Japanese Beetles: Have They Invaded Your Garden?

The University of Missouri Extension service says the ravenous pests are rearing their heads and gardeners should be wary.

Japanese beetles are invading, according to the University of Missouri Extension service, and gardeners should be on the lookout. The service said the beetles are about three weeks early in Missouri. “Certainly we need to be looking at this point,” said Wayne Bailey, a state entomologist for University of Missouri Extension, in a statement. “These beetles are gregarious feeders, so if you have one, a lot will come in." He said the critters send out chemical signals to their brothers and sisters that the feeding is good, drawing more beetles to gardens. The extension services maintains records of Japanese beetle counts from traps in St. Charles County and other surrounding areas. Counts in the two monitored traps in St. Charles County show …

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New Television Series to Feature St. Louis, Wash U

Cedric the Entertainer's show "The Soul Man" to showcase his hometown. Viewers can search the TVLand show for Washington University, Mizzou and other local references.

Bestselling Books

Kiss the Dead Atop the Bestseller List

Check out the best-selling books in five St. Louis metro area bookstores for the week ending June 10.

Here's a roundup of the best-selling books in five St. Louis-area independent bookstores from the week ending June 10. The bookstores include Subterranean Books in University City, Sue's News at the St. Louis Galleria, Left Bank Books in the Central West End, Main Street Books in St. Charles and Pudd'nhead Books in Webster Groves.  Adults Children/Young Adult

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Caterpillars Have Taken to Walking Now

Caterpillars emerge from their tents and are seeking a cocoon location. Then, this fall, they will re-emerge as moths.

Have you seen those spider web-like "baskets"  in tree limbs throughout the St. Louis area? Take a close look at the mostly impenetrable web structure and you'll see Eastern Tent Caterpillars, whose diet consists of leaves on the tree they have built their tents on. In recent days, many of the tent caterpillars have left their cozy abodes and are walking around on driveways and backyard decks and patios, looking for a place to build a cocoon. According to the University of Missouri Extension Service website, the Eastern Tent Caterpillar is a native defoliator that occurs as far west as the Rocky Mountains. The Extension Service website also indicates the preferred tree hosts for the caterpillar are wild cherry, apple and crabapple, but it …

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