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RVI Team!
Tuesday, January 20
Friday, December 5
Holiday Gift ideas
Seasons greetings from the Rincon Vitova Team! We thought we’d throw in some useful gift ideas your way. From garden upkeep to children's activities, here are some a few items from The Bug Farm.
Deer nibbling your roses? Rabbits munching on your vegetables? Cats burying poo in your garden? Try a motion activated sprinkler! The Scarecrow is a great gift for the gardener with an animal problem. It has an infrared motion sensor and sprays a short blast of water at intruders. It is an attractive alternative to chicken wire or electric fences and work better than chemical deterrents. The passive infrared detector has a range of 105 degrees and adjustable sensitivity to detect animals up to 35 feet away. The Scarecrow can deter small animals such as birds, cats, skunks, and rodents and large animals such as deer, dogs, sheep, and even people. It comes with optional, high contrast “eye” and “beak” decals to scare birds visually. It is water conserving and only uses 2-3 cups of water per spray. Multiple Scarecrows can be connected to the same tap.
The Springstar Flea Trap is a super gift for pet owners in your life. It uses a small light bulb whose light, heat, and infrared rays are highly attractive to fleas. Fleas jump up to the trap, fall through a screen, and get trapped on the sticky pad. Replacement Capture Pads are 5x6, sticky on one side, and come three per package.
Get up close and personal with your favorite bugs! The World's Best Bug Jar is a great way to get to know your beneficial insects and their prey. This jar has a built-in 2x and 4x magnifying glass in the lid and a grid in the bottom to measure your specimen. Great for entomologists-in-training young and old. Four and five year old naturalists find this tool is of especially compelling value in their studies. Make a gift of a basic hand-lens for older insect ecologists.
We asked artist friend Alice Williams for an image of a green lacewing adult, also called “Golden-Eyes” and “Aphid Lion”. Her painting in acrylic is reproduced and laminated for unique placemats in subtle hues of red and green on a pale peach background with copper-colored border. The same image is also available as notecards in two sizes.
We also commissioned jewelry-maker Joyce Fritz to render a green lacewing adult in polymer clay. There are six pins still available from a limited edition of 12 fashion pins 1 ¾ inch long with 2 inch antennae.
You can check out the full version of our Holiday Gift Guide here.
Deer nibbling your roses? Rabbits munching on your vegetables? Cats burying poo in your garden? Try a motion activated sprinkler! The Scarecrow is a great gift for the gardener with an animal problem. It has an infrared motion sensor and sprays a short blast of water at intruders. It is an attractive alternative to chicken wire or electric fences and work better than chemical deterrents. The passive infrared detector has a range of 105 degrees and adjustable sensitivity to detect animals up to 35 feet away. The Scarecrow can deter small animals such as birds, cats, skunks, and rodents and large animals such as deer, dogs, sheep, and even people. It comes with optional, high contrast “eye” and “beak” decals to scare birds visually. It is water conserving and only uses 2-3 cups of water per spray. Multiple Scarecrows can be connected to the same tap.
The Springstar Flea Trap is a super gift for pet owners in your life. It uses a small light bulb whose light, heat, and infrared rays are highly attractive to fleas. Fleas jump up to the trap, fall through a screen, and get trapped on the sticky pad. Replacement Capture Pads are 5x6, sticky on one side, and come three per package.
Get up close and personal with your favorite bugs! The World's Best Bug Jar is a great way to get to know your beneficial insects and their prey. This jar has a built-in 2x and 4x magnifying glass in the lid and a grid in the bottom to measure your specimen. Great for entomologists-in-training young and old. Four and five year old naturalists find this tool is of especially compelling value in their studies. Make a gift of a basic hand-lens for older insect ecologists.
We asked artist friend Alice Williams for an image of a green lacewing adult, also called “Golden-Eyes” and “Aphid Lion”. Her painting in acrylic is reproduced and laminated for unique placemats in subtle hues of red and green on a pale peach background with copper-colored border. The same image is also available as notecards in two sizes.
