citrus

IPCs Effective Against Psyllids and HLB

Ernie NeffHLB Management, Pests, Psyllids

Long-time multi-county citrus Extension agent Mongi Zekri, who serves Southwest Florida counties, says individual protective covers (IPCs) work well in the fight against citrus greening, also known as HLB. “They have been very effective in controlling or managing citrus greening, because they don’t allow the citrus psyllid, which is the vector of the disease, to get to the tree,” Zekri …

citrus greening

Researchers to Look Deeper Into HLB Management

Tacy CalliesHLB Management, Research

By Karla Arboleda University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences researchers are getting ready to conduct several trials on tools used to protect young citrus trees from HLB. The team of five researchers will receive $665,471 in funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for experiments at the Citrus Research and Education Center (CREC) in Lake Alfred. Lauren …

florida citrus

Citrus Crop Value Up as Farmland Shrinks

Daniel CooperCitrus, Industry News Release

Florida citrus production and crop value is up from a year ago, when the industry was trying to recover after being hit hard by Hurricane Irma. But the industry continues to bleed acreage in the state, according to numbers released Aug. 28 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The federal agency’s commercial citrus inventory recorded 430,601 acres spread across …

June

All In For Citrus Podcast, August 2019

Taylor HillmanAll In For Citrus Podcast

August’s All In For Citrus podcast includes some exciting updates from the recent Citrus Expo! First, Michael Rogers, director of the Citrus Research and Education Center, summarizes the good grower responses that the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences( UF/IFAS) received about the seminar program at Citrus Expo. He discusses the new Hands-on Session that attracted a …

FMC Citrus Ag Production Scholarship Program Will Launch at 2019 Citrus Expo

Tacy CalliesAwards, Scholarship

FMC to award five scholarships to Florida students. FMC, in collaboration with AgNet Media, announces a new scholarship program for students interested in citrus and horticultural studies at the University of Florida or Florida Southern College. “FMC understands how important the next generation is to the citrus industry in Florida,” said Eric Johnson, FMC retail marketing manager. “We hope this …

guide

Latest Citrus Production Guide to Be Unveiled at Citrus Expo

Daniel CooperCitrus Expo, Industry News Release, Production

The latest technical advice on citrus greening disease, tree nutrition, grove management and other aspects of Florida citrus cultivation will reach growers Aug. 14–15, as the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) unveils the newest edition of its annual guide at the 2019 Citrus Expo. Known as the “Florida Citrus Production Guide 2019–2020,” the 275-page document …

Florida orange

Oxytetracycline Sprays vs. Trunk Injections

Daniel CooperCitrus Greening, HLB Management, Industry News Release, Research

Since 2016, federal authorities have allowed Florida citrus growers to spray oxytetracycline solutions on their trees to combat citrus greening disease. A newly published University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) study suggests that the bactericide would be more effective if it were injected into citrus tree trunks, a practice not currently approved under U.S. law. Citrus …

brazilian

More Predictable Market Ahead

Tacy CalliesGlobal Perspectives

By Marcos Fava Neves With the announcement of the 2019–20 crop in Brazil and Florida’s season over, more information is now available to see where the global orange juice market is headed. HIGHER FLORIDA INVENTORIESAs of July, Florida had 71.6 million boxes of oranges, 200,000 boxes more than the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s June estimate. Inventories in Florida are high. …

Citrus Industry Magazine CEU 2019 Article #3

Protecting soil and water while using pesticides By Laurie A. Hurner Editor’s note: This article grants one continuing education unit (CEU) in the Core category toward the renewal of a Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services restricted-use pesticide license when the accompanying test is submitted and approved. Pesticides, pesticides, pesticides. It seems that the word pesticide has become quite …

