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Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Tip of the Week”
By Tripti Vashisth, Taylor Livingston and Jamie Burrow Canopy density is one of the most effective measurements to assess tree health of HLB-affected trees. Canopy density accurately distinguished between high and low fruit-producing trees in field trials, whereas CLas Ct value has been found to not be correlated with fruit yield. Many new tools such as nutrient management guidelines, plant …
By Muhammad Shahid Winter freeze is the main threat to the emerging citrus industry in North Florida, South Georgia and Southeast Alabama. Growers use microsprinkler irrigation as a freeze-protection strategy to protect the graft union of young trees, but it is not very effective in protecting aboveground plant parts in established trees. PLANT PROTECTIONUse of stress-mitigating substances could be an …
By Lukasz Stelinski Here are some basic guidelines that growers can follow to manage pests successfully and economically in their groves: Take-home messages include the following: Lukasz Stelinski is a professor at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Citrus Research and Education Center in Lake Alfred. Sponsored ContentTake Advantage of Rising Temperatures to Treat for Fire AntsJuly …
By Davie Kadyampakeni, Lorenzo Rossi and Alan Wright Huanglongbing (HLB) disease lowers tree performance by reducing water and nutrient uptake as a result of root loss. HLB-affected trees have a fibrous root loss of about 30% to 80%, which increases as disease symptoms develop in the canopy. Investigating optimal nutrient concentrations in citrus roots thus improves the understanding of HLB …
By Xavier Martini and Romain Exilien Despite intensive control efforts, the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP), the vector of Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus, the bacteria causing citrus greening, remains the most devastating pest of citrus. The ACP typically relies on tactile, visual and odor cues to detect its host. By combining an irritant, a visual masking and a true repellent, University of Florida …
By Fernando Alferez, Ute Albrecht, Ozgur Batuman, Jawwad Qureshi and Saoussen Ben Abdallah Individual protective covers (IPCs), which are psyllid-exclusion mesh bags, are increasingly being adopted to efficiently protect newly planted citrus trees from huanglongbing (HLB) infection. However, IPCs typically must be removed after two to three years due to tree growth. Early evidence indicates that brassinosteroids (Brs), a relatively …
By Tripti Vashisth Florida flower bud induction advisories for the upcoming season start on Nov. 15. These advisories will be published biweekly until March 30, 2024. The goals of flower bud advisories are to inform growers about the status of the tree in respect to floral bud induction and to predict bloom. This is critical information since the horticultural practices …
By Megan Dewdney, Mark A. Ritenour and Liliana M. Cano In the last few years, 89% of Florida grapefruit growers have struggled with a disorder that they refer to as greasy-green, leading to losses between $20,000 to $1.7 million per year. The disorder causes the fruit to have large, diffuse green patches on the rind after degreening, making it no …
By Fernando Alferez and Divya Aryal There are some indications that brassinosteroids (Brs) may advance commercial internal maturity by almost one month in Valencia sweet orange, depending on the time of application. However, the best time of application in this variety and other sweet orange varieties like Hamlin still needs to be determined, so that this treatment can become economically …
By Davie Kadyampakeni and Megan Dewdney The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) conducted a six-year project to determine if plant nutritional fertilizer sources coupled with specific crop protection chemicals help mitigate citrus diseases. This project was conducted on a 5-acre commercial citrus grove block near the Citrus Research and Education Center (CREC) in Lake Alfred. …
By Christopher Vincent, Yu Wang and Nabil Killiny Mild shade reduces stress, increases growth and yield, and may improve pest management under huanglongbing (HLB). It reduces high temperature and water stresses. Shade also may reduce HLB transmission by making trees less visible to Asian citrus psyllids (ACP). Shaded trees have less ACP, and shade appears to reduce the severity of …
By Ute Albrecht and Leigh Archer Trunk injection is an alternative technique for applying crop protection materials. This technology has now been approved to deliver oxytetracycline (OTC) for huanglongbing (HLB) management in Florida. Injections cause injury, and best practices need to be established to minimize injection-induced tree damage. University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences researchers (UF/IFAS) injected …
By Fernando Alferez, Daniel Boakye, Murillo De Sousa and Pablo Orozco After HLB was first detected in Florida, increase in disease-associated preharvest fruit drop in affected trees has significantly reduced grower returns. Fruit drop is normal in healthy citrus, accounting for 10% to 15% of the total crop. However, under endemic HLB conditions and depending on the variety, crop loss …
By Ute Albrecht, Larissa Nunes and Gabriel Pugina The current label recommends trunk injection of oxytetracycline (OTC) into the rootstock, but this may not always be possible. Previous University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) studies have shown that both rootstock and scion injections are effective. However, researchers have not yet studied if different rootstocks influence …
By Peter Chaires Each year, the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) citrus breeding teams provide opportunities for interested parties to sample fruit from new and recent selections. This is a great opportunity to remain current on research results. Participation from growers, processors, packers, marketers and fruit enthusiasts is desired. Shoppers in produce departments represent a …
By Christopher Vincent, Tripti Vashisth and Gillian Zeng Michalczyk Hurricane Ian harmed citrus trees in much of Florida, especially in areas where sweet oranges are grown. University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) researchers are tracking the health of trees in groves around the state as they struggle to recover. Fall applications of gibberellic acid before the storm …
By Davie Kadyampakeni, Sandra M. Guzmán and Ajia Paolillo Using soil moisture sensors for irrigation scheduling can reduce water stress in citrus trees. Sensors that are easy to calibrate and maintain, specifically designed for managing irrigation and fertigation on Florida’s sandy soils, are the preferred choice. These tools enable growers to use their water resources wisely and efficiently. There are …
By Megan Dewdney It is summer in Florida, and the early fruit are maturing. This is always a risky time for brown rot in early sweet oranges and grapefruit cultivars. The summer rains have been happening, but they have been intermittent depending on location. This means that phytophthora propagule counts may vary depending on how much rain has occurred in …
By Megan Dewdney To make informed management decisions, growers need to know about and understand the findings from huanglongbing (HLB) research that are currently available. However, the delivery of research results to growers is often fragmented, and results can be difficult to find. Furthermore, what information and conclusions are available to growers from projects or scientific journals can be highly …
By Ruth Borger The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) and AgNet Media produce a monthly podcast called All In For Citrus. It features timely information useful to growers provided by UF/IFAS researchers and Extension agents. The podcast started in September 2018 and has steadily grown an audience. Episodes run from 30 to 45 minutes and …
