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News for citrus growers around the globe
The Georgia Citrus Association (GCA) is organizing an educational tour of citrus operations Kings River Packing and AC Foods in California April 14–17. Kings River Packing is a family-owned citrus grower rooted in California’s Central Valley, with a legacy dating back to 1853. Eight generations later, Kings River Packing has expanded from its original 160-acre homestead to encompass 3,500 acres …
By Maegan Beatty Last month, the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) hosted a citrus insect workshop that covered almost 10 different pests that pose a threat for Florida citrus. Lance Osborne, professor and researcher at the Mid-Florida Research and Education Center, presented research on chilli thrips. Chilli thrips (Scirtothrips dorsalis) can live in over 150 …
It is best for citrus growers to implement a proactive approach to weed management. Being reactive puts producers behind the eight ball with regards to controlling certain weeds in their groves. That’s why Ramdas Kanissery, weed scientist and associate professor at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS), is preaching the importance of pre-emergent herbicides. They …
Registration is now open for the 2025–26 Highlands Youth Citrus Project. This project is for local youth members ages 8 and up as of Sept. 1, 2025. The deadline to register is March 24. Participants can register here. This program is designed to teach youth about the citrus industry by providing all the materials necessary to grow and sell a …
“For the incidence to be zero, the control needs to be 10.” That’s the motto of the new Fundecitrus campaign to mitigate the incidence of citrus greening in Brazil. The campaign highlights the need for strict control of the greening-spreading psyllid, especially in new regions where citrus farming is advancing. Those regions include the states of Mato Grosso do Sul, …
By Megan Dewdney Citrus canker can contribute significantly to the loss of fruit prior to harvest. As bloom begins in Florida, it is time to finalize management plans for foliar diseases. For many growers, very aggressive canker management programs are no longer a possibility, however, some management is important. Citrus canker susceptibility of young fruitlets usually starts at the end …
Mexico’s production of lemons/limes and grapefruit are forecast in a U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA/FAS) report to increase in 2024–25 compared to the prior year. LEMONS/LIMES The lemon/lime production forecast for 2024–25 is 3.5 million metric tons (MMT), an 8% increase from the previous year. The forecast for lemon/lime planted area in 2024–25 is 223,500 hectares, up …
By Peter Chaires The 2024–25 citrus season is another challenging one for Florida’s valued citrus nurseries. Uncertainty has been the consummate challenge for nurseries trying to anticipate grower needs. One large nursery grower recently interviewed believes that door-yard propagations are now nearing commercial propagations. Who would have ever thought we would see this happen? However, after a dismal 2022–23 propagation …
Now is the time for Florida citrus growers to implement management tactics to control the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP), the insect that vectors citrus greening, also known as huanglongbing (HLB). ACPs are currently in low populations across Florida’s citrus-producing region. That means growers should act now to protect their crop from the insect’s impact, says Chris Oswalt, University of Florida …
Eating an orange a day may lower a person’s depression risk by 20%, according to a study led by Raaj Mehta, an instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School. Mehta is also a physician at Massachusetts General Hospital. Mehta said a postdoctoral student he was working with found a 2016 paper pointing to the possibility that citrus lowers the risk …
Citrus greening disease, also known as huanglongbing (HLB), is not yet widespread in Georgia. However, there’s no reason to think that it won’t become more of a problem for the state’s citrus growers. Lindy Savelle, executive director of the Georgia Citrus Association (GCA), hopes it doesn’t happen but cautions growers about the disease’s potential beyond Florida. “Something we have to …
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA/FAS) has projected increased production of Moroccan oranges, orange juice (OJ) and lemons/limes in 2024–25 compared to the prior season. ORANGES For 2024–25, orange production in Morocco is expected to increase by 17%, reaching 960,000 metric tons (MT). Area planted is projected at 58,300 hectares, up from 58,200 hectares in 2023–24. USDA/FAS …
A tool predicting how to protect European citrus from HLB shows how mathematical modeling can help prepare for future plant disease invasions. Europe is currently unaffected by HLB. However, there are increased concerns of an infestation since psyllids that spread HLB have been found in key citrus-producing countries, including Portugal and Spain. In response to the HLB threat, a new …
The Highlands County Citrus Growers Association hosted its annual banquet on March 6 in Sebring. The event drew a good crowd to catch up on the association’s activities. Two of the featured speakers during the event discussed alternative trunk-injection therapies to the current standard of oxytetracycline (OTC). Tanishka Aglave, a sophomore at Strawberry Crest High School, received the H. Robert …
The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) recently announced the expansion in Orange County of an emergency program for HLB and the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) that spreads the disease. The expansion follows confirmation throughout January of the causative bacterial agent of HLB in plant tissue and/or ACP in Anaheim, Costa Mesa, Garden Grove, Irvine, Mission Viejo, Orange, Santa …
SHOW ADDRESS The Florida Citrus Show will be held in the parking lot between the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Indian River Research and Education Center (2199 South Rock Road) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory (USDA-ARS, 2001 South Rock Road) in Fort Pierce. PARKING Show parking …
Total U.S. citrus production levels are projected to continue their long-term decline over the next several years before stabilizing through 2034, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). It attributed that expected trend to declining orange and grapefruit production alongside increasing production of lemons and tangerines. The projections for all U.S. commodities are in USDA Agricultural Projections to 2034, …
The March citrus forecast from the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA/NASS) calls for slight increases in Florida’s orange and grapefruit crops compared to the prior season. Florida’s lemon and tangerine/mandarin forecasts were unchanged from February’s forecast. FLORIDA ORANGES The Florida all-orange forecast rose 1%, or 100,000 boxes, from the February forecast to 11.6 million boxes. The …
By Megan Dewdney Despite being in a transition from a La Niña to a neutral El Niño Southern Oscillation phase, Florida has not had warmer than average temperatures in the last two weeks from March 3. Looking at historical trends, temperatures for the last two weeks of February were in the normal range for this time of year. When looking …
Halle Burton of Gainesville was crowned the 2025 Miss Florida Citrus on March 8 in Winter Haven. The 21-year-old is pursuing a bachelor of science degree in public relations at the University of Florida (UF). Burton works as a public relations intern for UF’s Office of Strategic Communications, reports for UF News and interns as a social media content creator …