Putting IPM Back in Citrus

Tacy CalliesIPM

By Lukasz L. Stelinski, Jawwad A. Qureshi and L. Gene Albrigo Florida citrus production has a long and trailblazing history of implementing integrated pest management (IPM). In 1950, the director of the Florida Citrus Experiment Station, A.F. Camp, proposed an “Ecological Survey of Citrus Pests and Disorders” to provide a comprehensive survey of the ecology of citrus groves throughout Florida …

citrus

Citrus Numbers Improve as Struggles Continue

Daniel CooperCitrus, Crop Forecast, Grapefruit, Industry News Release

Florida’s citrus industry ended its growing season on a slight uptick, regaining the Sunshine State’s dominance in orange production over California. But struggles remain. Growers, who last year posted 75-year lows because of damage caused by Hurricane Irma, still are at diminished production levels that hadn’t been seen in decades as they face deadly citrus-greening disease and factors such as …

Coming Soon: New Citrus Scholarship

Tacy CalliesScholarship

By Tacy Callies The average age of principal farm operators in Florida is 60, according to the 2018 State Agricultural Overview for Florida published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. As current growers approach retirement age, who is going to step in to fill their role? This is a question that’s often asked in Florida citrus, especially given the industry’s …

china

Florida Department of Citrus to Study OJ Consumption

Daniel CooperCitrus, Industry News Release, Orange Juice, Research

Amid ongoing struggles in Florida’s citrus industry, the Florida Department of Citrus appears to be turning attention to studying orange juice consumption. The department said Tuesday it is looking for three separate studies that would assess various aspects of orange juice consumption, including how it can affect people’s moods when drinking it as a snack. According to a bid notice, …

Peace River Growers Talk Production and Marketing

Ernie NeffMarket, Production

Production levels and techniques as well as citrus marketing were topics at a recent Peace River Valley Citrus Growers Association roundtable meeting in Wauchula. Executive Director Kait Shaw summarizes the discussion. “I think a lot of the growers felt that it had been a pretty good year,” Shaw says. “Things are starting to look up from greening.” She says growers …

Research

Citrus Research at SWFREC

Ernie NeffHLB Management, Research

Southwest Florida Research and Education Center (SWFREC) Director Kelly Morgan provides an update on citrus research being conducted at the center. SWFREC is operated by the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS). Morgan says most of the research is “related to greening, but not all of it.” Greening is another term for huanglongbing (HLB), the citrus …

uf

UF/IFAS Helps Assess, Manage New Fruit Bug

Daniel CooperCitrus, Industry News Release, invasive, Pests, Research, Top

Researchers with the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) are already trying to help growers figure out how to effectively manage the problems created by an invasive pest  – confirmed last week in Highlands County — that could further erode citrus production at a time when growers are just beginning to turn the corner on managing …

orange

Orange Grower: ‘Best Year I’ve Ever Had’

Ernie NeffProduction

Hardee County orange grower Kenny Sanders said at a grower roundtable meeting on June 25 that he produced 409 boxes per acre in the 2018–19 Florida citrus season. “This is the best year financially I’ve ever had in the citrus business,” Sanders said at the Wauchula gathering hosted by Peace River Valley Citrus Growers Association. “In 2012, I picked 500 …

UF/IFAS

Jack Payne Announces Retirement

Daniel CooperAgriculture, Citrus, Citrus Greening, Research

After serving nearly 10 years as the senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources with the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS), Jack Payne announced he will retire next year. His last day with UF/IFAS will be July 1, 2020. Payne has overseen Extension offices across Florida and its 12 research and education centers since …

Update on Brassinosteroids for HLB Management

Tacy CalliesHLB Management, Research

By Fernando Alferez, Christopher Vincent and Tripti Vashisth Brassinosteroids (BR), a relatively newly discovered class of plant hormone, regulate several developmental and physiological processes in fruit crops such as grapes, pears and cherries and in some non-edible plants. BR also induce disease resistance against different pathogens in a great number of crop plants. A form of BR (epibrassinolide) was shown …

UF/IFAS Tops in Research

Ernie NeffResearch

“There is no program anywhere in the country better than IFAS (University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences) in conducting both applied and basic research.” That declaration is made by Scott Angle, director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture, in the latest episode of the All in for Citrus podcast.  Angle became …