flooding this winter than most, and it can impact the natural nesting areas of rodents, forcing them to seek higher ground including inside your home (particularly into “high ground” such as attics). Storm debris, cut tree trunks and limbs, and materials may become lodged in drainage ditches or along streams
Unwelcome Visitors Read More »
With the abundant rain this winter, your house may have areas with wet and decaying wood that can become an ideal nesting site for carpenter ants. Even small amounts of damage from flying debris or trees that strike the siding, roof shingles, rain gutters or electrical meter bases can allow moisture to collect in wood,
Wet Weather and Carpenter Ants Read More »
Integrated pest management, or IPM, is a process you can use to solve pest problems while minimizing risks to people and the environment. The definition of IPM is: IPM is an ecosystem-based strategy that focuses on long-term prevention of pests or their damage through a combination of techniques such as biological control, habitat manipulation, modification
Learn about IPM with Diego Read More »
