afford

American Farmers Can’t Afford Enough Fertilizer

Daniel CooperAgriculture, Nutrition

An overwhelming majority of American farmers responding to a nationwide survey said they cannot afford to purchase enough fertilizer to get them through the year. The American Farm Bureau Federation conducted the survey April 3–11. Seventy percent of respondents said fertilizer is so expensive that they will not be able to buy all they need. More than 5,700 farmers, both …

trunk

Trunk-Injection Takeaways Presented

Daniel CooperHLB Management

Researcher Ute Albrecht on April 21 shared lessons learned from three years of oxytetracycline (OTC) trunk injection for HLB management in Florida. Albrecht is an associate professor with the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) specializing in citrus plant physiology. She works at the Southwest Florida Research and Education Center. Albrecht reported on results of a …

AccuWeather

AccuWeather Issues 2026 Atlantic Hurricane Forecast

Daniel Cooperhurricane, Weather

A developing El Niño is one reason the number of storms during the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season could be near to below historical averages, AccuWeather reported recently. AccuWeather is predicting 11 to 16 named storms, including four to seven hurricanes and two to four major hurricanes, which are Category 3 or higher. The historical average is 14 named storms, seven …

UF-1424

UF-1424 Mandarin Continues to Show Promise

Daniel CooperCold Hardy, Varieties

The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) recently provided additional information about the UF-1424 mandarin variety previously known as Greenie. “UF Citrus Selection 1424: A Promising Early-Season Mandarin for Cold-Hardy Regions,” an article by Alaiha Asif, Muhammad Shahid, John Chater and Fred Gmitter, appeared in the April Cold Hardy Citrus Connection. FRESH MARKET SUITABILITY UF-1424 is …

research

Research Confirms OTC Improvements in Groves

Daniel CooperEvents, HLB Management

The Florida Citrus Growers’ Institute was held at South Florida College in Avon Park last week to share the latest research from the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS). Besides hearing presentations, attendees had an opportunity to interact one-on-one with scientists at 21 learning stations covering topics like entomology, citrus breeding, weed control and soil nutrition. …

conference

Florida Ag Policy Conference Focused on Key Programs

Daniel CooperAgriculture, Events, Florida

The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Mid-Florida Research and Education Center in Apopka hosted the 11th annual Florida Agricultural Policy Outlook Conference on April 16. The event covered a range of subjects critical to farmers. Sen. Keith Truenow (FL-13) discussed the passage of the Florida Farm Bill and its benefits to farmers. The legislation, signed by …

agricultural water

Ask These Questions When Conducting an Agricultural Water Assessment

Daniel CooperRegulation, Tip of the Week, Water

By Michelle Danyluk, William “Billy” Mitchell, Stephanie Brown, Emmy Collins, Keith R. Schneider and Taylor O’Bannon Most citrus growers have been meeting the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Produce Safety Rule (PSR) requirements since 2016. However, changes to this rule in May of 2024 now require growers to have an agricultural water assessment (AgWa) for production (i.e., pre-harvest) water. A …

hurricane season

Below-Average Atlantic Hurricane Season Expected

Daniel Cooperhurricane, Weather

Information obtained through March indicates that the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season will have activity somewhat below the 1991–2020 average, Colorado State University (CSU) reported on April 9. CSU estimated that 2026 will have: HURRICANE LANDFALL PROBABILITY The probability of U.S. and Caribbean major hurricane landfall is also estimated to be below its long-period average. Probabilities for at least one major …

agriculture

Agriculture Organizations Seek H-2A Fixes

Daniel CooperLabor, Regulation

Numerous U.S. agriculture organizations, including some representing citrus growers, recently sent letters to two U.S. Cabinet members regarding concerns about the federal H-2A guest worker program. LETTER TO SECRETARY OF STATE A letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio requested that the Department of State take action to streamline its portion of the H-2A filing process by expanding interview waivers. …

fruit fly

Fruit Fly Quarantine Updates

Daniel CooperPests, Regulation

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and state agriculture officials recently updated fruit fly quarantines in California and Texas. CALIFORNIA: ORIENTAL FRUIT FLY (OFF) On March 23, APHIS and the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) removed the OFF quarantine in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, designated the Jurupa Valley quarantine. This …

