Spectrum News interviewed Jim Dill, University of Maine Cooperative Extension associate program administrator in pest management, on how Maine’s clean, running water is contributing to a longer black fly season. “Once the Clean Water Act came into play, the rivers and streams in the state of Maine and other areas got cleaner and cleaner and […]

Spectrum News interviewed Jim Dill, University of Maine Cooperative Extension associate program administrator in pest management, on the presence and potential threat of West Nile Virus, a mosquito-borne illness, found in a wild bird in York County. “There are years when we say ‘Oh, it’s a dry year, a concentration of birds near the water […]

The Portland Press Herald interviewed Griffin Dill, integrated pest management specialist at University of Maine Cooperative Extension, on trends happening in tick populations and the diseases they carry this summer in Maine. Dill, who manages UMaine Extension’s Tick Lab, said the hot, humid weather and rainfall this summer has contributed to the increase in the […]

Better Homes & Gardens interviewed Jonathan Foster, home horticulture outreach professional with University of Maine Cooperative Extension, about the types of fruit trees that grow well indoors. Foster recommends Ponderosa and Meyer lemons, calamondin oranges, tangerines and kumquats. “They are adaptable and do well growing in confined spaces,” he said.

The Bangor Daily News interviewed Jim Dill, University of Maine Extension professor and associate program administrator in pest management, on the emergence of Japanese beetles in Maine and the threat they pose to gardens. Japanese beetle reports have started trickling in over the last week, and appear unevenly distributed across the state, Dill said.

Martha Stewart Living interviewed Ankit Singh, University of Maine Cooperative Extension assistant professor and Maine sustainable agriculture and ornamental horticulture educator, on the ineffectiveness of buying ladybugs for a garden as opposed to naturally attracting them. While ladybugs are natural predators of many common garden pests, buying and releasing them into a garden is usually […]

WABI (Channel 5) linked to the Wild Blueberry Fact Sheet from University of Maine Cooperative Extension in a story on Williams Family Farm in Clifton prepping for the picking season. According to the fact sheet, Maine is the world’s largest producer of wild blueberries, with it being one of four native fruits to the Pine […]

The Portland Press Herald interviewed David Handley, a vegetable and small fruit specialist at University of Maine Cooperative Extension, on how U-pick farms derived as a way for farmers to sell high value crops without having to pay workers to harvest them. “It was mostly Depression-era children who liked a bargain and were willing to […]

The Bangor Daily News interviewed Manjot Sidhu, University of Maine Cooperative Extension assistant Extension professor of horticulture and ornamental horticulture specialist, on the springtime conditions for growing crops this year. In an ideal world for crops, temperatures would gradually increase from the 40s to the 70s between April and June, Sidhu said.