Ray Royce, executive director of Highlands County Citrus Growers Association, was surprised that the initial Florida orange forecast for the 2021-22 season was only 47 million boxes. “I had hoped we’d be a lot closer to what our final numbers were from last year,” he said. Actual production in 2020-21 was 52.8 million boxes. The crop forecast was issued by …
Reducing HLB-Associated Preharvest Fruit Drop
By Tripti Vashisth and Christopher Vincent This article summarizes current knowledge about HLB-associated preharvest fruit drop. Unfortunately, exactly how HLB induces preharvest fruit drop is still unknown. Nonetheless, this article links what we do know about HLB-associated fruit drop to fruit drop in HLB-free trees and how strategies, such as managing tree water status and use of gibberellic acid, can …
Growers React Differently to Crop Forecast
Florida citrus grower Kyle Story of The Story Companies thought the initial Florida orange crop forecast for the 2021-22 season was “realistic.” But the 47-million-box forecast struck fellow grower Paul Meador as low. Meador is president of Everglades Harvesting and Hauling and serves on the Florida Citrus Commission. The crop forecast, well below last season’s 52.8 million boxes of Florida …
Sneak Peek: October 2021 Citrus Industry
Citrus growers need both quantity and quality for a successful crop. As HLB continues to negatively impact both these factors, growers are seeking strategies to safeguard their fruit. The October issue of Citrus Industry magazine presents ideas for enhancing fruit quality and quantity. University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) researchers Tripti Vashisth and Christopher Vincent …
All In For Citrus Podcast Has Big HLB News
The September episode of the All In For Citrus podcast is a special edition focused on one subject. University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) researchers have identified a breakthrough treatment for huanglongbing (HLB) that greatly reduces the effects of the disease. Michael Rogers, director of the Citrus Research and Education Center, said a lot of UF/IFAS …
Steps for Reducing Fruit Drop
Editor’s Note: Tripti Vashisth with share new information on the use of gibberellic acid treatments to improve health and yield of HLB-diseased trees in a virtual seminar on Sept. 21. Register here. Researcher Tripti Vashisth told the recent Citrus Expo audience how fruit drop might be reduced through the use of nutrition and irrigation strategies, gibberellic acid and increased fruit …
Understanding Physiological Fruit Drop of Citrus
By Tripti Vashisth, Megan Dewdney and Lauren Diepenbrock Citrus flowers profusely, but less than 2% of the flowers become harvestable fruit. In other words, 98% of the flowers seen during bloom will end up on the grove floor at some point during fruit development, whether as a flower, fruitlet, young fruit or mature fruit. Profuse flowering allows trees to produce …
New Research on HLB-Associated Fruit Drop
Tripti Vashisth revealed new research information on what causes preharvest fruit drop and possible strategies to mitigate the problem. The Florida citrus industry, stricken by HLB, has suffered a sharp increase in preharvest fruit drop, leading to a substantial reduction in citrus production. According to Vashisth, assistant professor of horticulture at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural …
Recommendations for Managing Fruit Drop
This fall, many Florida citrus growers are experiencing heavy fruit drop, some even up to 50 percent. Tripti Vashisth, assistant professor of horticulture at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Citrus Research and Education Center, recently spoke on this topic. She discussed fruit drop during the first presentation of the new UF/IFAS OJ Break meeting …
Sneak Peek: September 2020 Citrus Industry
In just two days, more than 1,100 Citrus Expo participants viewed 28 educational videos. If you didn’t get a chance to visit the virtual Citrus, Vegetable & Specialty Crop Expo on Aug. 19–20, you can find highlights from the event in the September issue of Citrus Industry magazine. The educational videos will remain on the Citrus Expo website through the …
Fruit Drop of Citrus in Summer Months
By Tripti Vashisth, Megan Dewdney and Lauren Diepenbrock This article summarizes what is known about summer fruit drop in healthy citrus trees and those with huanglongbing (HLB). Also discussed is how HLB can affect early fruit development and exacerbate fruit drop. Additionally, strategies to reduce summer fruit drop are included. Citrus flowers profusely, but less than 2 percent of the …
Reduce Fruit Drop, Increase Yield
University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) citrus scientists Tripti Vashisth and Fernando Alferez are trying to reduce the amount of fruit drop from Hamlin and Valencia trees prior to harvest. If fruit drops, growers can’t harvest it, and that leads to losses for farmers and less fruit at the market for consumers. Normally, about 10 to …
Manipulating Flowering for Better Grove Management
By Tripti Vashisth, Garima Singh and Megan Dewdney Citrus trees grown in the field undergo various types and levels of stress continuously. The stressors can be several things, including heat, cold, drought, soil pH, chemicals, pests and diseases. The constant presence of huanglongbing (HLB) and psyllid infestation adds stress to the trees, which compromises the plant response and makes the …
Sneak Peek: August 2019 Citrus Industry Magazine
The August issue of Citrus Industry magazine has everything you need to make the most of your time at Citrus Expo. The complete guide to the event includes a seminar schedule, exhibitor directory, details about the new hands-on citrus session and more. The Vegetable and Specialty Crop Expo is once again being held jointly with Citrus Expo. The general session …
Control of Citrus Flush Timing Could Improve Psyllid Control
They say timing is everything in life, and that’s certainly true of the Asian citrus psyllid, which has devastated Florida agriculture for the past decade by transmitting citrus greening disease, also known as huanglongbing or HLB. To reproduce, this small, flying insect must lay eggs on citrus “flush” – the tender new leaves and shoots that citrus trees produce several …
Plant Biostimulants — Snake Oils or Beneficial Substances?
By Ute Albrecht and Sarah Strauss Recent years have seen an explosion of products termed “biostimulants” as alternatives to traditional chemical products to improve plant growth and productivity, and to enhance the sustainability of agricultural systems. Although there is currently no legal definition of biostimulants, they are usually defined as “substance(s) and/or microorganisms that when applied to plants or the …
HLB Research Is Focus of Short Videos
Two short videos about HLB-related research were available at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) booth at Citrus Expo in August. The videos are available online for viewing. UF/IFAS researcher Tripti Vashisth narrated the video, HLB-Associated Preharvest Fruit Drop. She said up to 40% of fruit can drop from mildly HLB-symptomatic trees shortly before harvest, …
Keep Citrus Trees Hydrated
Frequent irrigation with good quality water can improve fruit growth and development and overall productivity. By Tripti Vashisth HLB-affected citrus trees have small and weak root systems. Though the roots are efficient in taking up water and nutrients, there are not sufficient roots to support the tree’s canopy requirement. Therefore, the trees often experience water and nutrient deficit. Not all …