- Author: Ben Faber
The CA Avocado Commission contracted with LandIQ to evaluate the extent of avocado plantings in the state. The planted area is down from close to 90,000 acres in 2000 to 51,000. San Diego still has about 29% of the acreage, but now the area north of Los Angeles (once the dominant avocado growing area); including Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo, accounts for about 75% of the acreage. 40% of the trees are less than 15 years of age, which probably means most are planted on root rot resistant rootstocks, avocados' scourge, which should mean healthier more productive orchards. Almost 20% are also planted on higher densities than the traditional 20 x 20 feet which should mean earlier, larger production, but more pruning. Read the report here:
- Author: Ben Faber
UC Nitrogen Management Course Online Open to All Interested Parties,
starting November 8th
Are you interested in learning more about Nitrogen Management? Are you a Certified Crop Advisor seeking Continuing Education Units and/or preparing for the new California Nitrogen Specialty Exam? Have your grower clientele asked you if you are eligible to sign off on a Nitrogen Management Plan? Registration for the UC Nitrogen Management course is now open at http://ucanr.edu/NitrogenCourse. The UC Nitrogen Course is taught online through a video series delivered by UC Researchers and Extension Specialists. Each module is eligible for Certified Crop Advisor (CCA) continuing education units (CEUs). The course is open to anyone interested in learning more about N management in California.
The curriculum addresses all the learning objectives set forth by the American Society of Agronomy (ASA) for the new California Nitrogen Management Specialty Exam. The video series opens next week November 8, 2021.
Register at http://ucanr.edu/nitrogencourse/
You may join the course at any time up until December 31, 2021
For more information contact Sat Darshan Khalsa at sdskhalsa@ucdavis.edu or 707-205-7007 or visit their FAQ page [https://ucanr.edu/sites/nitrogencourse/FAQ/].
Image: Citrus N uptake varies from country to country, Geisseler
- Author: Ben Faber
New ways of analyzing spectral data can distinguish between different diseases in olive and from drought stress in olive and almond. This technology is now being applied to citrus HLB.
Plant pathogens pose increasing threats to global food security, causing yield losses that exceed 30% in food-deficit regions. Xylella fastidiosa (Xf) represents the major transboundary plant pest and one of the world's most damaging pathogens in terms of socioeconomic impact. Spectral screening methods are critical to detect non-visual symptoms of early infection and prevent spread. However, the subtle pathogen-induced physiological alterations that are spectrally detectable are entangled with the dynamics of abiotic stresses. Here, using airborne spectroscopy and thermal scanning of areas covering more than one million trees of different species, infections and water stress levels, we reveal the existence of divergent pathogen- and host-specific spectral pathways that can disentangle biotic-induced symptoms. We demonstrate that uncoupling this biotic–abiotic spectral dynamics diminishes the uncertainty in the Xf detection to below 6% across different hosts. Assessing these deviating pathways against another harmful vascular pathogen that produces analogous symptoms, Verticillium dahliae, the divergent routes remained pathogen- and host-specific, revealing detection accuracies exceeding 92% across pathosystems. These urgently needed hyperspectral methods advance early detection of devastating pathogens to reduce the billions in crop losses worldwide.
- Author: Ben Faber
Commercial Citrus – How will the citrus grower manage the pest and disease in commercial groves?
The deadly huanglongbing (HLB) is spreading in California and threatens commercial citrus production. This website provides a map of where the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) and HLB disease are located. Since there is currently no cure for the disease, the best management strategy is reducing the psyllid vector with insecticides and removing HLB-infected trees. This website provides a list of the ACP-effective insecticides, information about the best timing of their use & strategies for treatment.
Residential Citrus – What should I do to protect the citrus in my yard?
There is currently no cure for the huanglongbing (HLB) disease that kills citrus trees and is spread by an insect, the Asian citrus psyllid. It is estimated that 60% of Californians have at least one citrus tree in their yard, meaning that HLB may have a devastating effect in residential areas of California. Currently the only way to control the disease is to reduce the psyllid that spreads it and to remove trees that are infected or located near known infections. This website provides information about how near the insect and disease are to your home, and what you can do to help protect your trees.
How can I help educate the public on this very important subject?
This site has important resources for you to use to teach others about Asian citrus psyllid and huanglongbing.
Watch the 4-minute video below to learn what you can do to help control Asian citrus psyllid & HLB
Authors of this website are Dr. Matt Daugherty and Dr. Beth Grafton-Cardwell (retired) Extension Specialists in the Department of Entomology, UC Riverside, and Robert Johnson with UC Agriculture & Natural Resources, Informatics & GIS Statewide Program
/h2>/span>- Author: Ben Faber
See what happened this year at the Annual Meeting held October, 2021. Had to be there, and now you can:
California Avocado Society's
2021 Annual Meeting
Click Here fot the Virtual Annual Meeting Recording
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