Funding Available for More CRAFT Plantings

The Citrus Research and Field Trial (CRAFT) Foundation board of directors has approved the opening of a supplemental Program for Expedited Propagation (PEP) Solid Set Planting application window. The application link is live here. Applications are due by 5:00 p.m. on April 30.

PEP projects must be solid-set plantings of scions released as part of the Florida Department of Citrus- and Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services-funded PEP. The plantings must be between 20 and 50 acres. For this round, applicants must select one of the following options:

Option A: Growers must plant two of the three following early varieties and a control (up to 20% of total project):

1. Lennon Early R20-T30 (Parson Brown)
2. Lennon Early R21-T36 (Hamlin)
3. Hamlin N14-10

Option B: Growers must plant both of the following late varieties and a control (up to 20% of total project).

1. Sweet Orange UF OLL-DC-3-36
2. Sweet Orange UF OLL-DC-3-40

All scions must be on the same rootstock, but growers may choose the rootstock they prefer. All other requirements within the CRAFT program remain applicable.

Approved growers will receive participation payments of $6,000 per acre over the course of their six-year agreements. The full program rules and a payment schedule are available on the CRAFT website.

Growers who have questions or want additional information about the program may contact CRAFT Executive Director Steven Hall at Steven@craftfdn.org, Assistant Program Manager Tina Buice at Tina@craftfdn.org or Scientific Coordinator Carisa Keller at Carisa@craftfdn.org.

When HLB was discovered in Florida in 2005, experts identified the need for comprehensive field testing of HLB management practices to evaluate their efficacy. The Florida citrus industry did not have a mechanism to direct and manage a broad-scale field-trial program at that time. That mechanism, the CRAFT Foundation, was incorporated in 2019. It is a direct support organization of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry. Learn about CRAFT’s formative days here. 

Source: CRAFT

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