- Author: Therese Kapaun
- Editor: Elizabeth E Grafton-Cardwell
Autumn has arrived, and many of the early varieties of satsuma are starting to taste good. October's cool nights induce the rinds to gain color, and rinds are getting easier to peel. Lindcove REC has more than 40 satsuma varieties, and early season favorites include 'Xie Shan', 'Miyagawa', 'China S-9', 'Miho Wase', 'Okitsu Wase', 'China S-1', and 'China S-5'.
Dr. Tracy Kahn (UC Riverside, Dept. of Botany and Plant Sciences), recently published an informative article in Citrograph, entitled "Fruit quality evaluations of introduced Satsuma selections for California" in the March/April 2013 edition. In addition to fruit quality data, the article describes the origin of the satsuma, genesis of nucellar selections, and introduction of satsuma varieties to the US. Click on this link to view the magazine, the article begins on page 34. http://www.citrusresearch.org/citrograph_marapr2013-2
Dr. Kahn will be giving a tour "Evaluation of early citrus varieties" at Lindcove REC on November 12th at 10 am.
- Author: Elizabeth E Grafton-Cardwell
It is hard to see the sun rise in the mornings the smoke haze is so dense in the central San Joaquin Valley. Normally at Lindcove REC, I can see majestic mountains behind the foothills but lately they have been obscured by smoke. We are all hoping that the fire will be extinguished soon.
- Author: Therese Kapaun
- Editor: Elizabeth E Grafton-Cardwell
Claire Federici (UC Riverside, Dept. of Botany and Plant Sciences) examines Olinda Valencia oranges, hoping to locate seedless fruit. This group of Valencia trees are part of a long-running plant breeding project at Lindcove that is headed by Dr. Mikeal Roose, and is the same project that has brought low-seeded mandarins to global markets. The Valencia trees were grown from irradiated budwood, which has the intended result of occasionally disrupting the genes that promote seed formation. If a tree is found to have low-seeded fruit, then its budwood is likely to produce low-seeded fruit, and a new low-seeded line of Olinda is created!
While several varieties of seedless or low-seeded Valencias are commercially available, notably Delta and Midknight, the popular seedy Olinda variety is favored by San Joaquin Valley growers for high productivity and tolerance of hot summers.
- Author: Therese Kapaun
The mandarin trees in this one-year-old rootstock trial at Lindcove are getting their annual health evaluations, conducted by Dr. Mikeal Roose and Dr. Tracy Kahn (UC Riverside, Dept. of Botany and Plant Sciences). The varieties in this block include satsuma, clementine, and newly released low-seeded mandarin selections. The trial at Lindcove is replicated in different climate zones in several other locations in California. The project goals are to determine how well the varieties perform on three different trifoliate rootstocks, Carrizo, C-35, and Rich 16-6, as well as their performance in the different climates.
- Author: Therese Kapaun
- Editor: Elizabeth E Grafton-Cardwell
During the spring of 2013, all 12,000+ trees at the Lindcove Research and Extension Center were tested for citrus tristeza virus (CTV). This week, LREC staff treated and removed 36 CTV-infected trees. The CTV strains found at LREC have been mild, causing few if any symptoms in the trees. However, infected tree removal ensures the research plots are free of disease that could potentially affect the conclusions of the research.
