HLB Solution Could Be Available in Three Years

Tacy CalliesHLB Management

University of California, Riverside (UCR) scientist Hailing Jin believes she has found a substance capable of controlling the deadly citrus greening disease known as huanglongbing (HLB). The potential cure Jin discovered is a peptide found in the fruit of greening-tolerant Australian finger limes, which have been consumed by humans for hundreds of years. Invaio Sciences, Inc., a multi-platform technology company …

FDOC

Florida Citrus Acres Declining

Tacy CalliesIndustry News Release

Florida’s struggling citrus industry is using nearly 50 percent fewer acres than 20 years ago, according to an annual end-of-season report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service Florida Field Office calculated 419,542 citrus acres in Florida as the 2019–2020 growing season ended in July. The acreage figure was down 3 percent from the …

Consumer Acceptance of Genetic Technology

Tacy CalliesTechnology

Given that genetic engineering is a possible solution to citrus greening, understanding public perceptions of genetic technologies is important. Lisa House, director of the Florida Agricultural Market Research Center and a professor in the Food and Resource Economics Department at the University of Florida, made an online presentation during the recent Agricultural and Applied Economics Association annual meeting. She discussed …

Citrus Production Guide Available

Ernie NeffProduction

The 2020-2021 Florida Citrus Production Guide is now available. See the online version of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences resource. Hard copies of the guide can be obtained at local UF/IFAS Extension county offices. Get the list of citrus Extension agents here. It is always best to email or call the agent ahead of time …

Citrus Researcher Earns National Award

Tacy CalliesAwards, Industry News Release

Researcher. Scholar. Change agent. Nian Wang, a professor at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS), has been recognized for all of these roles with an award from the American Phytopathological Society (APS) at its 2020 annual meeting. Wang received the Ruth Allen award, which honors people who have made an outstanding, innovative research contribution that has …

New Targets Found for HLB Treatments

Len WilcoxCalifornia Corner, Research

Thanks to recent advances in metabolic modeling, scientists are closer to gaining the upper hand on citrus greening (also known as huanglongbing or HLB), a disease that has wiped out citrus orchards across the globe. New models of the bacterium linked to the disease reveal control methods that were previously unavailable. Metabolic models of organisms are like road maps of …

Citrus Disease: What to Watch for in Georgia

Tacy CalliesDiseases

The citrus greening disease (huanglongbing or HLB) that has devastated Florida’s citrus industry over the past decade has not affected Georgia commercial production. However, growers should still be aware of the potential danger it can bring. According to Jonathan Oliver, fruit pathologist and Extension specialist in the Department of Plant Pathology at the University of Georgia (UGA), all confirmed HLB-positive …

Steger Forecast for Florida Oranges

Ernie NeffForecast

Elizabeth Steger, president of Citrus Consulting International, has forecast Florida’s 2020-21 orange crop at 62 million boxes. That is 8.35 percent fewer oranges than the 67.65 million boxes the state produced last season. [See the final 2019-20 season forecast by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) here.] Steger has been forecasting the size of Florida’s orange crop prior to the …

The Future Faces of Florida Citrus

Tacy CalliesScholarship

Meet the four students who received the FMC Citrus Ag Production Scholarships. By Tacy Callies The FMC Citrus Ag Production Scholarships (CAPS) program, a partnership between AgNet Media and FMC, was created to support Florida citrus production and encourage interested youth to pursue careers in citrus. Two University of Florida students and two Florida Southern College students each were awarded …

climate

Kaolin Particle Films for Citrus Under HLB Pressure

Tacy CalliesHLB Management

Managing the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) that spreads citrus greening disease (HLB) has become a crucial task at the forefront of much research. One management option that has proven to reduce ACP populations while increasing tree growth and yield is particle film. During the 2020 virtual Florida Citrus Industry Annual Conference, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences …

Growing Finger Limes in Florida: Lessons Learned So Far

Tacy CalliesLimes

By Manjul Dutt and Jude Grosser Finger lime, a distant relative of sweet orange and grapefruit, is a relatively new crop species for Florida. It is an Australian native species that has been gaining in popularity and importance in the last few years because of its unique fruit characteristics and disease tolerance, which sets it apart from conventional sweet orange …

