Empowering Georgia through UGA Extension
Mark Czarnota, Ph.D., UGA Ornamental Weed Control Specialist
This publication covers:
This article edited from information at http://www.ent.uga.edu/insectid.htm
Insects, as a group, currently include over one million known species in the world, with probably millions more yet to be described.
UGA Extension faculty will be glad to provide insect identifications for the public as time permits. We request that specimens be submitted via your local county agent if possible. These agents may be able to provide insect identifications themselves, or if not, they are trained to submit the specimen to the appropriate faculty member via the mail or electronically via the Digital Distance Diagnostic Image System.
Due to the large number of specimens submitted, those insects causing economic damage or those affecting public health will take priority over those submitted for curiosity purposes. There are millions of described insect species and many more that have not been scientifically described. Identification to the species level is not always possible due to damaged specimens, unclear images, or incomplete information.
Find your local Extension Office here or call them at (800) ASK-UGA1 from any non-cell phone.
“We are NOT building a garden. We are breaking generational barriers, cultivating and amending the fallow ground of imagination and hope, planting seeds of thought, birthing fruit of propensity for prosperity. That – that is what we are doing.” This is on a sign that greets you when you visit the Healthy Life Community Gardens in Griffin. The garden is located on the grounds of the old Fairmont High School, which was started as a Rosenwald school. Rosenwald schools were primarily built for the education of African-Americans in the early 20th century. So, there is a lot of history here. But, the school has been closed down for some time now and the area forgotten until the idea was born to create a garden here. And, it is a beautiful garden.
There is no cost to get a plot at the garden and the Griffin Area Housing Authority
provides water. There are 17 official gardeners using assigned raised beds. And, others who come to just volunteer here. There is a
pollinator garden and a nice seating area. A unique feature to this garden is the “Summer in the Garden” reading program where volunteers from the FERST Foundation bring garden-themed books to read and give to young gardeners. The space has designated Community Areas where anyone can pick and take vegetables. They have recently added some fruit and pecan trees.
At the heart of the garden is Patti Beckham. Patti is a program assistant with Spalding County Extension and you can hear the passion in her voice as she talks about the garden, and the people who garden here. Patti taught at Fairmont for eight years
when it became a special needs school. She loves seeing the place reborn. She conducts a Junior Master Garden program here and also supervises 4-H students who are volunteers. Patti and Wade Hutcheson, the Spalding County ANR agent, agree that
the number one need is more gardeners from the immediate community. Wade says the garden is here and within walking distance of so many people, he is hoping that more will come out. For more information about the garden contact Wade at the Spalding County Extension Office at 770-467-4225.
The first rule at the Healthy Life Community Gardens is “I will have fun.” Isn’t that great?
Happy Gardening!
Information supplied by Patrick McCullough, UGA Extension Weed Scientist and the publication Weed Control in Home Lawns
Hot and humid weather contributes to certain weeds in lawns – particularly sedges! Sedges come in many types – nutsedges, annual and perennial sedges and kyllinga. Identification of the sedge is the first step (though exact id of sedges can be difficult!) See this site if you need help with identification. Another great resource for weed identification is the UGA publication Weeds of Southern Turf.
Once you identify the sedge; select control methods based on this identification and the weeds biology – annual/perennial, warm/cool season, etc.
Post-emergence herbicide controls for sedges
flazasulfuron – Katana (25 WG) is a selective herbicide for control of annual and perennial grasses, sedges and broadleaf weeds in bermudagrass, zoysiagrass and certain other warm season grasses. Flazasulfuron has postemergence and some preemergence activity and may be used on golf courses (fairways, roughs and tees) and the following non-residential turf areas: industrial parks, tank farms, sod farms, seed farms, cemeteries, professionally managed college and professional sport fields and commercial lawns for control of cool season grasses and weeds from tolerant grasses. The maximum yearly application rate is 9.0 oz. per acres. Use only on labeled turfgrasses or severe injury may result. Do not apply to newly seeded, sodded or sprigged turfgrass until well established. Allow at least 2 weeks from the last application to the time of overseeding when applied at 1.5 oz per acre. Allow 4 weeks for rates above 1.5 oz
sulfentrazone — Dismiss (4 lbs/gallon) is a postemergence herbicide labeled for most major warm- and cool-season turfgrasses. Use lower rates on cool-season turfgrass than warm-season turf due to injury concerns. Dismiss controls annual and perennial sedges, broadleaf weeds and suppresses goosegrass.Dismiss may be used on seeded, sodded or sprigged turfgrasses that are well established. Applications of Dismiss can be initiated following the second mowing provided the turfgrass has developed into a uniform stand with a good root system. Turfgrass injury could result from application of this product on turfgrass that is not well established or has been weakened by stresses such as unfavorable weather conditions, disease, chemical or mechanical damage. Dismiss may cause temporary discoloration to St. Augustinegrass and zoysiagrass.
