Senator Supports Georgia Citrus Industry

Josh McGillGeorgia

U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA) recently visited with Georgia citrus growers and industry leaders to learn more about the growing commodity in the state. He came away impressed with how citrus has blossomed in popularity in a short timeframe. “I’m excited about Georgia citrus,” Ossoff said. “This is relatively new that we have a fast-growing citrus sector in Georgia. Already, …

Freeze Had Greatest Impact on Young Trees

Josh McGillCold Hardy, freeze

Lindy Savelle, president of the Georgia Citrus Association, and other industry leaders continue to preach to growers the need to diversify their crop portfolios. The Christmas freeze event that ravaged production in the Southeast last December should not be a deterrent for farmers hoping to produce citrus other than satsuma mandarins. Yes, non-satsuma citrus trees were impacted more by the …

The Seasonal Satsuma Bottleneck

Josh McGillCold Hardy, Mandarins

The short timeframe for satsuma mandarins to be harvested and sold in the fall created a bottleneck of supply around the Thanksgiving holiday in 2022. An excess supply led to a challenge for growers attempting to sell their fruit when demand diminished, according to Kim Jones, who grows and packs citrus in Florida and Georgia. “The week of Thanksgiving when …

Cold Acclimation Helping Trees Rebound From Freeze

Josh McGillCold Hardy, freeze

Trees in the Sweet Valley Citrus region are more acclimated to cold temperatures than those in Central and South Florida. That is a reason that Bill Barber, Certified Crop Adviser and owner of Barber Ag Services, believes citrus trees in North Florida, South Georgia and South Alabama have rebounded well following the Christmas freeze event. “I first thought the worst. …

SCFBA

Orange County Schools Seek Fresh Produce

Josh McGillFresh

Orange County Public Schools (OCPS) in Florida are seeking growers to join the Farm to School Partner Program. The program provides students access to nutritious, high-quality, local fruits and vegetables throughout the school year. Set to begin August 2023, the program runs through July 2025. OCPS is looking for a variety of produce items. Desired citrus items are grapefruit, lemons, …

New President Has Plans for Cold Hardy Citrus Association

Josh McGillCold Hardy

Mark Clikas, who became president of the Cold Hardy Citrus Association (CHCA) in February, has a recovery focus and sales goal for the group. “My focus is to get the members of CHCA more involved in the organization to help the growers improve the citrus trees’ health after the major freeze event around Christmas 2022,” he said. “My goal is …

Freeze’s Full Impact on Cold-Hardy Citrus Still Unknown

Josh McGillCold Hardy, freeze

Southeast citrus trees were undoubtedly impacted by multiple days of sub-freezing temperatures during Christmas week. An exact understanding of the impact will not be known for another couple of months, believes Jonathan Oliver, University of Georgia (UGA) assistant professor and small fruits pathologist. “The freeze was significant, but you never really know for sure until the plants start to flush …

Florida

All About Peru’s Mandarin/Tangerine Industry

Josh McGillCrop Forecast, International, Mandarins

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA FAS) has forecast Peruvian mandarin/tangerine production at 550,000 metric tons (MT) in 2022–23, decreasing 4% from the previous year. Peruvian mandarin/tangerine production area is estimated at 23,000 hectares. Harvest season runs from March to November. The major mandarin/tangerine production areas are in the central semi-tropical coastal regions with good availability of …

Grower Sees More Damage From Season’s Second Freeze

Josh McGillCold Hardy, freeze

Another freeze event last weekend could spell doom for some citrus trees produced in the cold-hardy citrus region. Kim Jones, president of the Cold Hardy Citrus Association, discussed the dire situation facing growers in the region. “I think we had some damage to some new growth that had come out from the last freeze. I can’t tell how much, but …

Taking Care of Trees After the Five-Night Freeze

Josh McGillCold Hardy, freeze

“To some extent, every citrus variety has suffered from cold damage” due to the five-night freeze event that occurred in the cold-hardy citrus region Dec. 24–28. That report comes from Jake Price, Lowndes County Extension coordinator for University of Georgia Extension. “The site of our citrus research plots in Valdosta reached a low of 16 degrees, which is the lowest …

