With production gains projected in coming seasons, the Australian citrus industry has instituted a plan to increase demand overseas. A $5.3 million market development and quality program is being delivered through Hort Innovation and led by Citrus Australia. Its intent is to ensure the Australian citrus industry remains well-informed, profitable and able to supply quality fruit reliably and sustainably to …
Florida Budget Includes $47 Million for Citrus
Florida Citrus Mutual (FCM) recently reported that the Florida Legislature’s fiscal year 2024–25 budget includes $47 million to aid the state’s citrus industry. The funding for various programs is: Additionally, the Florida Legislature’s budget includes a $100 million annual appropriation for the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program, which aims to protect working agricultural operations from development by establishing conservation easements. …
Stuart Scholarship Applications Due April 15
Applications for the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association’s (FFVA) Mike and Karen Stuart Scholarship are due on April 15. WHO SHOULD APPLY The scholarship, with an award of $2,500, encourages and supports college students who intend to pursue a career in the specialty crop industry. It is open to incoming juniors through graduate program students. Applicants may be interested in …
Visit the Vegetable Learning Stations at the Florida Citrus Show
Vegetable learning stations will be open at the Florida Citrus Show for growers to visit with experts on various production-oriented topics. The stations will be in the lobby of the U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory in Fort Pierce. Plan to visit the stations from 2:00–2:30 p.m. or after the vegetable speakers’ session concludes. The learning stations will feature the following topics: …
Florida Citrus Show – Seminar
HomeAttendSeminarsHotelExhibitSponsor2024 Seminar ProgramWednesday, April 3, 2024General Session- Indian River Research and Education Center Auditorium 8:45 a.m. Welcome Frank Giles, AgNet Media, Scott Adkins, USDA Ron Cave, UF/IFAS 9:00 a.m. Federal Agriculture Priorities in 2024 Mike Joyner, Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association 9:30 a.m. TBA 10:00 a.m. 4Roots Farm’s Reverse Demand Program Driving the Buy Local Movement Tommy Ward, 4Roots Farm …
2024 Seminar Program
HomeAttendSeminarsHotelExhibitSponsorSeminar schedule times are subject to change.Wednesday, April 3, 20248:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. – Registration at Trade Show EntranceDon’t wait in line, pre-register today!8:00 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. – Breakfast in Trade Show Hall8:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. – Trade Show OpenVisit exhibitor booths!11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. – Tailgate PartyTry exhibitor’s tailgate food and vote for your favorite!morning …
Highlands Growers Learn More About Crop Transformation Center
The Highlands County Citrus Growers Association hosted its annual meeting and banquet in early March in Sebring, Florida. The event was well attended. Growers were mostly in good spirits, hoping that trunk-injection therapy will be the bridge to the next breakthrough to return citrus production and quality to viable levels. Most believe the ultimate HLB solution will come in the …
Mexican Organic Orchards Offer Better Psyllid Control
A wider diversity of weeds and insects in organic Mexican citrus orchards compared to conventional orchards aids in control of the HLB-spreading Asian citrus psyllid (ACP/Diaphorina citri), a Mexican scientist reported recently. HLB is also known as citrus greening disease. “In the organic orchard, there are almost double the species of weeds compared to the conventional orchard,” Carlos Castillejos Cruz …
Find UF/IFAS Citrus Resources Online
By Michael E. Rogers Were you unable to attend a recent University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) event and want to hear what you missed? Many past presentations are available online. The UF/IFAS Citrus Research Website archives presentations made by UF/IFAS faculty at various meetings across the state. These can be found by scrolling down and …
HLB Could End Georgia’s Citrus Industry
One California citrus leader believes Georgia should respond more aggressively to huanglongbing (HLB, also known as citrus greening) for the sake of the industry’s future in the state. Roger Smith, fourth-generation citrus producer and executive of AC Foods, spoke during the recent Georgia Citrus Association meeting in Tifton. He discussed the disease that devastated citrus production in Florida and could …
Florida Citrus Land Sales and Prices
The recent Lay of the Land Florida 2023 Market Report from SVN Saunders Ralston Dantzler Real Estate highlighted 40 citrus grove sales in 12 Central Florida counties last year. The average sales price of $11,141 per net tree acre was up 3% from the prior year. The average gross acre sales price was $9,284, up 7%. The highlighted grove sales …
California Fruit Fly Quarantines Expanded Again
Agriculture officials expanded the Oriental fruit fly (Bactrocera dorsalis/OFF) quarantine in California’s San Bernardino and Riverside counties on Dec. 22, 2023. On Dec. 27, 2023 and Jan. 17, 2024, they expanded the Mediterranean fruit fly (Ceratitis capitata/Medfly) quarantine in Los Angeles County. The actions were taken by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA APHIS) …
All In For Citrus Podcast: Meet Flavia Zambon
Last year, Flavia Zambon was named University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) assistant professor of production horticulture of citrus and other tree crops. She is based at the Indian River Research and Education Center (IRREC) in Fort Pierce. In the February episode of All In For Citrus, Zambon discussed her new position and how she plans …
Seeking Nominations for the Citrus Achievement Award
Since 2001, the Citrus Achievement Award honor has grown into the gold standard of industry recognition for those who have made and continue to make a significant impact within and even beyond the citrus community. This year, the award is moving to Citrus Industry magazine to keep the tradition thriving for many years to come. The Citrus Achievement Award is …
HLB Management Different for North Florida Citrus
Living with huanglongbing (HLB) disease (citrus greening) is a much different process for citrus growers than protecting their crop from it. Growers in the cold-hardy citrus region are currently trying to keep the devastating disease out of their area. Industry experts like Michael Rogers, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Citrus Research and Education Center director, are …
Greening Study: Extra Fertilization Doesn’t Increase Yield
A study carried out by Brazil’s Fundecitrus in partnership with the Agronomic Institute (IAC) showed that additional fertilization of orchards had no effect on increasing the production of trees with citrus greening. The research was conducted in well-nourished adult orchards with a low incidence of greening. Results were published in January in the journal PhytoFrontiers of the American Society of …
Three Key Meetings for CRDF
The February board meeting of the Citrus Research and Development Foundation (CRDF) covered a lot of ground according to Rick Dantzler, the foundation’s chief operating officer. “We had a big day on the day of the board meeting. There were three meetings: 1) our monthly board meeting; 2) a research summit with citrus organization leaders, the CRDF board and CRDF …
Irrigation During the Dry Season to Increase Yield of HLB Trees
By Tripti Vashisth and Mary Sutton Prolonged water deficits can negatively impact flowering, fruit growth, crop load and fruit quality. Unfortunately, HLB-affected trees are more susceptible to water deficits than healthy trees due to extensive root loss. Observing HLB-affected trees throughout the dry season showed that severely symptomatic trees consistently had lower leaf water potential than mildly symptomatic trees. This …
Surviving to Fight Another Day
Bill Lennon is working with researchers to learn more about survivor trees that are standing up to HLB. Bill Lennon is a fifth-generation citrus grower who can recall the industry’s glory days when Central Florida had hundreds of thousands of citrus acres before the 1980s freezes pushed production southward in the state. But he’s remained dedicated to the area, managing …
Florida Southern College Has New Major
Florida Southern College (FSC) in Lakeland will offer a new horticulture, land and resource management major in August for incoming students and current students who want to add a major or switch majors. It consists of 28 credit hours (without general education courses). Sixteen of those hours come from horticulture science, and the rest are business oriented with a focus …