We also commissioned jewelry-maker Joyce Fritz to render a green lacewing adult in polymer clay. There are six pins still available from a limited edition of 12 fashion pins 1 ¾ inch long with 2 inch antennae.You can check out the full version of our Holiday Gift Guide here.
Thursday, December 4
Product Availability Week of Dec 8th
ALERT! While supplies look great for the coming two weeks, if you are planning to order beneficial insects from Rincon-Vitova Insectaries this month, note that Christmas and New Year’s holidays fall on Thursdays, which means that I will not be importing perishable items from Canada for the last two weeks of December. There’s plenty of time to order early or extra if necessary. The last shipping date for Stethorus, Fallacis, Delphastus, Aphidoletes, the lower priced Cryptolaemus, and the very limited supply of Atheta, is December 17th. Order by Friday noon of the previous week. These insects will not be available to ship again until January 7, 2009. Everything else will be available as usual, but shipped on Monday, December 22 and 29 (rather than the usual Wednesday shipping schedule for most imported insects). HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
Monday, December 1
Day to Day: Wildfires!
From left, Jan, Ron and Duke position themselves to take in the fire.With all the wildfires in California, we thought we’d post our own little slice of life.
A small hillside fire broke out approximately two miles west of the Rincon-Vitova Insectaries (RVI) around 4:45pm on Tuesday, October 22, 2008. While the late day skeleton crew clicked away at computer monitors, Kyra and Gabe had left early and called in from the road. “You could see the fire from the [RVI] driveway,” Kyra explains. “It looked really close, but driving towards it we realized just how far it was.”
“It was the perspective. At first we thought we might have to evacuate,” said Gabe thinking back on the fire. “We joked about picking which DVDs to leave behind.”
The fire’s distance from the insectaries didn’t ease everyone’s mind. Duke lives nearby and was initially worried his house would be threatened, but it didn’t take long to notice the winds were blowing the opposite direction. “I did make a call to check, though” he said.
A small hillside fire broke out approximately two miles west of the Rincon-Vitova Insectaries (RVI) around 4:45pm on Tuesday, October 22, 2008. While the late day skeleton crew clicked away at computer monitors, Kyra and Gabe had left early and called in from the road. “You could see the fire from the [RVI] driveway,” Kyra explains. “It looked really close, but driving towards it we realized just how far it was.”
“It was the perspective. At first we thought we might have to evacuate,” said Gabe thinking back on the fire. “We joked about picking which DVDs to leave behind.”
The fire’s distance from the insectaries didn’t ease everyone’s mind. Duke lives nearby and was initially worried his house would be threatened, but it didn’t take long to notice the winds were blowing the opposite direction. “I did make a call to check, though” he said.
About five years ago, Duke’s neighborhood was evacuated during a hillside fire emergency. “…the authorities were pounding on the door and my girlfriend was trying to grab the cat and go. The cat, though, was not compliant.” So she grabbed a pillowcase, threw the cat in, and jumped into the car. “It’s kind of a funny story now,” Duke concludes.
When asked if he was worried about the fire’s proximity, Ron shook his head no. “I used to live at the base of that hill 6 years ago. Conditions in the area are ripe. It’s a reminder to be prepared. Fire is part of the ecology and learning to live with it and having contingency plans is essential.” Ron went on to describe priority boxes or even fire wells to store information below ground.
“It’s about what’s important. We’d shut down the server and grab the basic computer units. If we had more time we’d take the [insect] cages with all the mother cultures. We could take a few trays of [fly] pupae, but if we didn’t get back in three days we’d have a fly problem,” Ron laughs.
In the end, the fire burned approximately 5 acres, accrued no property damage and the unnamed hill stands with a black eye to the north. If there was any common thread felt here at the insectary, it was the realization of choice and priority. Insects may be small, but not everything can fit in a pillowcase.
For more info, check out the Ventura County Star article.
*Second Image: Kyra snapped this with her cell phone on the way home.
