By Peter Chaires Last month’s Citrus Nursery Source article promised additional details on New Varieties Development & Management Corp.’s (NVDMC) 2025–26 sponsored projects. While there is only space for general summaries, it is important to highlight the areas of focus for each research team, and the emphasis on short-term benefits while continuing to build a foundation for the future. NVDMC …
Packer Upbeat About California Citrus Season
Jesse Silva, vice president of Kings River Packing, recently gave an upbeat outlook on the California citrus season. Silva termed it “a high-quality, high-demand year.” Kings River and its affiliated companies, including Cobblestone Fruit and Jireh Packing, are operating at full capacity across their four facilities in Sanger, Reedley and Orosi, Silva said. “We’re running 24/7 right now,” he said. …
Cold-Hardy Citrus Harvest Begins Early
The anticipated disappointment has become a reality for cold-hardy citrus growers; satsuma mandarins are in short supply. The predominant citrus variety grown in the region will not have much of a crop this season as harvests have already begun across the cold-hardy region of North Florida, South Georgia and South Alabama. As expected, citrus volume will be short, mostly due …
Georgia Citrus Grower Sustains Hail Damage
Sub-freezing temperatures this week across the cold-hardy citrus region had minimal impact on the region’s fruit crop. A hailstorm in a couple of South Georgia counties, however, was another story. Lindy Savelle, executive director of the Georgia Citrus Association and owner of JoNina Farm in Ochlocknee, said her operation was battered by hail for about 15 to 20 minutes late …
Agromillora Introduces New Citrus Rootstock
Agromillora, in collaboration with the Valencian Institute of Agricultural Research (IVIA), has introduced CIVAC-19, a new citrus rootstock. CIVAC-19 is the result of more than a decade of research between IVIA and Agromillora. It is a hybrid rootstock of Citrus reshni (Cleopatra mandarin) and Poncirus trifoliata (trifoliate orange). Its semi-dwarfing nature provides medium vigor, key for maintaining compact canopies and …
New Chinese Citrus Hybrid Sells Out in Seven Days
A team of graduate students from the Citrus Research Institute of Southwest University sold out 5,000 boxes of a newly developed hybrid citrus variety in just seven days. The Citrus Research Institute in Chongqing, China, is affiliated with the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. It all started when Li Shunxin, a graduate student under researcher Cao Li, and four classmates …
Millennium Block Field Day Set for Nov. 6
The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Indian River Research and Education Center (IRREC) will host its annual Millennium Block Field Day Nov. 6 from 9 a.m. to noon. The field day will showcase the center’s emphasis on research to find a solution to citrus greening disease. The IRREC is located at 2199 South Rock Road …
Dundee Citrus Growers Association’s Callaham Honored
Steven Callaham, executive vice president and chief executive officer of Florida’s Dundee Citrus Growers Association (Dundee CGA) for the last 22 years, was recently honored by The Packer. He was recognized as one of the 25 fresh produce industry innovators and agents of change. Callaham graduated from the University of Florida College of Agriculture and joined Dundee in 1999. He …
Prolong Tree Health by Combining Covers and Brassinosteroids
As every Florida citrus grower knows, it has been difficult to grow trees and fruit profitably since huanglongbing (HLB) disease was discovered in the state in 2005. Soon after the disease was discovered, officials determined it couldn’t be eradicated largely because the Asian citrus psyllids (ACP) that spread it showed up years earlier and were in virtually all citrus-producing regions. …
Freeze Tolerance Is Key to Diversification
Freeze tolerance is a focal point of citrus studies conducted at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) North Florida Research and Education Center in Quincy. As citrus production continues to grow in the cold-hardy citrus region, growers need varieties that are able to withstand prolonged periods of sub-freezing temperatures. Leading that research is Muhammad Shahid, …
Spain’s Citrus Production to Hit 16-Year Low
Spain’s Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has forecast national citrus production of 5.44 million tons for the 2025–26 season, which began Sept. 1. That’s 10.7% lower than last season’s production and the lowest production level in the last 16 years. The decline is mainly due to: Oranges, small citrus fruit and lemons are expected to see significant declines, while …
Florida Citrus Commission Exercises Rights to Varieties
The Florida Citrus Commission (FCC) on Sept. 17 approved a Florida Department of Citrus (FDOC) request to exercise the right to eight new varieties from the Florida Foundation Seed Producers (FFSP). These varieties were developed by the University of Florida Citrus Research and Education Center Citrus Breeding Program. The FCC, which governs the FDOC, will retain exclusive rights to the varieties …
CITRUS NURSERY SOURCE: Upcoming Opportunities To Tour and Taste
By Peter Chaires It’s time to log some dates on the calendar. Citrus breeding teams have set dates for this year’s variety displays, field days and open houses. These events present excellent opportunities to learn about their priorities, methods and results. There are opportunities to sample the fruit of the latest promising selections, as well as tour test plantings and …
Cold-Hardy Citrus Growers Should Consider Multiple Varieties
By Clint Thompson and Dale Sandlin The potential lack of satsuma mandarins this season in the cold-hardy citrus region should not discourage growers from adding to their production portfolio in the future. It just means they need to try other varieties, despite satsumas being the most commonly produced variety in the region. Jake Price, University of Georgia (UGA) area citrus …
Cold-Hardy Citrus Production: A Learning Process
Production in the cold-hardy citrus region continues to be a learning process for growers. Producers in North Florida, South Georgia and South Alabama are learning this year the price of alternate bearing for their satsuma mandarin crop. After a heavy crop load last season, production is expected to taper off quite a bit this season across the cold-hardy citrus region. …
Emerging Trends in Nutrient Rate Studies
By Davie Kadyampakeni, Noor Basar, Alisheikh Atta, Muhammad Shahid, Shahid Iqbal and Alan Wright Citrus trees in Florida impacted by HLB have limited nutrient uptake largely due to limited root mass, compromised physiology and extremely sandy soil. The state’s current nutrient management guidelines were developed based on data prior to the spread of HLB, when trees had dense canopies and …
New Resource for Citrus Exporters
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA/FAS) launched a new resource to support American farmers’ access to international trade opportunities. Maximum Residue Limit Quick Reference Sheets provide information about pesticide residue requirements in major export markets for U.S. producers and shippers of fruits, vegetables and other horticultural crops. USDA FAS developed the MRL Quick Reference Sheets in partnership …
The Potential of Trunk Injection for Fresh Market Citrus
By John M. Chater Citrus tree trunk injection of antibiotics has been recently and widely used in Florida. The success of oxytetracycline (OTC) in sweet orange to mitigate huanglongbing (HLB or citrus greening) disease has been documented by the laboratory of Ute Albrecht, associate professor at the University of Florida. Some results suggest that OTC injection can improve Brix, ratio, …
Final 2025 U.S. Citrus Crop Forecast Issued
The U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA/NASS) released its last citrus crop forecast update of the 2024-25 season on July 11. The Florida Valencia orange forecast increased 2%, from 7.4 million boxes in June to 7.55 million boxes. That increased the Florida all-orange forecast from 12 million boxes in June to 12.15 million boxes. Florida’s all-grapefruit forecast …
Extremely Low Satsuma Supply Expected This Season
Fruit is scarce this season on satsuma trees in the Southeast. There was an oversupply of satsuma mandarins in the cold-hardy citrus region last season. That will not be the case in 2025. According to Lindy Savelle, executive director of the Georgia Citrus Association and member of the Georgia Citrus Commission, satsuma supply will be extremely low for the upcoming …





