Wedgworth

Wedgworth Leadership Program Now Accepting Nominations

Daniel CooperAgriculture, Education

The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Wedgworth Leadership Institute for Agriculture and Natural Resources is soliciting nominations for Class XIII of its two-year leadership development program. The program includes 11 multi-day seminars throughout Florida, the United States and internationally to develop leaders. Class XIII will begin in Gainesville in November. LEADERSHIP GOALS The goal of …

HLB

Recent Research Offers HLB Resistance Insights

Daniel CooperInternational, Research

Research conducted in China may hold significant implications for the sustainable development of citriculture amid the ongoing global HLB epidemic. The work offers novel insights into vascular immunity and plant defense responses. The article (Single-nucleus transcriptomics reveals the cellular immune responses to Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus in rough lemon) appeared in the January 2026 issue of Horticulture Research. The authors are …

robot

Irrigation Robot Aims for ‘More Crop per Drop’

Daniel CooperCalifornia Corner, Irrigation, Technology

Water management is a major challenge facing agriculture in California and other dry regions. A new University of California Riverside (UCR) system can map soil moisture tree by tree, so growers water only where and when it’s needed. The system, detailed in the journal Computers and Electronics in Agriculture, is the work of Elia Scudiero’s research group. Scudiero is associate …

specialty crop

Assistance for Specialty Crop Farmers Program: Another Chance to Apply

Daniel Cooperfinancial, USDA

The 2025 crop acreage reporting period required for specialty crop producers who want to apply for the Assistance for Specialty Crop Farmers (ASCF) Program has been reopened. Specialty crop producers now have until April 24 to report 2025 acres to FSA. The U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency (USDA FSA) announced the reopening.  The ASCF program is designed to help address market disruptions, elevated input costs, persistent inflation and …

supplemental

Supplemental Nutrition Mitigates HLB Symptoms in Mandarins

Daniel CooperHLB Management, Mandarins, Nutrition

University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) research found that supplemental nutrition mitigates HLB symptoms and improves fruit quality and shelf-life of Sugar Belle and Tango mandarins. Faisal Shahzad, Tripti Vashisth, Mark Ritenour and Jeffrey Brecht, all with UF/IFAS, authored an article in the Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science about the research. The article …

final

Final Brazil Orange Forecast for 2025–26

Daniel CooperBrazil, Crop Forecast

Fundecitrus on April 10 reported the final forecast for the 2025–26 orange crop for Brazil’s São Paulo and West-Southwest Minas Gerais Citrus Belt. The forecast is for 292.94 million 90-pound boxes. Of the total, about 25.69 million boxes were produced in the Triângulo Mineiro region. Production this season was 26.9% higher than the previous crop, which reached 230.87 million boxes. …

CRISPR

Growers Putting CRISPR Trees Into the Ground

Daniel CooperCRAFT, planting

More than 300,000 CRISPR-edited citrus trees are being planted this year that have shown great potential against citrus greening disease in test groves. CRISPR, which stands for clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats, is a gene-editing technology to help citrus growers produce a crop amid the disease. The Florida citrus industry is eager to see how these trees will respond …

Gmitter and Grosser

Gmitter and Grosser Receive Rare Award

Daniel CooperAwards

University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) citrus breeders and geneticists Fred Gmitter and Jude Grosser recently received the rare Citrus Research and Education Center (CREC) Resident Professorship Award. The award has only been bestowed four other times in CREC’s 109-year history. The award recognizes careers that have brought distinction to the CREC through outstanding programs, important …

EPA

EPA Urged to Complete Review of Emerging Rootstocks

Daniel CooperRegulation, Rootstocks

U.S. Rep. Scott Franklin recently led members of the Florida congressional delegation in urging the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to complete a timely, science-based review of emerging citrus rootstock technologies to combat huanglongbing (HLB) disease, also known as citrus greening. Florida’s citrus industry has faced steep declines due to HLB, compounded by recent hurricanes and freeze damage. Production has dropped …