How well reflective mulch, kaolin clay and individual protective covers (IPCs) hold up to HLB, canker and greasy spot diseases was researcher Megan Dewdney’s topic at the 2022 Citrus & Specialty Crop Expo. Dewdney is a University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences associate professor of plant pathology at the Citrus Research and Education Center. The research project …
Searching for Sweet Solutions
By J. Scott Angle, jangle@ufl.edu, @IFAS_VP Just as HLB can affect fruit flavor, so can our numerous innovations to manage HLB. Yu Wang works to make sure our solutions are sweet. When the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) hired her as a flavor chemist seven years ago, Wang worked primarily with breeders. Her objective was …
FAWN Expansion Underway
By Rick Lusher The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Florida Automated Weather Network (FAWN) is a great resource for citrus growers. Its mission is to leverage timely, reliable and accurate weather data in support of effective agricultural decision-making and stewardship of natural, human and fiscal resources. In addition to weather information accessible in multiple databases, there …
Brazil Issues Orange Forecast Update
An orange forecast update for Brazil’s São Paulo and West-Southwest Minas Gerais citrus belt is for 314.09 million boxes, a decrease of 2.86 million boxes or 0.9% from the original May forecast. The update was issued by Fundecitrus. All of the decrease is in the early-season orange varieties. The forecast for Hamlin, Westin and Rubi oranges is now 57.1 million …
Rucks Nursery Becomes Conservation Area
A partnership between Conservation Florida, the Polk County Parks and Natural Resources Division and the U.S. Department of Defense secured funding to create a conservation easement for Phillip Rucks Citrus Nursery. The easement provides protection for rare upland wildlife and plant species. The 320-acre nursery is conserved in perpetuity and will never be developed, but will remain productive agricultural land, …
Citrus Growers Invited to Visit Variety Trial
The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Indian River Research and Education Center (IRREC) will host a Millennium Block Variety Trial Field Day on Oct. 19. The event will be held from 9 a.m. to noon. The Millennium Block is at 7850 Pruitt Research Road in Fort Pierce. Registration can be completed online here or by …
CRAFT Cycle 4 Coming Soon
The application window for Cycle 4 of the Citrus Research and Field Trial (CRAFT) program is expected to open in early October and remain open for a period of 60 days. Projects approved for year four of the CRAFT program in Florida will have a planting deadline of June 2024. CRAFT is working to finalize a presentation of factors of …
Dundee to Double CUPS Acreage
Dundee Citrus Growers Association (CGA) and its members will more than double the area growing fresh citrus under protective screen (CUPS) with the addition of a second CUPS project. The new project will be located in southern Polk County, just east of Fort Meade. “Once fully developed, the 622-acre parcel will contain approximately 500 acres of CUPS … bringing our …
Optimizing Gibberellic Acid Applications in Florida Citrus
Tripti Vashisth, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) associate professor of horticultural sciences, has dedicated several years of research into the use of plant growth regulators like gibberellic acid (GA) to fight fruit drop in citrus. In the August All In For Citrus Podcast, Michael Rogers, director of the UF/IFAS Citrus Research and Education Center, interviewed …
New Mexfly Quarantine for California
A portion of San Diego County in California has been placed under a quarantine for the Mexican fruit fly (Mexfly). The quarantine follows the detection of six flies and one larva in and around the unincorporated area of Valley Center. The quarantine will affect any growers, wholesalers, nurseries and retailers of host fruit or host plants in the area. The …
The Road to Ramping Up More Truck Drivers
Alix Miller, president and CEO of the Florida Trucking Association, told attendees of the recent Citrus & Specialty Crop Expo that there is a shortage of about 80,000 truck drivers in the United States. Supply-chain disruptions and clogged ports spurred by COVID-19 made logistical challenges more apparent to the public, but Miller said this problem was brewing well before the …
Nurseries Approved for Expedited Propagation Program
The Florida Citrus Commission (FCC) on Aug. 24 approved agreements with 25 nurseries for the Program for Expedited Propagation of HLB Tolerant and Resistant Trees. The nurseries are: Agromillora Florida Inc. Ben Hill Griffin Inc. Blue Heron Nurseries LLC Brewer Citrus LLC Brite Leaf Citrus Nursery LLC Citrific Holdings Inc. CitriSun Nurseries LLC Cutrale Farms Inc. Dilley Citrus Nursery Inc. …
New Organic Transition Initiative
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced details of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) $300 million investment in a new Organic Transition Initiative. The initiative will help build new and better markets and streams of income for growers. The number of non-certified organic farms actively transitioning to organic production dropped by nearly 71% since 2008. USDA hopes to reverse this trend, …
All In For Citrus Podcast, August 2022
The August episode of the All In For Citrus podcast takes listeners on a deep dive into the use of plant growth regulators like gibberellic acid (GA) to help fight fruit drop. The episode features an in-depth conversation between Michael Rogers, director of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Citrus Research and Education Center, and …
Australia Tests Psyllid Monitoring System
A new airborne insect monitoring system that has been tested in a field trial at Midura, Australia, should assist in monitoring for African and Asian citrus psyllids, which transmit HLB. The trial was conducted by Agriculture Victoria in conjunction with Citrus Australia and had two main purposes. One purpose was to test the sampling ability of the monitoring system against …
European Lemon Crop Down; Grapefruit Up
The European Union (EU) lemon crop for 2021–22 is expected to decline from the previous season while its grapefruit crop is projected to rise. LEMONEU lemon production is forecast at 1.5 million metric tons (MMT), down from the 1.7 MMT estimated for the previous season. Spain is the EU’s largest lemon producer and accounts for nearly 65% of EU production. …
A Two-Pronged Approach to Suppress Psyllids
By Bryony C. Bonning and Lukasz L. Stelinski Asian citrus psyllids (ACP) transfer the pathogen that causes citrus greening from plant to plant as they feed. After confirmation of citrus greening in Florida in 2005, growers intensified their use of insecticides against ACP to try to stop disease spread. However, this method alone has yielded variable success and increased costs. …
Water Shortage Is Latest Texas Citrus Concern
A little more than 20 inches of rain has fallen on Dale Murden’s Texas grapefruit grove in 2022 — “about average for the year,” he says. But the majority of Texas is in severe drought, and that poses problems for Murden and other Texas growers, especially for the future. “We just are not seeing any rain or significant inflows in …
The Need for New Investors in Florida Citrus
By Thomas H. Spreen As many of you know, I have been part-owner of a small citrus grove company in Florida. My long-time partner was Bob Behr, CEO of Florida’s Natural. He was a student in the first class I taught at the University of Florida in the spring of 1977. He and I made our first grove purchase in …
Slight Decrease in Hurricane Outlook
On Aug. 4, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) slightly decreased the likelihood of an above-normal Atlantic hurricane season to 60%. That is down from 65% in the initial NOAA outlook issued in May. The likelihood of near-normal activity has risen to 30% from 25% in May, and the chances remain at 10% for a below-normal season. NOAA’s update …