When asked if he was worried about the fire’s proximity, Ron shook his head no. “I used to live at the base of that hill 6 years ago. Conditions in the area are ripe. It’s a reminder to be prepared. Fire is part of the ecology and learning to live with it and having contingency plans is essential.” Ron went on to describe priority boxes or even fire wells to store information below ground.
“It’s about what’s important. We’d shut down the server and grab the basic computer units. If we had more time we’d take the [insect] cages with all the mother cultures. We could take a few trays of [fly] pupae, but if we didn’t get back in three days we’d have a fly problem,” Ron laughs.
In the end, the fire burned approximately 5 acres, accrued no property damage and the unnamed hill stands with a black eye to the north. If there was any common thread felt here at the insectary, it was the realization of choice and priority. Insects may be small, but not everything can fit in a pillowcase.
For more info, check out the Ventura County Star article.
*Second Image: Kyra snapped this with her cell phone on the way home.
Wednesday, November 26
Product Availability for Week of Dec. 1st
Well things have been a little hectic this week at Rincon-Vitova, with the approaching holiday. All orders for the week were shipped Monday. Everything from my end landed without delay to our customers.
Everything is back to normal availability until Christmas week when we will once again not be importing the more perishable critters. Check the availability list link below, for details. Atheta is limited from Applied Bio-Nomics (our Canadian sister insectary), but then I had a customer who desperately need some. I explained how Atheta was the "Bad Employee of the Month." But she said she’d take whatever she could get. I put 3 units on order for her, thinking there was no way that she would get them. But the following Wednesday sure enough she got them. So just because something says "Limited" or "OK" on the availability report, it isn’t the last word.
Our own production department has been on alert because of the Santa Ana winds. They cause problems with everything from hillside fires to messing with the humidity levels in the lacewing larvae incubating room. Lacewing larval units need warm temperatures with over 50% relative humidity, otherwise the eggs may not hatch. Larvae units arrive to the customer containing a minimum guarantee of 500 living predators. (It’s often much more.) This product saves the Customer from having to hatch the lacewing eggs, plus it is better than putting out a "lacewing egg buffet" for the ants. Lacewing eggs on cards or in bags are sitting food for the ants. And, just because you don’t see the ants, doesn’t mean that they’re not there.
Everything is back to normal availability until Christmas week when we will once again not be importing the more perishable critters. Check the availability list link below, for details. Atheta is limited from Applied Bio-Nomics (our Canadian sister insectary), but then I had a customer who desperately need some. I explained how Atheta was the "Bad Employee of the Month." But she said she’d take whatever she could get. I put 3 units on order for her, thinking there was no way that she would get them. But the following Wednesday sure enough she got them. So just because something says "Limited" or "OK" on the availability report, it isn’t the last word.
Our own production department has been on alert because of the Santa Ana winds. They cause problems with everything from hillside fires to messing with the humidity levels in the lacewing larvae incubating room. Lacewing larval units need warm temperatures with over 50% relative humidity, otherwise the eggs may not hatch. Larvae units arrive to the customer containing a minimum guarantee of 500 living predators. (It’s often much more.) This product saves the Customer from having to hatch the lacewing eggs, plus it is better than putting out a "lacewing egg buffet" for the ants. Lacewing eggs on cards or in bags are sitting food for the ants. And, just because you don’t see the ants, doesn’t mean that they’re not there.
Wednesday, November 19
Photo Series: Lacewing Larvae Units
We're starting a series of photo posts here at The Bug Farm. Every few weeks, we'll be putting up some slices of life with quotes and helpful tips from the Rincon Vitova Team. The captions might be a bit formal, but we're working on a system to have some slide shows which will make it all the better. Stay tuned!
Resident entomologist Ron Whitehurst inspects a Lacewing Larvae Unit for larvae size and distribution at Rincon Vitova Insectaries in Ventura, Calif., on Wednesday, October 17, 2008. "They start out as an egg about 1/30th of an inch and are 5/8th inch when full grown," explains Whitehurst. Using syringe like pincers to inject digestive enzymes and liquefy their prey, the lacewing larvae "can become effective predators for any soft bodied insects."
