Topics in Subtropics

Using Bees to Scout for Avocado Sunblotch: A Smarter Way to Protect Your GroveThe detection and management of Avocado Sunblotch Viroid (ASBVd) remain one of the most persistent hurdles for the California avocado industry. ASBVd is an insidious, submicroscopic pathogen that disrupts the tree’s normal…

Organic mulches are reported to control root rot of avocado, caused by Phytophthora cinnamomi.  A possible mechanism for this control is enzyme (specifically cellulase and glucanase) production by the large microbial population supported by the mulch, which can degrade the cell walls of the pathogen…

Residential and commercial guava growers in California are asked to be on the lookout for Cardin’s Whitefly (Metaleurodicus cardini, (Back) Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae). This pest is not known to be established in the environment in California; however, it is intercepted on incoming plant shipments at a…

What Can Happen with Too Much Rain? Watch that Mulch!!! And sometimes competitive weeds are good.Rain is wonderful stuff. If it comes and washes the accumulated salts of the last several years out of the root zones of citrus and avocado, that's a good thing. But what happens if there is a little too much of…

Efficient irrigation management is essential for sustaining avocado production in California, where orchards are often located on sloping terrain with heterogeneous soils and rely on a combination of district or surface water and groundwater supplies. Avocado trees are highly sensitive to both water stress…