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Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Florida”
In the latest episode of the All In For Citrus podcast, Michael Rogers, director of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Citrus Research and Education Center, previews two upcoming events citrus growers will want to attend. The first is a Finger Lime Symposium. The half-day event will be held virtually from 1 p.m. to 5 …
By Ernie Neff In every Florida citrus community, there are many growers who have been close friends most of their lives. They grew up in the country or small cities not far from each other, went to the same high schools and know the same people. They share the struggles — and before HLB, the joys — of growing citrus. …
There has been quite a bit of interest in the Citrus Research and Field Trials (CRAFT) program. During the Florida Citrus Show held in Fort Pierce in late January, a panel of citrus growers discussed projects they have been approved to conduct under CRAFT. Tamara Wood, executive director of the CRAFT Foundation, moderated the panel and provided an update on …
South Georgia and North Florida industry leaders preached diversification to citrus growers at the Georgia Citrus Association annual conference. The event took place Feb. 28 at the University of Georgia (UGA) Tifton Conference Center. No longer should satsuma mandarins be the crop of choice for potential growers. There are other viable options for farmers to choose from, said Lindy Savelle, …
The horticultural characteristics of new citrus varieties are important, especially in the era of HLB when disease tolerance is critical. But how the fruit tastes and other consumer attributes are equally important. That’s why citrus variety display days are vital in citrus breeding. The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Citrus Research and Education Center in …
Fruit drop has plagued Florida citrus groves in recent years. The problem has been a major factor in tumbling yields. The February 2022 U.S. Department of Agriculture’s citrus crop forecast put Florida’s orange estimate at 43.5 million boxes. If realized, it would represent an 18% decline in the crop from last season. Growers are turning over every stone to seek …
By Ben Albritton Florida’s farmers depend on healthy soil and clean water to produce crops. It’s how my family has grown citrus, strawberries and cattle for more than four generations. The quality of our natural resources has a direct impact on our crops and livelihood. I am a fifth-generation Floridian who was raised by a line of farmers, ranchers and …
Citrus acreage continues to increase across the North Florida, South Georgia and South Alabama regions. Interest has expanded to large row crop farmers, who see citrus as a viable alternative crop, said Kim Jones at the Feb. 17 Citrus Health Forum meeting at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences North Florida Research and Education Center. Jones …
By Megan Dewdney Mid-summer to fall has become algal spot season in my office. The disease is re-emerging in Florida for unknown reasons. While much of the year algal spot is low key and hard to spot, between June and September it is very obvious. So, what is algal spot, should you be concerned, and what can you do about …
Florida’s projected 2021–22 orange crop was reduced by 1 million boxes, to 43.5 million boxes, in the February citrus crop forecast from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service. The forecast was released Feb. 9. The entire orange reduction was in the to-be-harvested Valencia crop, which was reduced 4% to 26 million boxes. The forecast for non-Valencia …
The Florida Department of Citrus (FDOC) showed its “The Original Wellness Drink” videos about Florida orange juice (OJ) within major airports during the holiday season. These 15- and 30-second videos played throughout multiple markets via airports in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, New York, Orlando, Tampa/Sarasota and Washington, D.C. The ads ran from Thanksgiving week through New Year’s Eve, targeting at …
The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) on Feb. 3 activated the Business Damage Assessment Survey to assess the impact freezing temperatures had on the state’s agriculture businesses. Survey responses will allow the state to gather data and evaluate resources that impacted businesses may need to recover after the freezing weather that occurred the weekend of Jan. 28–30. “The agriculture …
By Megan Dewdney The 2021 foliar fungal season was an easier than average year. The La Niña weather pattern predicted last fall came to pass, and the spring was relatively dry from January to the end of May with some rain in February and April. While citrus trees in Florida were likely drought-stressed, the dry weather slowed the usual decomposition …
Individual protective covers (IPCs) on citrus trees have become a more common sight in Florida groves in recent years. The bags that cover young trees exclude the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) from feeding on the plants, thus protecting them from HLB. Some estimates suggest that more than 1 million IPCs are now deployed in the state’s citrus groves. During the …
In response to citrus damage from a late January freeze, the Florida Citrus Commission (FCC) on Feb. 3 lowered the minimum ratio requirement for oranges to 8.5:1 with a minimum Brix of 8 for fresh and processed fruit. Florida Citrus Mutual (FCM), the state’s largest citrus grower association, asked for the emergency action on Jan. 31. FCM CEO Mike Sparks …
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Feb. 2 issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency in many counties where citrus and other agricultural commodities were affected by a Jan. 28–30 freeze. It specifically gives state officials authority to relax restrictions on commercial vehicles to facilitate an emergency harvest. “The relaxation of the restrictions on commercial vehicles is necessary to …
Citrus leprosis has not been reported in Florida since 1968, but researcher Ozgur Batuman called it “an approaching threat to Florida citrus” in a recent virtual seminar. Batuman, a citrus pathologist at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Southwest Florida Research and Education Center, urged growers to be on the lookout for the disease. According …
Cold temperatures the mornings of Jan. 29 and Jan. 30 did more citrus damage than an initial report indicated, Highlands County Citrus Growers Association Executive Director Ray Royce said. Royce issued the following update on Feb. 1: “The coldest weather in at least four to five years has left much more damage behind in parts of the South-Central Florida region …
The Georgia and Florida citrus industries reportedly came through the Sunday morning freeze with no significant widespread damage. In Florida, temperatures in the 20s were the coldest most groves had experienced in several years. “Everything looks good,” said Lindy Savelle, president of the Georgia Citrus Association. “We got some burn on the top of trees, but very little.” Most of …
Growers gathered in Fort Pierce last week for the Florida Citrus Show. More than 30 presentations and panel discussions were held during the two-day event. Topics covered included production, technology and markets. With the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) predicting the smallest citrus crop in more than 70 years, urgency to seek solutions to HLB was high on the agenda. …
