The Highlands County Citrus Growers Association hosted its annual meeting and banquet in early March in Sebring, Florida. The event was well attended. Growers were mostly in good spirits, hoping that trunk-injection therapy will be the bridge to the next breakthrough to return citrus production and quality to viable levels. Most believe the ultimate HLB solution will come in the …
Citrus BMP Manual Being Revised
Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson has tasked his staff with reviewing and revising all of the best management practices (BMP) manuals that impact Florida agricultural operations in 2024. Revision work on the citrus BMP manual was undertaken by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) Office of Agricultural Water Policy in 2020. However, that work was never …
HLB Treatments ‘A Mixed Bag of Results’
A variety of treatments Florida citrus growers are using for HLB have so far produced mixed results, according to observations reported by Highlands County Citrus Growers Association (HCCGA) President Aaron Nelson. In a recent association newsletter, Nelson wrote that many are anxious to see harvest data showing what effects the treatments have had over the past year. The treatments he …
Florida Citrus Industry Dodges Bullet With Hurricane Nicole
When Hurricane Nicole formed off Florida’s east coast, citrus growers held their collective breath after the beating they took in late September from Hurricane Ian. Nicole made landfall just south of Vero Beach on Nov. 10. Winds near hurricane strength were recorded at multiple weather stations as Nicole came ashore, including 75 miles per hour (mph) in Port St. John and …
Heavy Fruit Loss Expected From Hurricane Ian
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 Commissioners Reappointed
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Aug. 5 announced the reappointment of the nine members of the Florida Citrus Commission. They are: CHRISTOPHER GROOMGroom is chief operating officer of Florida’s Natural Growers. He serves as vice president and treasurer of Florida’s Natural Growers Foundation. Groom earned his bachelor’s degree in economics and Hispanic studies from Northwestern University and his master’s degree in …