Cultural practices to control sedges
The first line of defense against weeds is to follow cultural practices that promote vigorous turfgrass growth and development. Weeds do not easily invade turfgrasses that are properly fertilized and watered and that are mowed at the correct height and frequency. Weeds appear primarily in bare or thin areas of the turfgrass, which may be due in part to one or more of the following:
Visit www.GeorgiaTurf.com for additional information on turfgrass maintenance practices. The impact of proper cultural practices on a lawn weed control program cannot be overemphasized. Properly maintained turfgrasses are more competitive with weeds than turfgrasses that do not receive good cultural practices. The use of herbicides without following approved cultural practices will not result in a high quality, weed-free lawn.
Read the entire publication from which most of this information comes Weed Control in Home Lawns
Can any Southern garden truly be Southern without collard greens? If you are from the South your Grandmother probably cooked them up with a bit of smoked meat or bacon. They are a staple at the Sunday dinner table, tasty and very nutritious. Collard greens are a wonderful fall plant because they can take the heat and the cold. For questions about any fall garden vegetable contact your local UGA Extension Agent.
August is the time for direct seed sowing. Make sure your soil is loose and well-drained. The seeds will germinate at soil temperatures from 45 degrees – 85 degrees, a very wide range. Seed heavily, putting about 2 inches between seeds, and cover the seeds with about 1/4-1/2 inch of soil. Thin to 12-18 inches between plants. The thinnings can be steamed and eaten or transplanted. Since you are planting in the summer, insect pests may be a problem for very young seedlings.
Many gardeners start their seeds inside and transplant hardier seedlings. For transplants, either raised or purchased, September is the time for planting. Transplants will adjust quicker if they are planted on a cloudy day or hardened off to the heat by keeping them in the shade for a few days. Keep the plants 12-18 inches apart. Collards are heavy feeders so make sure to add some fertilizer or compost when you plant. Nitrogen keeps those leaves nice and green. Keep the young plants well watered. Some gardeners have problems with leaf spots on their greens. Paul Pugliese’s Leaf Spots on Greens Related to Moisture could be helpful if this happens to you.
With collard greens you don’t have to worry about the first frost damaging the plant. The greens actually taste sweeter after a frost.
You can harvest greens a number of ways. You can harvest the entire plant when it is half grown or full grown. Or, you can begin taking several of the outer, lower leaves after the plants are about a foot tall. Harvesting the plant a few leaves at a time will prolong your harvest and you will have fresh greens as you want them.
Blue Max, Georgia Southern, Hevi-Crop are all recommended cultivars. Master Gardeners have also had success with Georgia Green as well. These should be available almost at any place that sells seeds. If you are fortunate enough to live near an old fashioned feed and seed store or an older hardware store, you may be able to find seeds there. Also, there are several mail order companies such as Seed Savers Exchange and Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds that specialize in hard to find seeds.
The poet Maya Angelou is quoted as saying “The best comfort food will always be greens, cornbread, and fried chicken.” We tend to agree, don’t you?
Happy Gardening!
Lantanas can bloom from June through early October in Georgia. Lantana lace bug can stop blooming in the summer leaving green plants with no blooms. The lantana lace bug is a small brown insect up to 1/6 inch long. Adult lace bugs are long, oval insects with a midsection that is slightly wider than the ends. The rear of the lantana lace bug is blunt but rounded off. The young are dull-colored and spiny. Look for the lantana lace bug by shaking the branch over a piece of white paper or light-colored cloth.
Lace bugs feed on the bottom of the leaves and on young flower buds. They make the top of the leaves speckled with white, similar to mite injury. Underneath the leaf you may see brown, tarry spots that are the insect’s droppings. Since lace bugs feed on young flower buds, lantana bloom may be severely reduced or stopped completely. When populations are very high, the lantana leaves may turn almost white and fall from the plant.
Lace bugs do have several natural enemies that help to control their numbers – spiders, lacewing larvae, assassin bugs and predaceous mites. Be careful using pesticides to preserve these natural enemies of the lantana lace bug.
Planting less susceptible varieties of lantana may help reduce lace bug numbers though this may not completely control lace bugs:
If cultural and natural controls do not limit the lace bug population, you may need to treat with chemicals.
See the UGA Pest Management Handbook for pesticide recommendations. Read and follow all label directions when using pesticides. This is especially important now since some pesticide labels have changed.
Check the plants in two weeks after the first treatment and treat again if needed. Once you control the lace bugs, the blooms should slowly return if temperatures are warm enough and other growing conditions are good.
Blooming on lantana should slow down as temperatures drop in the fall. Lantanas like full sun, well drained soils, deep watering once a week and light fertilization. If the plant is lacking one of these, correct the problem.
