Bug Squad

The Hagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, the half-acre bee friendly garden planted last fall next to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility on Bee Biology Road at the University of California, Davis, is more than just a haven for honey bees.

The news is startling, but not totally unexpected. Thousand cankers disease, which infects and kills black walnut trees, has spread from the western United States to the eastern United States. Officials announced Aug. 5 that the disease has been detected in Knox County in east Tennessee.

Tame that tiger. Wilton beekeeper Brian Fishback, president of the Sacramento Area Beekeepers' Association, stopped Friday at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility, UC Davis, and a friendly Western tiger swallowtail greeted him. At least, it seemed quite friendly.

Varroa mites, those blood-sucking little parasites that are major pests of honey bee colonies, can decimate and destroy a colony if left unchecked. One way that beekeepers monitor their hives for mite infestation is "the sugar shake.

Carpenter bees, which to the uninitiated look like bumble bees, are nice to have around the garden. Maybe not so nice to have around your untreated patio or fences (as they drill holls in them to make their nests) but just think of them as pollinators, not pests.