Pollinators like native bees, moths and butterflies, birds, bats and other animals are hard at work providing vital but often unnoticed services. They pollinate crops like apples, bananas, blueberries, strawberries, melon, peaches, potatoes, vanilla, … [Read more...]
Fireflies: A Beneficial Insect
Whether you call them lightning bugs or fireflies, you must admit light-producing insects are fascinating. These light producing insects are not a true fly nor a true bug. They are actually beetles in the family Lampyridae. There are approximately … [Read more...]
NATURAL ENEMIES: PREDATORS AND PARASITOIDS
Though most people cringe at the sight of an insect, there are countless species of beneficial insects. One such group of insects is referred to as natural enemies. These are insects that prey upon other insects that frequently cause damage in the … [Read more...]
Allium Leafminer
This European pest was first recorded in North America in Lancaster Co. PA in 2015. Allium leafminer (ALM) was first observed in Maryland in 2017 and is now widespread through Central and Northern Maryland. Continued: … [Read more...]
Woolly Bear Caterpillar – Winter Predictor Or Not?
According to folklore, the amount of black on the woolly bear in autumn varies proportionately with the severity of the coming winter in the locality where the caterpillar is found. Read more: … [Read more...]
How To Remove Spotted Lanternfly Eggs
Learn first-hand how to scrape and destroy spotted lanternfly egg masses, which are visible between October and July. Continued: … [Read more...]
Ground Beetles – Beneficial Insects
QUESTION Client requested identification of a large beetle found in her yard. DIAGNOSIS / RECOMMENDATION Harpalus pensylvanicus, common name Pennsylvania dingy ground beetle. It is a beneficial insect. ADDITIONAL … [Read more...]
Spotted Lanternfly in Virginia
A potentially very serious pest of grapes, peaches, hops, and a variety of other crops, the spotted lanternfly (SLF), Lycorma delicatula, was detected in Frederick County, Virginia, on Jan. 10, 2018. It is important to look for … [Read more...]
From the Help Desk – DEFOLIATED JAPANESE BARBERRY BUSHES
ISSUE: Client has barberry shrubs with webbing and defoliation, with bushes looking terrible. DIAGNOSIS / RECOMMENDATION The problem is the barberry webworm (Omphalocera dentosa). Defoliated branches and webs can be cut out and … [Read more...]
Managing the Japanese Beetle:
A Homeowner’s Handbook
Both as adults and as grubs (the larval stage), Japanese beetles are destructive plant pests. Adults feed on the foliage and fruits of several hundredspecies of fruit trees, ornamental trees, shrubs, vines, and field and vegetable crops. Read More: … [Read more...]