To improve bloom, you can prune off old seed pods or berries left from prior flowers. Then, fertilize again lightly and water deeply once a week to encourage new blooms. Take care not to over fertilize since this may reduce flowering and increase disease susceptibility.
Taken from this page.
What is the Georgia Certified Landscape Professional Program?
The Georgia Certified Landscape Professional (GCLP) program is a voluntary testing program that certifies those in the landscape profession who have mastered a thorough knowledge and understanding of job skills required to be successful in the industry.
The test consists of four written components and eight hands-on components. Applicants are provided a 400+ page printed study manual and access to a internet study site developed by the University of Georgia.
The GCLP program is endorsed by the Georgia Green Industry Association, the Georgia Turfgrass Association, the Metro Atlanta Landscape and Turf Association and officially recognizd by the Georgia Department of Agriculture.
Written exam components include:
Hands-on evaluations include:
The written and hands-on exams are offered at least twice a year. The written components are given at the annual conference of the Georgia Green Industry Association in January and in the Atlanta area in August. The hands-on components are given spring and fall at the UGA Research and Education Gardens in Griffin.
15 hours of Continuing Education Units are required every three years to remain certified.
For information about testing dates and locations and testing fees, contact Kimberly Allen with the Georgia Center for Urban Agriculture at 770-233-6107; e-mail khayes@uga.edu
In the fall, there are several caterpillars that feed on the leaves of trees and shrubs. Although the leaf damage may look significant, the plants may not be as damaged as one may think. You need to understand the type, size and the growth phase of the plant and the type of caterpillar you have before deciding whether to control them.
Deciduous trees will soon be losing their leaves anyway. Foliage feeding by caterpillars is likely to cause little injury. The leaves are going to fall off anyway.
For evergreen trees, foliage loss will be more likely to affect the tree and control is more likely to be needed. For evergreen trees, especially avoid defoliation of entire limbs since these often do not recover.
Bagworms are a long lasting problem since the bags contain hundreds of eggs which will hatch next year. Unfortunately, at this time of year you will need to pick off the bags and destroy them since the bags are sealed now and pesticide cannot easily get inside. Remove the bags you can see right now and plan to check these plants for small bagworms next May.
Young trees or trees weakened by other factors may be more likely to be damaged by loss of foliage to caterpillars than younger, healthy trees.
Evergreen shrubs retain their leaves throughout the fall and winter and into next year. Injured leaves on evergreen shrubs will be visible until they fall naturally – which could be a year or more from now. Control decisions on shrubs should be based on the level of aesthetic injury the home owner will accept.
Deciduous shrubs, like deciduous trees, will be losing their leaves soon and foliage loss to caterpillars in the fall is less likely to cause a lasting problem.
For information on control measures, see these resources:
IPM for Select Deciduous Trees
It seems no matter how hard we plan at some point during the summer we have more tomatoes than we know what to do with. We have eaten many BLT sandwiches, given the neighbors more than they can use, and canned tomatoes for the winter. You have donated scads to the local food bank. What next? I asked chef and owner of the restaurant 4th and Swift, Jay Swift, how he would handle this problem and he gave me a recipe that is perfect for those tomatoes!
Heirloom Tomato and Melon Gazpacho
1 pound tomatoes, cut into quarters
1 cantaloupe, skin and seeds removed
1 honeydew melon, skin and seeds removed
5 basil leaves
1 TBSP champagne vinegar
3/4 cup olive oil
Salt/pepper to taste
In a large saute pan, heat the olive oil. Add the tomato quarters, melons, and basil. (Note: with a gas stove make sure you turn off the heat when you add your ingredients. This prevents flames in the pan.) Saute the ingredients until they start to bleed out, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and quickly store in the refrigerator. Once everything is chilled, buzz in the food processor with vinegar. Add salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!
Chef Swift is a gardener in his own right and his restaurant is known for its farm-to-table menu, using all-natural and sustainable farm products. He was happy to share a photo of his garden with us. He is proud of his restaurant located in the Old Fourth Ward district of Atlanta near the new Atlanta Beltline project. And he should be! We thank him for sharing his culinary expertise with us.
Happy Eating!
Regulatory changes and sources of info for the Georgia pest control industries.
Willie Chance, UGA Center for Urban Agriculture
1. In January 2013 the U.S.-E.P.A. mandated some sweeping changes in the way pyrethroid-based insecticides will be used in the home environment. These changes will impact use labels for professional pest control operators and products available to homeowners in the over-the-counter market.
