Grower Achieves High Brix and Stops Drop

Josh McGillFruit Drop, Organic, Production

Low Brix has been a major problem plaguing the Florida citrus industry in recent years. While many growers are struggling to achieve the minimum required Brix level, this has not been an issue for citrus grower Chip Henry. He recently shared how he believes his organic production techniques contribute to high Brix as well as stopping premature fruit drop in …

Juice Prices Climb; Volume Sales Drop

Josh McGillFlorida Department of Citrus, Orange Juice, sales

Orange juice (OJ) and grapefruit juice prices climbed in the four-week period ending Feb. 25 compared to the same period in 2022, but volume sales dipped. Marisa Zansler, Florida Department of Citrus (FDOC) economic and market research director, presented that FDOC Nielsen report information to the Florida Citrus Commission on March 15. The FCC is the governing board of the …

Small Drops for Chinese Citrus Crops

Josh McGillCrop Forecast, International

Chinese production of tangerines/mandarins and grapefruit/pomelos in 2022–23 are both forecast to dip slightly from prior year levels. The forecast was issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA FAS). TANGERINES AND MANDARINSProduction of tangerines and mandarins is forecast at 26.5 million metric tons (MMT) in 2022–23, compared to 27 MMT the prior year. The forecast reflects …

Fallen Fruit Leads to $23 Million Loss for Alico

Josh McGillfinancial, hurricane

Hurricane Ian in late September caused substantial fruit drop at the majority of Alico Citrus’ groves, the company reported in its recent fiscal year 2022 financial results. The fiscal year ended Sept. 30. “Fortunately, tree damage was largely limited to only one property,” said John Kiernan, president and chief executive officer. “This lost fruit impacted our fiscal year 2022 financial …

Spain Lemon and Grapefruit Crops to Decline

Josh McGillCrop Forecast, International

Lemon and grapefruit crops in Spain are both forecast to decrease 10% in the 2022–23 season compared to the 2021–22 season. The forecast was made by the Spanish Lemon and Grapefruit Interbranch Organisation (AILIMPO), which represents the economic interests of producers, cooperatives, exporters and industrialists of lemon and grapefruit in Spain. According to AILIMPO, increased yields from new plantations only …

pest risk

Northern Hemisphere Citrus Forecast Drops

Josh McGillCrop Forecast, International

The World Citrus Organisation’s (WCO) Northern Hemisphere citrus production forecast for the 2022–23 season is 25.958 million tons, a 13% decrease from the prior season. Production of every citrus variety in the Northern Hemisphere is forecast to dip by more than 11%. The forecast is based on data from Egypt, Greece, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Spain, Tunisia, Turkey and the United …

Hurricane Milton

Heavy Fruit Loss Expected From Hurricane Ian

Josh McGillhurricane

Although early assessment attempts were limited by cell phone and internet outages, Hurricane Ian likely caused extensive citrus fruit loss as it tore through Florida Sept. 28–29. The catastrophic hurricane churned through the Gulf and Peace River Valley citrus regions, then headed northeast to impact Highlands and southern Polk counties and the Indian River citrus region. REGIONAL REPORTSRay Royce of …

Florida Citrus Value Drops Steeply

Josh McGillFlorida, Production

The $438 million preliminary on-tree value of the 2021–2022 Florida citrus crop is 29% less than the $613 million revised value for 2020–2021, according to a federal Citrus Summary. The summary reported production, price and value of the 2021–2022 crop. It was released Sept. 7 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. PRODUCTION PLUMMETS Florida’s all citrus …

Combined Treatment Reduced Drop and Increased Size

Josh McGillFruit Drop, HLB Management, Production

A combination of gibberellic acid (GA) and 2,4-D reduced preharvest fruit drop by 18% and improved fruit size but produced no statistical effect on yield, researcher Tripti Vashisth reported Aug. 30. The combination “seems promising,” the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) horticulturist stated. The report was based on first year results from a trial of …

production

European Lemon Crop Down; Grapefruit Up

Josh McGillGrapefruit, International, lemons

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. …

Impact of HLB on Fruit Growth and Retention

Josh McGillFruit Drop, HLB Management

By Tripti Vashisth and Mary Sutton Citrus trees affected by huanglongbing (HLB) consistently have small fruit and low fruit numbers at harvest. The low fruit numbers are largely attributed to the increased rates of preharvest fruit drop that accompany HLB. Small fruit is more likely to drop during this preharvest period, suggesting a link between fruit size and retention. To …

