When maintaining a garden, knowing the difference between your enemies and the “good guys” is half the battle. Once, I was teaching a group of landscape maintenance folks about beneficial insects, and quizzed them on their bug identification ... READ MORE
Category: Natural Resources
In the 1950’s 60’s the screwworm was an ongoing burden with livestock but over years with research, breeding sterile male flies and monitoring it was eliminated in United States. Then in 2016 they were detected in Monroe County that wiped ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Farm Management, Livestock, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension,
I have never come across the brilliantly colored rough green snake (Opheodrys aestivus) in the wild before, but our Master Naturalist class was introduced to a member of this species during the fight of its life yesterday. We took a trip ... READ MORE
Category: Natural Resources, Wildlife
Vegetable production season brings a bounty of food for us and, unfortunately, also for crop pests. Thankfully, many naturally occurring beneficial insects, fungi, nematodes, wildlife, and other organisms (AKA beneficials) find their food forest ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS Extension
¿Alguna vez has visto un pequeño insecto correr por la superficie de tu cocina y pensado: “¡Oh no, es una cucaracha pequeña!”? No entres en pánico todavía; no todos los insectos pequeños y marrones son cucarachas. De hecho, muchos ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Home Management, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, Recreation, UF/IFAS Extension
Whiteflies may be tiny, but they can cause major headaches for farmers in the Suwannee Valley and across North Florida—especially in the late summer and fall. If you’ve grown vegetables during this season, you’ve probably noticed the clouds ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Crops, Pests & Disease
The intricate camouflage developed within the animal kingdom never fails to fascinate me. From fish that look like seagrass blades to butterflies that look like tree bark—or a pair of eyes—the variety, color, and textures are just mind-boggling. ... READ MORE
Category: Natural Resources
From backyard gardens to countywide conservation, Sara Salgado MacDonald is helping St. Lucie County residents grow greener, healthier landscapes. As an urban horticulture Extension agent with the University of Florida Institute of Food ... READ MORE
Category: Agribusiness, Agriculture, Community Volunteers, Conservation, Events, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Lawn, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, SFYL Hot Topic, UF/IFAS
The term “invasive species” has been getting a lot of press lately. We hear about invasive animals such as the Burmese Python, Lionfish, and Cuban treefrogs. Invasive plants like kudzu, air potato, and Brazilian pepper. Even invasive ... READ MORE
Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Horticulture
My Story One day on a walk, I noticed a cluster of tiny funnel-shaped pits in the sand. I knew right away who made them … an antlion larva, also called a “doodlebug.” These little predators are masters at building some of the most ... READ MORE
Category: 4-H & Youth, Agriculture, , Conservation, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, Wildlife