APHIS Annual Report Highlights Citrus Efforts

Tacy CalliesDiseases, Pests

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) recently released an annual report titled “Plant Protection and Quarantine: Helping U.S. Agriculture Thrive — Across the Country and Around the World.” The document includes updates on efforts to manage citrus diseases. “PPQ (Plant Protection and Quarantine) stands shoulder-to-shoulder with citrus growers to combat citrus canker, huanglongbing (HLB …

UCR Scientists Say New Peptide Could Control HLB

Len WilcoxCalifornia Corner, Citrus

According to a news article released by the University of California Riverside (UCR), scientists there have found a substance which may be capable of controlling citrus greening disease. The disease, also known as huanglongbing (HLB), has devastated citrus in Florida and in other regions worldwide. It also threatens California crops. The article says the new treatment effectively kills the bacterium …

HLB Update for North Florida, South Georgia

Ernie NeffCitrus Greening

Since 2018, there have been no huanglongbing (HLB) finds in commercial citrus groves in North Florida, and there have still been no disease detections in Georgia groves. In North Florida, HLB was detected in groves in Live Oak in Suwanee County and Perry in Taylor County in 2018, reported Xavier Martini, a University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural …

Certis USA Continues Citrus Research Support

Tacy CalliesCRDF, Industry News Release, Research

For the fourth consecutive year, Certis USA has donated $20,000 to the Citrus Research and Development Foundation (CRDF) to help fund the non-profit’s research aimed at finding a cure for huanglongbing (HLB; citrus greening). The company’s successful “Certis for Citrus” program utilizes sales from their top citrus products to annually support CRDF’s mission. The donation came during CRDF’s board meeting …

Citrus Professor Awarded by UF/IFAS Extension Peers

Tacy CalliesAwards, Industry News Release

Water is essential to citrus growers. They scrutinize the amount available, its quality and when and how they should use it to grow their trees and sustain their livelihood. Soil and water sciences assistant professor Davie Kadyampakeni works tirelessly with Florida citrus growers to ensure that they have access to the most current research in water use and soil nutrient …

psyllids

Psyllids May Give a Year’s Warning of HLB

Ernie NeffPsyllids

Although huanglongbing (HLB) disease was detected in Florida citrus in 2005, the HLB bacterium wasn’t found in Texas until 2011, when scientists detected it in Asian citrus psyllids (ACP). The disease wasn’t found in Texas citrus trees until 2012, suggesting that the HLB-spreading psyllids may be used for early detection of the pathogen in newly invaded areas. Factors influencing the spread …

acp

Battling the Bacteria Inside Psyllids

Tacy CalliesPsyllids

Kirsten Pelz-Stelinski, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) associate professor, recently discussed her research on bacteria associated with Asian citrus psyllids. This includes endosymbiotic bacteria that live inside of psyllids as well as the liberibacter that causes citrus greening disease. Her research is looking at how these microorganisms can be targeted inside the psyllid to reduce …

orange

June Citrus Forecast Sees Florida Oranges Fall

Tacy CalliesCrop Forecast

The U.S. Department of Agriculture released an update to the 2019–20 citrus crop forecast on June 11. ORANGESThe Florida all-orange forecast is 67.65 million boxes, down from May’s 69.65 million boxes. The forecast for Florida non-Valencia orange production remains at 29.65 million boxes. Florida Valencia oranges fell 5 percent to 38 million boxes. The California all-orange forecast is 48.5 million …

HLB Brings Nutrition Guideline Changes

Ernie NeffHLB Management, Nutrition

An updated nutrition guide from the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) provides new information for properly fertilizing HLB-impacted trees. Nutrition of Florida Citrus Trees, 3rd Edition was updated by researchers Kelly Morgan and Davie Kadyampakeni. Morgan, director of the Southwest Florida Research and Education Center, says growers have been requesting an update of the guide …