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Category: Pests & Disease

frost on grass

Cool Temperature Turf Grass Management

by Leslie Nicole Munroe
November 15, 2021

It may seem laughable to most Americans that Florida does experience a "real winter". However, there are many who are very aware that the temperatures have dropped and that their plants are reacting to this change. The Master Gardeners often ... READ MORE

Category: Crops, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Home Management, Horticulture, Lawn, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, SFYL Hot Topic, Turf
Tags: Cool Weather Lawn, Florida Friendly Landscaping, Florida Friendly Lawn, St. Augustine Grass, Turf Dormancy, Water Wise
Early morning dew drops caught on a spiders web and dragonfly's wings

Arachnophobia and Florida Residents

by Yvonne Florian
October 1, 2021

The Other Florida Residents Generally, Florida residents are pretty hardy souls. For instance, early settlers required a healthy fear of bears. Florida Black Bears lived throughout the state at that time and were of great concern for anyone ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Home Landscapes, Home Management, Invasive Species, Pests & Disease, SFYL Hot Topic, Wildlife, Work & Life
Tags: Arachnids, Creepy Things, Desensitization Exercises, EDIS, Florida Spiders, Huntsman, Nocturnal Hunters, Phobias, Spiderlings, Wildlife
crimson clover and Celosia

Summer Vegetable Gardening: Cover Crops and Garden Planning

by Leslie Nicole Munroe
June 7, 2021

Written By Leslie Munroe and Yvonne Florian. Gardening once again became America's pastime this past year due to "stay at home" and "social distancing" mandates. Many people took up vegetable gardening to pass the time in a healthful, nurturing ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Crops, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, Water
Tags: Ask IFAS, Cover Cropping, Florida Vegetable Gardening, Garden Planning, Gifford Community & Student Garden, GYAC, Improving Poor Soil, Indian River County Master Gardener Plant Help Desk, IRC Extension, Living Mulch, Nematode Management, Nematodes, Solarization, Solarize, Summer Gardening
bats emerging from a large bat house at dusk

Bats- Scary or Awesome?

by Yvonne Florian
October 27, 2020

Note: All images were taken before 2020 as masks were not required before spring of this year. The blood-sucking vampire bat stereotype of movie lore is not so scary in real life. In fact, the vampire bat does not even live in Florida. ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Farm Management, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS Extension, Wildlife
Tags: Bats Are Beneficial, Beneficial Wildlife, EDIS Bats, Florida Ecosystems, Florida Native Bats, Flying Mammals, Guano, Insect Pest Management: Bats, Nocturnal Hunters, UF Bat House
Grass on the banks of Lake Mize at the Austin Cary Memorial Forest.

What is Ailing My St. Augustine Grass?

by Yvonne Florian
August 24, 2020

What's Wrong with my St. Augustine Grass? The Yellow Yard- About the time September rolls around, while the rainy season seems like it just will not end, some lawns may exhibit some yellowing. Grass seems healthy except for the tips turning ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Home Management, Lawn, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, Turf, UF/IFAS Extension, Water
Tags: Brown Patch, Lawn Circles, Lawn Health, Lawn Mower Height, Lawn Watering, Mower Scalping, Proper Fertilization, Proper Lawn Irrigation, Proper Lawn Mowing, Right Cut For St. Augustine Grass, St. Augustinegrass Issues, Take-all Root Rot, Yellowing Grass
close up of beetle

May-June Bug Season

by Yvonne Florian
June 27, 2020

Back in May I noticed numerous half-inch brown beetles congregating around my porch light every evening at around 10:00 PM. Most householders in Florida deal with their dried-out bodies under outdoor lights, in shallow plant saucers, or ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Crops, Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Invasive Species, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Beetle Life Cycle, Beetles, Fungal Pest Control, Green June Beetle, Grubs, Indian River County, Japanese Beetles, June Beetles, June Bugs, May Beetles, Parasitic Flies, Parasitic Wasps, University Of Florida, White Grubs
blooming burgundy bromeliad in the morning sun

Beautiful Bromeliads and Mischievous Mosquitoes

by Leslie Nicole Munroe
June 26, 2020

In January, 2016, I moved back to Florida from another southern state. It was great to see familiar plants and to be able to go to the beach again.I love the dizzying varieties of beautiful bromeliads, but could definitely live without the ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Health & Nutrition, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Aechmea, Anana, Bacillus Thuringiensis, Billbergia, Bromeliads, Bt, Color In The Landscape, Florida Mosquitoes, Guzmania, Mosquito Control, Neoregelia, Preventing Mosquito Breeding, Shade Gardening

COVID-19 and UF/IFAS Extension

by Nick Place
March 15, 2020

Updated 03/16/20 As we continue to monitor COVID-19 in Florida, I wanted to take a moment to update our UF/IFAS Extension community about our current status, best practices and next steps. Please call your local UF/IFAS Extension office ... READ MORE

Category: 4-H & Youth, Agribusiness, Agriculture, Camp, Clubs & Volunteers, Coasts & Marine, Community Volunteers, Conservation, Crops, Curriculum, Disaster Preparation, Events, Farm Management, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Food Safety, Forests, Fruits & Vegetables, Health & Nutrition, Home Landscapes, Home Management, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Lawn, Livestock, Money Matters, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, Professional Development, Recreation, Relationships & Family, SFYL Hot Topic, Turf, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Research, UF/IFAS Teaching, , Water, Wildlife, Work & Life
Tags: COVID-19, Featured Hot Topic, Hot Topic

A Way to Fight Brazilian Peppertree (Schinus terebinthifolia)

by Yvonne Florian
February 21, 2020

In Florida, Brazilian Peppertree is listed as a noxious weed and category-1 invasive plant according to Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council (FLEPPC). It was originally introduced to Florida from South America as a pretty ornamental shrub during ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Conservation, Farm Management, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Forests, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Money Matters, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Recreation, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Research, , Wildlife
Tags: Air Potato Vine, BCRCL, Biocontrol, Biocontrol Research, Brazilian Peppertree, Exotic Invasive Plants, Hayslip Lab, Invasive Plants, Thrips, Tropical Soda Apple, UF/IFAS Norman C. Hayslip Biological Control Research & Containment Laboratory
New Guinea Flatworm showing eyespot

Invasive Alert! Meet the New Guinea Flatworm

by Christine Kelly-Begazo
July 23, 2018

By Joshua Kutyna, Indian River Extension Program Assistant for Christine Kelly-Begazo There is an invader amongst us, and it goes by the name of Platydemus manokwari. Better known as the New Guinea flatworm, this alien aggressor is a ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Farm Management, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease
Tags: Agriculture, Christine Kelly-Begazo, Commercial Crop Production, Farm Management, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Indian River County, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease

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