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News for citrus growers around the globe
On January 16, Juanita Popenoe will become the University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension fruit production agent for Lake, Marion and Orange counties. For the past 13 years, she has been an Extension agent in Lake County working with commercial ornamental horticulture. Popenoe says she is “going back to my roots working with fruit. Although (I am) …
Ed Pines’ solution to citrus greening is to grow fruit in a citrus undercover production system. By Catalina Pines “It’s said that necessity is the mother of all invention, and today I toured one way the citrus industry is fighting back against greening,” said Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam on Twitter after touring Precision Citrus on September 23. In …
California recently passed a state law designed to combat the spread of an Asian citrus pest. All citrus loads transported through California now must be covered, no matter where it’s coming from or where it’s headed. Sponsored ContentA Simpler, Safer and More Effective Way to Fight HLBOctober 25, 20245 Facts About Fire Ants and How to Control ThemApril 30, 2024BRAZILIAN …
CHMAs have proven to be an effective strategy for psyllid control, so why isn’t there more grower participation? By Ariel Singerman and Pilar Useche It has long been recognized that mobile pests with the ability to move between farms compromise the effectiveness of individual (uncoordinated) sprays. This is because neighboring growers share the pest and, therefore, crop damage is dependent …
A panel of the Citrus Research and Development Foundation (CRDF) in December discussed combining thermotherapy and bactericides in field trials in an effort to fight HLB. Most Florida growers used bactericides throughout 2016, and several growers have experimented with thermotherapy over the last few years. CRDF Chief Operations Officer Harold Browning discusses the concept of combining the two HLB therapies: …
University of Florida researcher Jude Grosser told growers about new HLB-tolerant scions at this summer’s Citrus Expo. He summarizes his discussion in this report. “Without question, the most tolerant scion that we have is a fresh market tangelo that we call Sugar Belle,” Grosser says. “It’s very similar to Minneola, but matures a little bit earlier and so it can …
By Arnold Schumann, Laura Waldo and Alan Wright Research for producing huanglongbing (HLB)-free fresh Florida citrus with covered production systems began at the University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Indian River Research and Education Center in 2013 and at the Citrus Research and Education Center (CREC) in 2014. These citrus undercover production systems (CUPS) evolved from the …
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Renowned University of Florida genomics and photobiology researcher Kevin Folta has been named 2016 Pro Farmer Ag Person of the Year. Folta is professor and chair of the horticulture sciences department at the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. “Dr. Folta has been a leader in the fight against the anti-GMO movement for years,” said Chip …
A new year is just around the corner and so is the next issue of Citrus Industry magazine. The January issue features a cover story on Callie Walker, chief of the Bureau of Pest Eradication and Control for the Florida Department of Agriculture. Learn about Walker’s deep roots in citrus and what she is doing about the abandoned grove problem. …
Observations and lessons learned from a recent citrus grower tour By Stephen H. Futch In June 2016, a group of Florida citrus growers and industry representatives embarked on a trip to tour the Brazilian citrus industry. The primary purpose of the trip was to learn more about how huanglongbing (HLB or citrus greening) is being managed in Brazil and how …
Many Florida citrus growers consider the bactericides that they’ve been applying this year to be their best hope in the fight against HLB. Temporary use of the bactericides was approved this spring by Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam. The industry is seeking Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approval for continued use of the products. Harold Browning, chief operations officer of …
Florida citrus growers are dealing with yet another problem. Gary Crawford reports this time it’s a prolonged period of dry weather. Sponsored ContentA Simpler, Safer and More Effective Way to Fight HLBOctober 25, 20245 Facts About Fire Ants and How to Control ThemApril 30, 2024BRAZILIAN RESEARCH RESULTS IN A UNIQUE PRODUCT FOR HLB MANAGEMENTApril 1, 2024
Rick Lusher, project manager for the Florida Automated Weather Network (FAWN), won’t predict whether there’ll be a citrus freeze this season. But he did tell growers in Sebring on December 15 what weather the federal government is expecting through freeze season. “The most recent three-month outlook that NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) provides shows above normal temperatures and below …
An official with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) recently visited some citrus growers in the Panhandle, north of the traditional Florida citrus belt. Callie Walker, chief of the FDACS Bureau of Pest Eradication and Control, shares her impressions of the fledgling industry. “I was in Perry, Florida; we were looking at citrus production,” Walker said. “A …
By Marcos Fava Neves During the last five years, I was involved in a study that examined data in depth about the world’s orange juice (OJ) consumption. This study, led by Markestrat, gathers data from Citrus BR associates, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Tetrapak, Compass, Nielsen, Planet Retail and other recognized international organizations that collect data. The analysis was performed in …
Improved training and minimum age requirements will help protect people and the environment. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is finalizing standards for applicators who apply restricted-use pesticides that are not available for purchase by the general public, and require special handling. “We are committed to keeping our communities safe, protecting our environment and protecting workers and their families,” said …
Jim Ellis of Bartow, Mike Sparks of Apollo Beach and the late T. Ralph Robinson will be inducted into the Florida Citrus Hall of Fame on March 10 at Florida Southern College in Lakeland. Ellis has been a grower, packer, industry representative and historian. He currently works for the Division of Fruit and Vegetables in the Florida Department of Agriculture …
Fifteen early career scientists at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Scientists (UF/IFAS) have been awarded grants to help solve global issues such as thwarting invasive pests, improving crop varieties, battling citrus greening and preserving our environment. Sponsored ContentA Simpler, Safer and More Effective Way to Fight HLBOctober 25, 20245 Facts About Fire Ants and How to …
Mark Hudson, of the U.S. Department of Agriculture/National Agricultural Statistics Service, reported the December citrus crop forecast. Florida has no changes in non-Valencia or Valencia oranges. Grapefruit for the month dropped from 9.6 to 9.3 million boxes with white at 2 million boxes and red at 7.3 million boxes each. Tangerines and tangelos changed from 1.55 to 1.5 million boxes, …
Although a field trial indicates that microbial soil amendments didn’t seem to help trees with HLB, the trial project manager sees a take-home message for growers. That message is that “well-managed trees can continue getting along OK,” says Jim Syvertsen, a scientist with the Citrus Research and Development Foundation. Syvertsen summarizes results he presented at a recent field day in …
