Page 3 - Wright Special News Today

Judy Wright Special to The Citizen Many areas of central and western New York are preparing for another outbreak of gypsy moths later this summer. Gypsy moths made news headlines last year due to their significant defoliation of trees. Last year was the worst outbreak observed in western New York since 1985, which lasted into 1989. Gypsy moth populations remain low for a number of years and then, for some reason, the population skyrockets. Most outbreaks last two to four years. When...

Judy Wright Special to The Citizen May is Lyme Disease Awareness Month! Lyme disease is a bacterial infection spread from the bite of a tick infected with the bacteria. Unfortunately, Lyme disease and several other tick-borne diseases have been increasing in New York through an increase in tick numbers, a warming climate and humans coming in contact with them. Fortunately, not all ticks are a health threat to humans. There are an estimated 1,000 named species of ticks worldwide and ...

Judy Wright Special to The Citizen In spite of the up and down temperatures this spring, we will soon be enjoying the outdoors with each other — and, unfortunately, the pesky mosquito. As I have mentioned previously, everything in nature has a purpose. It just so happens that mosquitoes, while annoying to humans and other mammals, are an excellent food source for many birds. Hummingbirds happen to be one of the biggest consumers of mosquitoes. The word "mosquito" is Spanish for...

Judy Wright Special to The Citizen Hopefully everyone recognizes that old medications, whether they are prescription or over-the-counter, should not be flushed down the toilet. The good news is April 24, 2021, is the 19th Drug Enforcement Agency National Prescription Drug Take Back Day. The DEA is an agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. There has been concern about pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) being detected in drinking water for several decades. In 2010, ...

Judy Wright Special to The Citizen Lawn mowing season is not too far away. The past few days of warm weather, sunshine and rain have really brought the grass plants out of their winter dormancy. Mowing the lawn gives many of us a reason to go outdoors after being cooped up from both a long winter and the continued need for social distancing. Here are some considerations to keep in mind to achieve the best results for both the lawn and the environment. Lawns are described as an open ...

Many celebrated the relatively light winter we had, with less snow to shovel; however, we are seeing the effects of reduced rain and snow. Much of the Finger Lakes area,

Judy Wright Special to The Citizen The melting snow and warmer temperatures are a sign that winter is winding down. We are also starting to experience potholes springing up in our roads and parking lots. While we always seem to complain about the condition of the roads we travel, there was a time when roads in the U.S. were in worse condition than they are today. Those poor road conditions were due to improper construction, maintenance and drainage. According to the Cornell Local Ro...

Judy Wright Special to The Citizen The 33,438 farms in New York state are a vital economic component of the state’s economy and are part of the 2 million farms in the United States. Every five years, the United States Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service completes a Census of Agriculture, with the most recent one conducted in 2017. Significant amounts of data are collected from participating farms and then intensively analyzed, with the findings ma...

Judy Wright Special to The Citizen Japanese knotweed, also called Japanese bamboo, is a member of the buckwheat family of plants. Initially introduced as an ornamental plant from eastern Asia in the late 1800s, it was also briefly used for erosion control due to its extensive underground root structure. Once sold through seed and plant catalogues, it was soon recognized as a problem during the 1930s, when it started appearing where not planted. This invasive plant can grow up to 15 ...

Judy Wright Special to The Citizen There seems to be some confusion about various terms related to weather, climate and warming. During conversations we will interchange these terms, and then it seems to really muddy the waters regarding what is happening to our environment. "Global warming" is a term that many shy away from using, but in reality it is used to tell us what is happening globally. In this case, the increase of the average temperature globally. While there may be local...