In the March episode of the All In For Citrus podcast, Tripti Vashisth, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Citrus Research and Education Center assistant director, discusses demands that the recent freeze and ongoing drought have been putting on trees. Both factors heighten the importance of irrigation and fertilization.
Vashisth notes the freeze knocked a lot of leaves off trees, which redirects resources toward flush and setting fruit at the same time. This is all occurring as significant drought impacts Florida.
“We are in this drought, but at the same time, we are seeing a lot of new growth happening,” Vashisth says. “And there is a lot of fruit set or flowering happening … We should be thinking about what we can do to help these leaves flush … Irrigation is going to be very important.”
Vashisth says increasing the frequency of irrigation is critical during this period to replenish water lost to new growth. She recommends daily irrigation where possible.
“If you cannot do every day, do your best. But make sure the trees are not experiencing any water deficit because the fruit set is going to determine how much fruit you will eventually have,” she says. “The fruit that experiences more water deficit are going to have developmental defects, and these fruit will be the ones that will eventually drop. So, it’s really important that we focus on the irrigation as frequent as possible — not more water, the same amount of water, but more frequently applied.”
According to Vashisth, compost can help Florida’s sandy soils retain moisture and nutrients. A cytokinin-type product like seaweed applied during the flush and fruit set period also is beneficial.
Don’t miss the March episode of All In For Citrus to learn more production tips during flush. The podcast is a partnership between UF/IFAS and AgNet Media.
Share this Post