Submit an Article or Photo

Submission Guidelines
We love guest submissions! A few things to keep in mind:
  • Recommendations must be evidence-based and include references
  • Humor is always appreciated
  • Please proof read!
Email articles and photos to:
Amberose Kelley
Community Horticulture Program Assistant
a.kelley@wsu.edu

Deadline
Submissions are due each month on the 25th.

Photos
Photos may be submitted in JPEG form as email attachments. We are interested in the following subjects:
  • Plants
  • Gardens and landscaping
  • Action shots: Master Gardener events, people gardening, and similar
  • Insects, birds, and other garden creatures
When submitting a photo, please include:
1. Name of photographer
2. Description of subject (plant name, event depicted)
3. Date taken (approximate dates are fine)


Events
Please use the following format for event listings.

Name of Event in Bold
Day, Date • Time • Location or Address
Description of Event
Contacts: Name, phone number, email

Articles
Articles may submitted in the main body of an email or as an attached word document. Please do not send PDFs. Please do not include photos in word documents. Instead, add them as email attachments. Indicate where in the article the photos should go. If using images from the internet, we must include credit such as the name of the photographer and/or a link to website where found. Wikipedia galleries can be a good place to find public images. Please include links to any images found on the internet.


Do not indent paragraphs or use any special formatting (change in font size, bold font, etc). Italics for scientific names are fine. Use the following format in size 12, Arial font:

Wireworms and Click Beetles

Most gardeners are familiar with wireworms. We generally associate them as pests on potatoes, sugar beets and other tubers. However, most wireworms play an important role in our environment. Many wireworm species are recyclers and decomposers of forest litter and wood. Only a few species give us grief in our gardens. But, guess what? We have two new species of wireworms in Whatcom County. A survey done by Eric LaGasa (our most awesome WSDA Chief Entomologist) found established populations of Agriotes obscurus and A. lineatus in Whatcom County.

Click beetles, in the family Elateridae,  are the adult wireworms. They are elongate, parallel-sided, compact, streamlined beetles with serrate (saw blade like) antennae. When looking at the beetles from the top, you will recognize that the segment behind the head (pronotum) has corners that are pointed and fit snugly around the corners of the wing covers (elytra). The joint between these two regions is extremely flexible. This is a distinguishing character of adult click beetles. An easier way to ID a click beetle is to roll it over onto its back. If the beetle arches its back and produces a notable clicking sound as it catapults through the air, then you have a click beetle. If not, you just have an upset beetle of another sort on its back. The power conducted by this clicking mechanism is one of the strongest forces produced by a land animal and is used to escape bad situations.

Resources
WSU Extension: Wireworm
http://smallgrains.wsu.edu/wireworm/