Cold-Hardy Citrus Exceeds Yield and Quality Forecast

Josh McGillCold Hardy

Cold Hardy Citrus Association (CHCA) growers predicted this year’s harvest would be favorable at the season’s start, and groves are producing beyond those early expectations. “We are seeing good quality, bigger size and lots of volume left to pick on trees, especially for satsumas,” said CHCA President Kim Jones. CHCA represents growers, handlers, shippers and allied businesses in North Florida, South …

Seeing Success With Louisiana Citrus Grown Indoors

Josh McGillLouisiana

A three-year Louisiana State University Agricultural Center (LSU AgCenter) study is investigating the pros and cons of growing citrus inside or in containers. “So far, we are finding that the pros are outnumbering cons,” said Anna Timmerman, LSU AgCenter horticulture agent in St. Bernard and Plaquemines parishes. Early results of Timmerman’s research show that growing citrus indoors produces a high-quality …

Citrus Breeder: Growers Need to Think More Out of the Box

Tacy CalliesCold Hardy

If cold-hardy citrus growers diversified their crops and not put all of their eggs in the satsuma basket, it would provide them a better chance at long-term sustainability. It would allow producers an opportunity to combat the negative national stigma concerning citrus juices, says Jude Grosser, a professor of plant cell genetics at the University of Florida Institute of Food …

Satsuma Overload: Citrus Growers Need to Diversify

Josh McGillCold Hardy, Varieties

Citrus harvest season is in full swing across the North Florida/South Georgia production region. One thing is certain this season: Growers need to diversify their farming operations with citrus varieties other than satsuma mandarins. Grower Kim Jones, who also owns a citrus packing facility in Monticello, Florida, and is part-owner of a similar facility in Tifton, Georgia, discussed the high …

Process Produces Safe, Fresh-Tasting Satsuma Juice

Josh McGillMandarins, Orange Juice, Technology

Fresh-tasting satsuma orange juice with a commercially feasible shelf life is the goal of University of Georgia (UGA) Food Product Innovation and Commercialization Center (FoodPIC) scientists and food technology company Food Physics. FoodPIC and Food Physics are working together to perfect a technique known as pulsed electric field technology (PEF). PEF uses short bursts of high voltage —15,000 volts per …

The Status of Satsuma Mandarins in Georgia

Josh McGillGeorgia, Mandarins, Varieties

Satsuma mandarins remain the predominant citrus variety produced in Georgia, but growers diversified more with their plantings this year. Jake Price, University of Georgia Extension coordinator, described the impact that growers could see with various citrus varieties now in place. He presented this information during the recent Citrus Growers’ Summer Update in Valdosta, Georgia. Price says the citrus industry in …

Citrus Crop Looks ‘Very Promising’

Josh McGillCold Hardy, Crop Forecast

The sweltering heat being felt across the Southeast has done little to dampen the optimism shared by one citrus grower who believes this year’s crop is “very promising.” Kim Jones, who owns a citrus packing facility in Monticello, Florida, and is part-owner of a similar facility in Tifton, Georgia, discusses the state of this year’s crop in North Florida and …

Pruning Citrus in South Georgia

Josh McGillPruning

Jake Price with University of Georgia Extension in Lowndes County provided an update on pruning of South Georgia citrus trees in a recent Cold Hardy Citrus Connection newsletter. The newsletter is published by the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. His report follows: In February 2021, we pruned the Owari rootstock trial trees to where most limbs …

areas

HLB Update in Georgia

Josh McGillGeorgia, HLB Management

A small amount of citrus greening disease (huanglongbing or HLB) can escalate quickly if growers are not careful. Jonathan Oliver, University of Georgia (UGA) assistant professor and small fruits pathologist, cautioned producers about the disease during the recent Georgia Citrus Association meeting. “The issue is not widespread yet (in Georgia) for sure,” said Oliver. “We don’t think the vector is …

Mandarin Crop Losing Ground in Europe

Josh McGillInternational, Mandarins, Trade

In 2021–22, European Union (EU) mandarin production is forecast to decline 7.5% from the previous year to 2.9 million metric tons (MMT), according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service. EU mandarin production may also be almost 5.5% lower than the 10-year average production of 3.1 MMT. The shortage in EU mandarin production is mainly the result of …