‘Landscape and Garden’ Archives
Valley Carpenter Bees and Homeowners (A Love-Hate Relationship)
When my wife and I moved our family from the Seattle are to northern California I was intrigued by what looked to me like large black hairless bumblebees, flying around flowers in the area. It wasn't until a few years later, when I entered the structural pest control industry, that I learned they were female Valley Carpenter Bees. Both [...]
Protect Honey Bee Swarms
Few things are as unnerving as the sight of a Honey Bee swarm. It can be eerie to see thousands of bees hanging from the branch of a tree or some other object. The bees cluster together in a perpetually squirming mass to protect the queen who is at the center. Dozens to hundreds of workers whiz by, barely noticing your presence, as they [...]
Is it a Mole or a Gopher?
To the novice, mole and gopher damage looks pretty much the same. But there are key differences and knowing those differences will be of significant benefit as you try to gain control and minimize damage. Moles Moles can make you crazy! They have driven more than one gardener to total distraction. The unsightly mounds they build at [...]
THE CUTE BUT DESTRUCTIVE CALIFORNIA VOLE
These shy creatures generally move very quickly. If don't look quickly you can miss them or barely catch a glimpse of them out of the corner of your eye. They can be so fast and illusive that you’re tempted to believe you’re hallucinating. Active during the day, California Voles, Microtus californicus , sometimes called Meadow Mice [...]
Crabgrass and Aphids – Effective Control Begins in Winter
There are two landscape issues that manifest themselves in late Spring and Summer, which drive gardeners crazy; Crabgrass and aphids. Effective season-long control for both of these issues begins long before they are visible. For aphid control begin with proper cultivation practices such as adequate water and fertilizer for the plant material. [...]
Tiny Pest Threatens Destruction of US Citrus Crops
A new disease of citrus trees is raising serious concerns among orchardists and scientists in the United States. The disease has the potential to decimate domestic citrus crops, coast-to-coast. Huanglongbing (HLB), translated Yellow Dragon Disease or Citrus Greening, Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus, is a serious bacterial disease, with [...]
Crop Destroying Stink Bug Moves Closer to Valley
The Brown Marmorated Stink Bug, Halymorpha, halys, first arrived in the United States around 1997 in shipments arriving from Asia in Allentown Pennsylvania. First Collected and identified there it has since multiplied by the square and made its presence made known in a big way. With no significant natural enemies on the North American continent [...]
Get the Most out of Your Lawn Watering Efforts
In recent years California has experienced lower than normal rainfall. Although, always a concern, water use has, in recent years, become an issue that is front and center. One of the major uses of water is irrigation and of all the plant materials in our landscapes, turfgrasses use the most. In order to conserve water, limit fungal [...]
The Calisoga Spider, A California Native
Calisoga longitarsis, Photo by: Marshall Hedin, San Diego State University A couple of years ago my wife went to her family’s Lake Tahoe cabin with her girlfriend from Seattle. The last morning of the weekend, as she started to reach into a Kleenex box to pull out a tissue, she was confronted by a large, hairy spider which measured about 2 ½ [...]
Is The Venomous Brown Widow Spider Moving North?
I first learned about this little beauty about two years ago. She hails from South Africa and has adapted well to tropical and subtropical climates around the world. The brown widow Spider, Latrodectus geometricus, was first introduced into the United States by way of Florida, where it has remained for decades. Recently however, it has [...]
The Light Brown Apple Moth in California
The Light Brown Apple Moth, Epiphyas postvittana (Walker) was first collected and identified in the San Francisco Bay area in 2007. It’s now known to infest areas of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Monterey, Napa, San Benito, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Sonoma and Sacramento Counties. Originally [...]
Glassy Winged Sharpshooter – A Threat to California’s Wine Industry
By Gary Dorris The Glassy Winged Sharpshooter is a serious threat to wine growers throughout California because of its ability to destroy crops at ease. This species is rather large for a leafhopper at a half an inch long and is colored dark brown to black with a yellow or white underside; it can also be easily identified by its bright yellow [...]
Jerusalem Cricket
The large (up to 2 inches in length), fierce-looking Jerusalem Cricket is a member of the Stenopelmatidae family. It is commonly called a “potato bug,” in spite of the fact that it doesn’t prefer potatoes and is not a true bug. The Native Americans called it Who-tzi-Neh or “Old Bald Man.” Southwestern Indian tribes once called [...]
Beautiful Plant Poisonous to Humans and Animals
California is dealing with a beautiful but invasive and poisonous invader called the Rattlebox Plant (also known as Red Sesbania or Scarlet Wisteria), scientific name Sesbania punicea. According to a publication of the California Invasive Plant Council this plant is a native of South America and because of its profuse red flowers was introduced [...]