Kyra Ankenbruck and Ron Whitehurst drop moth eggs into the lacewing larvae units in the assembly room at Rincon Vitova Insectaries in Ventura, Calif., on Wednesday, October 17, 2008. The eggs act as a food source during transit. "They'll have enough food while en route to end users plus they will eat any other lacewing larvae in the cell. [The customer gets] whoever wins." Ankenbruck says with a smile. Lacewing larvae are voracious predators resorting to cannibalism if there is no other prey.
Stacks of Lacewing Larvae Units stand behind the glue board in the assembly room at Rincon Vitova Insectaries in Ventura, Calif., on Wednesday, October 17, 2008. The glue glob on the board has grown layer by layer as a paint roller is used to glue the organdy covers on. Kyra Ankenbruck encountered the glue board in May 2006. "It wasn't much smaller than now," Ankenbruck comments.
Kyra Ankenbruck waters down the floor of the Lacewing Larvae Unit incubation room at Rincon Vitova Insectaries in Ventura, Calif., on Friday, November 14, 2008. In dry weather, watering the floor keeps the high humidity the larvae need. "You wouldn't believe how many we've lost when the Santa Anas [hot California winds], blow in," says Ankenbruck.
For more info on Lacewings and their larvae, check out Rincon Vitova's Lacewing Bulliten.
All Images copyright: Bryce Yukio Adolphson © 2008 and may not be reused without express permission.
Resident entomologist Ron Whitehurst inspects a Lacewing Larvae Unit for larvae size and distribution at Rincon Vitova Insectaries in Ventura, Calif., on Wednesday, October 17, 2008. "They start out as an egg about 1/30th of an inch and are 5/8th inch when full grown," explains Whitehurst. Using syringe like pincers to inject digestive enzymes and liquefy their prey, the lacewing larvae "can become effective predators for any soft bodied insects."
Kyra Ankenbruck and Ron Whitehurst drop moth eggs into the lacewing larvae units in the assembly room at Rincon Vitova Insectaries in Ventura, Calif., on Wednesday, October 17, 2008. The eggs act as a food source during transit. "They'll have enough food while en route to end users plus they will eat any other lacewing larvae in the cell. [The customer gets] whoever wins." Ankenbruck says with a smile. Lacewing larvae are voracious predators resorting to cannibalism if there is no other prey.
Jan Dietrick demonstrates how to check the larvae by tapping the unit above white paper. Each unit is filled 115% to ensure each of the 500 cells will have a larva. "Our standard is to overfill the units," Dietrick explains. "You have to tap the back really hard, because the little larvae may hold onto the inside of the cells." This same method is used for in-field release of the larvae on infested foliage.
Stacks of Lacewing Larvae Units stand behind the glue board in the assembly room at Rincon Vitova Insectaries in Ventura, Calif., on Wednesday, October 17, 2008. The glue glob on the board has grown layer by layer as a paint roller is used to glue the organdy covers on. Kyra Ankenbruck encountered the glue board in May 2006. "It wasn't much smaller than now," Ankenbruck comments.
Kyra Ankenbruck waters down the floor of the Lacewing Larvae Unit incubation room at Rincon Vitova Insectaries in Ventura, Calif., on Friday, November 14, 2008. In dry weather, watering the floor keeps the high humidity the larvae need. "You wouldn't believe how many we've lost when the Santa Anas [hot California winds], blow in," says Ankenbruck.For more info on Lacewings and their larvae, check out Rincon Vitova's Lacewing Bulliten.
All Images copyright: Bryce Yukio Adolphson © 2008 and may not be reused without express permission.
Product Availability: Week of Nov. 24, Thanksgiving Week
Doing the shipping and receiving for Rincon-Vitova Insectaries, I can say there is a lot involved in moving insects across international borders. For example, permits are required and a special inspection by the USDA during customs procedures. The border crossing time has also been roughly doubled since the creation of the Department of Homeland Security.
