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 »
Want to be a citizen scientist for a few days? Join the annual Great Backyard Bird Count! For four days in February, the world comes together for the love of birds. People spend time in their favorite places watching and counting as many birds as they can find and reporting them to us. These observations
Time for the Annual Backyard Bird Count 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 »
As you drive through neighborhoods in mid-February, you may be delighted by the large trees clothed in puffy cloud looking blossoms of white. Common throughout Marin, ornamental pear trees, specifically ‘Bradford’ pears, put on a spectacular show. In the mid-1960’s landscapers and municipal planners planted lots of them – they grew fast, took any kind
Could it be Fire blight? Read More »
If you spot a small animal that looks like a mouse scurrying across the yard, it could be a vole, also known as a meadow mouse. But how can you be sure if it a mouse or a vole? Both of these rodents are five to eight inches long and have gray or brown fur.
Winter rains are here, bringing with it a carpet of green blanketing our surroundings. Nature’s irrigation is encouraging many plants to grow, especially the ones you don’t want – the weeds in your garden. You know the saying – a weed is simply any plant in a place you don’t want it. Are you seeing
Easier Ways to Manage Weeds Read More »
If you’re a parent, a pet owner, or both, you likely love spending time in your outside spaces together. You’ve likely removed any potential hazards indoors for kids, dogs, and cats, but how about outside? Are there possible dangers lurking, especially related to pesticides? Here are some things to consider: Weed and feed products for
Parents and Pet Owners Beware! Read More »
World Pollution Prevention Day is observed around the globe on December 2, a day created to instill awareness on environmental pollution and its negative impacts on our health and the planet. International organizations such as the United Nations (U.N.), the World Health Organization (WHO), Greenpeace, and others have been urging countries all over the world
World Pollution Prevention Day Read More »
Did you catch the spring spectacle of male turkeys gobbling and strutting their stuff to attract the attention of hen turkeys? Males often court in groups, with the dominant male gobbling, spreading his tail feathers, drumming / booming, and spitting. In my neighborhood there’s a huge flock with a least a half dozen of them
Those Wild Turkeys Read More »
