Axe ’Em, Jacks!
NACOGDOCHES, Texas — Stephen F. Austin State University’s SFA Gardens will host the monthly Les and Theresa Reeves Lecture Series at 7 p.m. April 14 in the Brundrett Conservation Education Building at the Pineywoods Native Plant Center, located at 2900 Raguet St.
Dr. Mengmeng Gu, professor and ornamental extension specialist in the Department of Horticultural Sciences at Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service in College Station, will present “Do We Need to Be Scared of Crape Myrtle Bark Scale?”
A relatively new exotic scale pest, bark scale is threatening the utility and aesthetics of crape myrtles in the urban landscapes of Texas and surrounding states. Gu, who leads the multidisciplinary, multistate effort to manage this type of bark scale, will present a brief history of the pest in Texas and surrounding areas, as well as discuss its symptoms, life cycle and extermination.
Gu earned her doctorate in plant sciences and horticulture from the University of Arkansas and worked as an assistant professor at Mississippi State University before moving to Texas in 2012. The liaison between the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the Texas Nursery and Landscape Association, Gu serves on the TNLA Education Committee and the Parks and Patio Task Force. In addition to crape myrtle bark scale, her research interests include sustainable practices in horticulture production and landscapes, such as container substrate research.
The Theresa and Les Reeves Lecture Series is held the second Thursday of each month. It is preceded by an attendee social at 6:30 p.m., and a rare plant raffle will follow the program. The lecture is free and open to the public, but donations to the Theresa and Les Reeves Lecture Series fund are always appreciated.
Parking is available at the PNPC and Raguet Elementary School, located at 2428 Raguet St.
For more information, call (936) 468-4129 or email sfagardens@sfasu.edu.