Morning Ag Clips logo
  • Subscribe ❯
  • PORTAL ❯
  • LOGIN ❯
  • By Keyword
  • By topic
  • By state
  • Home
  • Events
  • Jobs
  • Store
  • Advertise
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Subscribe to our
    daily email
    ❯
  • Portal Registration❯
  • Login❯
  • policy
  • tractors & machinery
  • education
  • conservation
  • webinars
  • business
  • dairy
  • cattle
  • poultry
  • swine
  • corn
  • soybeans
  • organic
  • specialty crops
  • Alabama
  • Alaska
  • Arizona
  • Arkansas
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Connecticut
  • Delaware
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Hawaii
  • Idaho
  • Illinois
  • Indiana
  • Iowa
  • Kansas
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Maine
  • Maryland
  • Massachusetts
  • Michigan
  • Minnesota
  • Mississippi
  • Missouri
  • Montana
  • Nebraska
  • Nevada
  • New Hampshire
  • New Jersey
  • New Mexico
  • New York
  • North Carolina
  • North Dakota
  • Ohio
  • Oklahoma
  • Oregon
  • Pennsylvania
  • Rhode Island
  • South Carolina
  • South Dakota
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Utah
  • Vermont
  • Virginia
  • Washington
  • West Virginia
  • Wisconsin
  • Wyoming

Morning Ag Clips

  • By Keyword
  • By topic
  • By state
  • policy
  • tractors & machinery
  • education
  • conservation
  • webinars
  • business
  • dairy
  • cattle
  • poultry
  • swine
  • corn
  • soybeans
  • organic
  • specialty crops
  • Home
  • Events
  • Jobs
  • Store
  • Advertise
Home » Researchers search for solutions to citrus diseases
CITRUS RESEARCH ... Comments

Researchers search for solutions to citrus diseases

UF/IFAS researchers support Florida citrus growers in fight against citrus greening

PUBLISHED ON August 6, 2018

Michael Rogers, director of the UF/IFAS Citrus Research and Education Center in Lake Alfred, Florida. (Courtesy Photo)

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — From nutritional supplements to managing irrigation to grower outreach and education, UF/IFAS researchers are finding additional ways to support Florida citrus growers in their fight against citrus greening disease.

Twelve projects were funded by the state legislature-funded Citrus Initiative program in 2017-2018 that looked at possible short- and long-term solutions that growers might implement now, that could impact fruit growth, reduce production costs and result in more HLB-tolerant trees.

Citrus greening disease is also known as Huanglongbing, or HLB.

“We focused on both short- and long-term research that moves us closer to viable grove management as well as possible tactics that a grower might experiment with immediately,” said Michael Rogers, UF/IFAS statewide director of citrus programs and director of the Citrus Research and Education Center at Lake Alfred, Florida.

For example, one project studied the use of Homobrassinolides on HLB-infected trees. While work on this project continues, the preliminary results have shown improvements in the health of HLB-affected trees including an increase in fruit size.

“This is a new product that is registered for use on citrus and is something that a grower might want to experiment with on a small number of acres,” Rogers shared.

Projects were funded at three UF/IFAS research and education centers: the Citrus REC in Lake Alfred, the Southwest Florida REC in Immokalee and the Indian River REC in Ft. Pierce.

Funds supported further research on the Citrus Under Protective Screen (CUPS) growing strategy for fresh fruit. The project has produced results that confirm strong fruit production with high quality in systems of screen house-grown citrus. The screen house-grown citrus (in houses of approximately 20 acres) remained free of the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) – the insect that transmits the bacterium that causes greening — for every weekly inspection in 2017-2018. There were no detectable cases of HLB disease in the screen house both by visual or DNA-amplication testing after nearly four years. This is a viable alternative for fresh fruit growers.

Citrus initiative funds also supported numerous trainings and educational materials provided to citrus growers and residents. These materials are resources for the identification and management of canker, HLB, black spot and exotic diseases. Nearly 3500 people were trained to identify canker, HLB and black spot or other citrus related issues. Tens of thousands of identification and managements sheets, field identification pocket guides and other instructional materials were distributed throughout the state.

UF/IFAS researchers also engaged in a multi-year project that will revise the fertilizer recommendations for HLB-affected trees. The nutrient needs of HLB-affected trees are much different than the past guidelines for citrus fertilization developed before the presence of HLB in Florida. Researchers are conducting field trials in three parts of the state to develop new guidelines for fertilizing round orange and grapefruit trees on the ridge and flatwood soils in Florida. This will generate valuable data for refining nutritional guidelines for HLB-affected trees in the different regions of the state.

Many of the initiative projects results will be presented at 2018 Citrus Expo in Fort Myers, Florida, Aug. 15 and 16 as well as at upcoming field days and in industry publications.

–Ruth Borger
UF|IFAS

For more articles out of Florida, click here.

Click Here to find out more about your favorite topics

fruit pest management research specialty crops

Spread the word

Browse More Clips

High schoolers explore food security issues

Holstein USA delegate election now under way

Primary Sidebar

MORE

FLORIDA CLIPS

First Lady Casey DeSantis kicks off Florida Python Challenge® competition
August 11, 2022
Organic blueberry supplies on the rise
August 11, 2022
satellite technology
Using satellites to measure pasture health
August 11, 2022
"Sky’s the Limit" for Hereford Juniors at Faces of Leadership conference
August 11, 2022
Inflammation - friend or foe?
August 11, 2022
  • Trending
  • Latest

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE...

Nebraska Extension provides in-field training in August on corn and soybean production
August 11, 2022
MSU Extension’s inaugural Blueberry Field Day
August 11, 2022
Illinois farmland values reach new peak
August 11, 2022
Indiana farmland prices soar to record highs
August 11, 2022
cover crop
Ohio farm real estate values, cash rents
August 11, 2022

Footer

MORNING AG CLIPS

  • Sponsors
  • About Us
  • Advertise with Us
  • Privacy Statement
  • Terms of Service
  • Customer & Technical Support

CONNECT WITH US

  • Like Us on Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

TRACK YOUR TRADE

  • Markets & Economy
  • Cattle Updates
  • Dairy News
  • Policy & Politics
  • Corn Alerts

QUICK LINKS

  • Account
  • Portal Membership
  • Invite Your Friends
  • Subscribe to RSS
  • WeatherTrends
  • Just Me, Kate

© 2022 Morning Ag Clips, LLC. All Rights Reserved.