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News for citrus growers around the globe
Michael Rogers, director of the Citrus Research and Education Center, discusses HLB research and education programs being conducted by the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS). “The goal of our IFAS citrus program continues to be to provide growers with the most up-to-date information that they can use to help maintain or increase the production of …
Results show promise for organic groves, but more research is needed. Since it was first discovered in the United States in 2005, the bacterial disease known as citrus greening, or Huanglongbing, has devastated millions of acres of citrus crops throughout this country and abroad, ravaging citrus groves in Asia, Africa and South America. Citrus greening has impacted conventional and organic …
The January All In For Citrus Podcast includes a breakdown of what’s planned for citrus research in 2019, an update from citrus Extension, a goodbye message from an industry leader and the newest cutting-edge research in fighting citrus pathogens. Sponsored ContentTake Advantage of Rising Temperatures to Treat for Fire AntsJuly 1, 2025Take the Sting Out of Fire AntsJune 1, 2025A …
Huanglongbing (HLB) may have been found in significantly more citrus trees in 2018, but improved sampling and monitoring offer a reason as to why HLB detections increased so dramatically. In 2018, the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Program (CPDPP) redoubled efforts to limit the spread of HLB and its vector, the Asian citrus psyllid …
By Brenda Eubanks Burnette Editor’s note: Citrus Industry is pleased to welcome back Pieces of the Past to the pages of the magazine after publishing it on CitrusIndustry.net for the past year. This popular citrus history column returns to the magazine in preparation for Citrus Industry magazine’s 100th anniversary in January 2020. Leading up to the anniversary, each Pieces of …
According to Mike Sparks, Florida Citrus Mutual executive vice president/CEO, Block Grant Administrator Elias Mathes will be in the Florida citrus industry next week and available to discuss the status and/or payment of growers’ block grant claims. Locations and time frames are as follows: Jan. 23, Bartow, Citrus Mutual Offices, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Jan. 24, Sebring, Highlands …
“Postbloom fruit drop (PFD) season is coming upon us fairly quickly,” plant pathologist Megan Dewdney said in summarizing a presentation she made Jan. 16 in Immokalee, Florida. “Growers should be planning on keeping an eye on the rain forecast … how much bloom they are having now, how much bloom they’ll have in two (to) three weeks, and keeping an …
Many citrus growers think integrated pest management (IPM) is all about reducing pesticide use. Not so, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences entomologist Lukasz Stelinski told growers recently. “IPM is a system to achieve sustainable agriculture, and it’s very much based in economics, where a damage threshold or economic injury level is identified,” Stelinski said. Once a …
It’s time to prepare for implementation of the Produce Safety Rule. By Travis Chapin, Michelle Danyluk and Keith Schneider In preparation for implementing the Food Safety Modernization Act’s Produce Safety Rule (PSR), growers, harvesters and packers of fresh citrus are required to attend standardized food-safety training, such as the Produce Safety Alliance (PSA) grower training course, which outlines the minimum …
University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences researcher Xavier Martini recommends planting windbreaks on two or more sides of citrus groves. He gave this advice to growers at a recent Citrus Insect Management Workshop in Lake Alfred, Florida. Martini said windbreaks do a good job of keeping canker and HLB-spreading psyllids out of groves. The trees also help …
New California Governor Gavin Newsom has reappointed Karen Ross, 67, of Sacramento, as secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA). The state cabinet-level department was established in 1919 to promote and protect a safe, healthy food supply, local and global agricultural trade, and environmental stewardship. Ross successfully served as CDFA secretary under Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. …
A shift toward reduced use of insecticides in Florida groves could lead to the emergence of pests that haven’t generally been a problem for years, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) entomologist Lauren Diepenbrock said. Pests that could return or emerge in the face of reduced insecticide use include scales, mealybugs, false spider mites and fruit …
University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) entomologist Lukasz Stelinski suggested ways growers can cut psyllid control costs. He summarized key points he made in a talk at a Jan. 8 Citrus Insect Management Workshop at the Citrus Research and Education Center in Lake Alfred. Stelinski credited the late UF/IFAS entomologist Phil Stansly for determining that psyllid …
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio implored Florida’s new governor Tuesday to start spreading disaster-relief money approved nearly a year ago to address massive citrus-industry damage from Hurricane Irma in 2017. Rubio said in a letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis that money in a $343 million block grant needs to be disbursed to citrus growers. Rubio said the federal government shutdown has …
The Jan. 11 citrus crop forecast has been postponed due to the federal government shutdown, reports Bill Curtis, agricultural statistics administrator for the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Division of Fruit and Vegetables. “Our office is currently closed, and we do not have access to any USDA information,” says Curtis. “Mark Hudson’s (Florida state statistician) federal phone has …
An analysis by California Citrus Mutual (CCM) indicates there is no major impact at the present time on government programs that affect California’s citrus industry. This could change if the shutdown drags on, however. According to the report, “Our major priority would be the ACP/HLB program sometimes known as CHRP (Citrus Health Response Program). We are not suffering any major …
Nutrient deficiencies are common in HLB-affected trees, which make up the vast majority of Florida citrus trees. At a recent Citrus Nutrition Day in Bartow, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences researcher Arnold Schumann discussed ways to identify and avoid nutrient deficiencies. A common identification method for nutrient deficiencies is direct observation, “walking through your grove, …
When the next frost threatens Florida’s crops, growers will do their best to make sure your favorite foods are protected from the potentially crippling chill, say University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) experts. For example, citrus growers use wind machines and microsprinklers to ensure freezing temperatures don’t ruin the fruit, said Chris Oswalt, a multi-county citrus …
By Lauren Diepenbrock While Asian citrus psyllids (ACP) are an ongoing concern in Florida citrus due to their role in spreading the bacterium associated with citrus greening, they are not the only pest of concern to growers. Citrus leafminer (CLM) and root weevils are two pests that have been raising concerns and adding to the challenge of managing productive citrus …
A primary job for scientists breeding citrus in Uruguay is to help the approximately 42,000-acre industry develop fresh fruit for export, Fernando Rivas said at a recent international citrus breeders symposium in Lake Alfred, Florida. Rivas works for Uruguay’s National Institute of Agricultural Research. On. Dec. 4, Rivas told an audience of about 70 at the Citrus Research and Education …