Yellow Starthistle
Ranchers and landowners in California readily recognize this noxious weed as a painful nuisance and Equestrians recognize it as a threat to their horses. If eaten in large quantities it can inflict a serious nervous disease in equines called Chewing Disease. At the onset of symptoms the disease is 100 percent fatal. Do not allow horses to [...]
Don’t Transport Firewood!
This fall and winter, as in the past, folks are engaging in the familiar tradition of gathering firewood to warm their homes with the glow of real wood fires. It’s a wonderful, time honored activity but it does have a dark side: Firewood can contain serious plant pests and diseases with the potential to wipe out entire species and [...]
New Exotic Invader Hits California And Arizona
Already a big problem in its own right, the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug has been joined in the US by its heat loving cousin, the Bagrada Bug, Bagrada hilaris or Bagrada cruciferarum, Family Pentatomidae. And yes, it’s a stink bug. This bad-news-bug from Africa is causing significant damage to crops from home gardens to commercial growing [...]
ASIAN STINK BUGS MOVE INTO WASHINGTON STATE
Look out Washington, The Brown Marmorated Stink Bug, Halymorpha, halys, is a big problem for homeowners but its a huge threat to all sorts of food crops. Watch this video from an article By Shellie Bailey-Shah KATU News and KATU.com, posted at 11:07 AM on 11/11/2010
BROWN MARMORATED STINK BUG KILLER
Recent news regarding the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug has been grim. The threat that it poses to US food crops is enormous. Fortunately scientists are testing the efficacy and safety of employing a natural BMSB predator wasp from china. The video From USA Today Online, linked below, provides some interesting news about the latest [...]
Praying Mantis Takes Down Hummingbird
I got this footage off of Geekosystem. It must have been one hungry mantis. Unfortunately for the mantis, the bird was a bit too big and it got away.
Invasive Species Brown Marmorated Stink Bug Threatens US Food Crops
According to researchers at Penn State University, the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug, Halyomorpha, halys, was first collected and positively identified in September of 1998, in Allentown, PA. Since then it has made its odious presence known throughout the Mid-Atlantic and various other states, quickly expanding its range, from the East [...]
FALL WEED CONTROL
In northern California Fall and Winter are mild seasons during which a wide variety of seeds germinate and become established. Since most of us spend these times indoors and pay little attention to our landscapes, these invasive plants grow and develop, unnoticed, providing us with a lot of yard work in Spring. Here are some things you can [...]
The War of the Voles
Voles have become a huge problem in northern California this year. This video (below) from News 10 highlights the frustration of a lot of folks, over this destructive little rodent.
More Spiders Expected This Season, Fox 40 TV News Report Features PCC President, Steve Scoville
Return to Pest Control Center Website Home Page
How to Keep Garden Pests Under Control Naturally With the Green Lacewing
In any discussion about beneficial insects the Green Lacewing is essential. I found this article on Ezine and decided to include it in the blog as an interest article. The opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of Pest Control Center, Inc. A green lacewing is one of the best-kept secrets in natural pest [...]
Soldier Beetles, or Leatherbacks, are Real Troopers in the War on Damaging Insects
Every spring I marvel at the numbers of insects devoured by soldier beetles, just in my own landscape. Around the world there are about 3,500 different species of these members of the Cantharidae family. They are sometimes called firefly mimics because their color patterns resemble those of fireflies, but without the ability to give off [...]
Honey Bee Moving Day!
If you come accross a swarm, such as the one shown here, don't be alarmed. It's only moving day for a colony of Honey Bees. When a hive becomes too large the queen lays eggs in special brood cells and workers begin feeding the new larvae a special, pollen rich food, called Royal Jelly. This causes them to grow into new queens. One of [...]
White Pine Aphids Can Be Found Wherever White Pines Are Grown
I remember the first time I saw these insects. It was the summer of 1979 I was a relative newbie in what we used to call the tree spraying business, working for a company called, “Green-up Spray Service.” I was with Dave, the General Manager, treating residential landscapes in a suburb of Seattle, WA. The infestation was on every branch and [...]
Ladybird Beetles, Destroyers of Plant Sucking Pests
Ladybird, ladybird, fly away home…Its an old nursery rhyme that most of us are familiar with. But not everyone knows how truly beneficial the Ladybird Beetle (or Ladybug, as she’s called here in North America) is in the garden. To be sure, large numbers of them can be a nuisance, especially in the spring when they tend to congregate on the [...]
Home Mosquito Control – Turning Your Yard Into Hostile Territory For Mosquitoes
I was going to write about mosquito control but I ran accross this article By Ken Child. I think he pretty well covers it: The No-Fly zone: Turning your yard into hostile territory for mosquitoes. Ready to get rid of those mosquitoes around the house? Great. But there’s one thing you should know about home mosquito [...]