European Orange Juice Production to Significantly Drop

Josh McGillInternational, Orange Juice, Production

European Union (EU) orange juice production in 2021–22 is forecast at 62,250 metric tons (MT) by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS). That’s a decline of about 19% from the 77,212 MT of orange juice the EU produced in 2020–21. The total volume of oranges channeled to processing depends on the crop quality and quantity of oranges …

Grapefruit in Turkey: Production Up, Acreage Down

Josh McGillCrop Forecast, Grapefruit, International

Turkey is forecast to produce 249,000 metric tons (MT) of grapefruit in 2021–22, up 5% over the prior year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA/FAS) reported. The increased production is due to better yields resulting from favorable weather conditions in the Mediterranean growing region, USDA/FAS stated in its semi-annual report on Turkish citrus. Improved yields have allowed …

South African Grapefruit Growth Continues

Josh McGillGrapefruit, International

The growth in South African grapefruit plantings is expected to continue in 2021–22, increasing by 3% to 9,200 hectares, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA/FAS) stated in a recent report. The area planted to grapefruit grew by 25% over the past seven years. Limpopo province is the leading growing region for grapefruit in the country, accounting for …

Tips to Keep Citrus Fruit on Trees

Josh McGillAll In For Citrus Podcast, Fruit Drop

By Frank Giles During the May All In For Citrus podcast, Michael Rogers, director of the Citrus Research and Education Center, discussed research on how applications of gibberellic acid (GA) can improve tree health and reduce fruit drop. The research is being conducted by Tripti Vashisth, an associate professor of horticultural sciences with the University of Florida Institute of Food …

IPCs Improve Fruit Yield and Quality

Josh McGillHLB Management, IPCs, Research

By Fernando Alferez, Ute Albrecht, Susmita Gaire, Ozgur Batuman, Jawwad Qureshi and Mongi Zekri University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) researchers established a field trial in February 2018 to evaluate the efficacy of individual protective covers (IPCs) to prevent Asian citrus psyllids from spreading HLB and to study the effects on tree growth and physiology. The …

spray drift

Fruit Size and Spraying Interval Are Key for Canker Control

Josh McGillDiseases, Research

The size of fruit that should be sprayed, the spraying interval and ways to avoid copper phytotoxicity were among the citrus canker topics plant pathologist Megan Dewdney offered growers recently. Dewdney said fruit are most susceptible to canker when they are between 3/8 inch and 1.5 inches in diameter. The fruit rind becomes much more resistant when the fruit is …

Grapefruit Crop to Rise in European Union

Josh McGillGrapefruit, International

European Union (EU) grapefruit production is forecast to grow 2.8% to 108,000 metric tons (MT) in 2021–22, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service. The increase is due to an almost 4% expected increase in Spanish grapefruit production. Spain is the major EU grapefruit producer at 84,000 MT. EU grapefruit planted area stands at around 3,600 hectares …

Florida Citrus Forecast Drops Again

Tacy CalliesCrop Forecast

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service released its monthly U.S. citrus production forecast on Jan. 12. ORANGESThe report showed another 3% drop in Florida orange production down to 44.5 million boxes. The initial forecast in October predicted 47 million boxes. The forecast for all oranges fell by 1.5 million boxes from the December report. Florida’s non-Valencia …

Grapefruit Import Action Protested

Ernie NeffExport/Import, Grapefruit

The state agriculture commissioners for Florida and Texas recently urged U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to reinstate juice content requirements on grapefruit imports. They stated that a so-called “patch” issued earlier this year by the U.S. Department of Agriculture creates unfair advantages for Mexico and other countries over domestic grapefruit producers. “There appears to have been a ‘patch’ quietly …