Pyrethroid insecticides can be recognized because the names of the active ingredients end in “-thrin” or “-ate”. Examples of commonly used pyrethroids are bifenthrin, cypermethrin, lambda-cyhalothrin, cyfluthrin, permethrin, esfenvalerate, etc. Pyrethroid products (sprays, aerosols, and granulars) are common in the professional market, and they dominate products in the over the counter (OTC) market.
Broadcast applications to large surfaces such as exterior walls of buildings, patios, or concrete walkways will no longer be allowed. Treat only where the pest is or will enter a structure (around windows, doors, or other openings). All outdoor applications must be limited to spot* or crack-and-crevice treatments only, except for the following permitted uses:
[*A spot treatment is not to exceed two square feet; making adjacent spot treatments to cover a large area is not allowed.] Pyrethroids used for termite pre-treatments have additional guidelines
See the complete Guidance Document from which this info is taken – http://tinyurl.com/lfxg6eg These regulations will also be on the pesticide label. Read and follow the label – it is the law!
2. Pesticide applicators must now verify residency during recertification. During the 2013 legislative session, a house bill was passed that required all state agencies that issue licenses to verify the legal residence of the applicant. See this article.
3. MSDS sheets should eventually be modified by OSHA and called SDS sheets. These SDS sheets will be used globally. Info taken from http://www.osha.gov/dsg/hazcom/HCSFactsheet.html
Major changes:
More information can be found on OSHA’s hazard communication safety and health topics page at www.osha.gov/dsg/hazcom/index.html. Note that these changes cover chemicals in general and does not replace existing pesticide labels and regulations.
Companies will want to:
4. Label changes for the neo-nicotinyl pesticides (examples include imidacloprid, dinotefuran, clothianidin and thiamethoxam) These are to protect bees and other pollinators. Watch labels for the Bee Advisory Box. For more information see this article.
Recent research indicates that contamination of flowers or nectar with these pesticides can lead to bee injury. Do not treat pre-bloom or blooming plants with these chemicals. Read the label for other information. This will help protect bees and help to keep these available to the industry. http://ugaurbanag.com/insecticide-application-timing-vital-to-native-bee-conservation/
5. UGA has a video to help applicators prepare to take the Mosquito Control (Category 41) exam.
6. Georgia Clean Day is a program that gives an opportunity to discard old, unusable, or cancelled pesticides to a hazardous waste contractor for disposal. The Georgia Department of Agriculture has secured a limited amount of federal funds to revitalize the Georgia Clean Day Program for 2013. For more information or to find an event please contact Joshua Wiley (404-656-4958 or joshua.wiley@agr.georgia.gov) with the Department’s pesticide program.
7. Africanized bees have been discovered in Georgia. Though they look like traditional honey bees, when disturbed Africanized bees respond very aggressively and can kill or severely injure people who have not been trained in how to react to these bees. Everyone who works or spends much time outside should know how to deal with Africanized honeybees. See this article.
8. The GA Pest Management Handbook is updated annually with chemical and non-chemical pest control methods. It comes in a commercial and homeowner editions which can be purchased or viewed or downloaded as pdfs from http://www.ent.uga.edu/pmh/ See just the turf info or the new UGA turf app here –www.GeorgiaTurf.com.
9. UGA Apps to manage turf pests – http://blog.extension.uga.edu/urbanag/?p=581 or to identify invasive pests –http://apps.bugwood.org/apps.html
Online and other training
10. UGA Safety Makes Sense Landscape Worker Safety Certificate Course is available at no charge at vimeo.com/46623806. You can train on your time schedule, rainy day or any day. The training video (a compilation of the Safety Makes Sense series) can be viewed online or downloaded and saved for use when Internet is not available. The course includes Certificates of Completion.
The bilingual safety manual, Safety for Hispanic Landscape Workers, is available Online or for purchase All center safety training resources and Hispanic worker resources are available on the UGA Center for Urban Agriculture web site at Safety Makes Sense. This includes a series of short bilingual safety videos.
11. Monthly UGA webinar for landscape industry – http://ugaurbanag.com/webinars . Past classes are also online.
Also – Bi-monthly webinar for the structural pest control industry with credits – email Dan Suiter at dsuiter@uga.edu.
12. The Urban Ag Council has an excellent collection of Safety Zone training materials – http://www.maltamembers.com/safetyzone/. Part of this collection of training materials is the UAC Safety School.
13. Accessible Training for the Landscape & Turf Industries
Disposing of excess pesticides
Important Info for Landscape and Turf Pesticide Applicators
14. eXtension is a web-based collaboration of US land-grant universities to make university educational resources more accessible – http://about.extension.org/
15. eLearn Urban Forestry Online Training – An online, distance-learning program geared specifically toward beginning urban foresters and those allied professionals working in urban landscapes. Offers International Society of Arboriculture and Society of American Foresters credit and a certificate program. Visit www.elearn.sref.info
Find this information in this article.