Topics in Subtropics

Dry root rot has been a problem in citrus orchards for many years. Although generally a problem in coastal and northern California counties it has been reported in other citrus producing areas of the state.

This February there was a four day international conference in Orlando, FL that attracted 467 people from 21 countries, including about 20 from California.

Leaf analysis is the preferred method of guiding a fertilizer program for fruit tree crops. Soil testing is less important, since the tree has the capacity to store nutrients in its various parts roots, trunk, stems and leaves.

Alternate bearing is typically initiated by adverse climate. Once initiated, in the absence of additional environmental constraints affecting crop load, the bearing status of an orchard alternates between ON and OFF years, with ON years exhibiting less vegetative growth than OFF years.

In a recent citrus meeting in San Diego County we asked how many growers were using soil moisture monitoring equipment to help schedule their irrigations. Only 3 people out of 40 indicated that they were using some sort of equipment to monitor soil moisture.