We now have a weekly availability report, but it doesn’t list the insects we buy from the insectary in England since availability from that side is never an issue. Regarding Aphidius colemani and Aphidius ervi, Dacnusa, Diglyphus and Eretmocerus species coming from England, if we get our order in to England by Thursday morning, we usually always have them by the next week. I will usually get them in on the following Tuesday and they will ship out from us right away on either the same Tuesday or Wednesday. I only hold them until Wednesday if they are going to travel with other products that fly in from Canada on Wednesdays (Encarsia, Delphastus, Cucumeris, Hypoaspis, and others). However, shipments from England sometimes become waylaid, and this week our box could not get onto the airplane in London.
This is why I encourage our customers wanting insects to be proactive rather than reactive when planning biological controls, because you may run into a SPEED BUMP or something like it. It’s better not to delay in case a problem goes out of control and timing becomes very critical. For instance a customer two weeks back called Thursday afternoon to order Aphidius colemani and the Dacnusa-Diglyphus mix (for leafminers). I get these from England since they aren’t grown commercially in the U.S.A. Since my customer missed the deadline by several hours, the next available shipping date would be two weeks later. In other words, their order unfortunately missed this week’s plane! With a new ship date for Monday or Tuesday of Thanksgiving week there could be also be delays from winter storms as well. I’m just crossing my fingers that it will at least reach them by next Wednesday.
For the weeks of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years this year, the holidays fall on Thursdays. I will make up for that by shipping perishables on Mondays and Tuesdays only during that time. That’s to avoid the possible holiday delays on Thursdays. Shipments normally scheduled for Wednesday will be switched to Monday or Tuesday, and we won’t be importing certain perishable products from Canada on those weeks because they won’t fit in to the accommodations of the holiday schedule.
The availability list will show which products I won’t be able to import from Canada during holiday scheduling.
Once again, when it’s time to bring in the beneficials, don’t procrastinate. With so much else going on, make time to call 800-248-BUGS and get those little working predators on the prowl, procreating and targeting pests before things get bad.
You can also check out our Product Availability Page on RinconVitova.com.
We now have a weekly availability report, but it doesn’t list the insects we buy from the insectary in England since availability from that side is never an issue. Regarding Aphidius colemani and Aphidius ervi, Dacnusa, Diglyphus and Eretmocerus species coming from England, if we get our order in to England by Thursday morning, we usually always have them by the next week. I will usually get them in on the following Tuesday and they will ship out from us right away on either the same Tuesday or Wednesday. I only hold them until Wednesday if they are going to travel with other products that fly in from Canada on Wednesdays (Encarsia, Delphastus, Cucumeris, Hypoaspis, and others). However, shipments from England sometimes become waylaid, and this week our box could not get onto the airplane in London.
This is why I encourage our customers wanting insects to be proactive rather than reactive when planning biological controls, because you may run into a SPEED BUMP or something like it. It’s better not to delay in case a problem goes out of control and timing becomes very critical. For instance a customer two weeks back called Thursday afternoon to order Aphidius colemani and the Dacnusa-Diglyphus mix (for leafminers). I get these from England since they aren’t grown commercially in the U.S.A. Since my customer missed the deadline by several hours, the next available shipping date would be two weeks later. In other words, their order unfortunately missed this week’s plane! With a new ship date for Monday or Tuesday of Thanksgiving week there could be also be delays from winter storms as well. I’m just crossing my fingers that it will at least reach them by next Wednesday.
For the weeks of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years this year, the holidays fall on Thursdays. I will make up for that by shipping perishables on Mondays and Tuesdays only during that time. That’s to avoid the possible holiday delays on Thursdays. Shipments normally scheduled for Wednesday will be switched to Monday or Tuesday, and we won’t be importing certain perishable products from Canada on those weeks because they won’t fit in to the accommodations of the holiday schedule.
The availability list will show which products I won’t be able to import from Canada during holiday scheduling.
Once again, when it’s time to bring in the beneficials, don’t procrastinate. With so much else going on, make time to call 800-248-BUGS and get those little working predators on the prowl, procreating and targeting pests before things get bad.
You can also check out our Product Availability Page on RinconVitova.com.
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