- Author: Ben Faber
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UC to conduct ACP scouting workshops Registration is now open for Asian citrus psyllid scouting workshops to be conducted in Fillmore and Moorpark on July 13. Intended for grove owners, managers or farm employees, the sessions will provide instruction in ACP population monitoring as a way of improving the area-wide management (AWM) strategy in Ventura County.
At each workshop, University of California research entomologist Beth Grafton-Cardwell will provide an overview of proper scouting techniques, which participants will have the opportunity to practice in blocks of trees known to host ACP. Participants are asked to bring a hand lens (a loaner hand lens will be provided if you do not have one).
The workshops are free, but participation in each is limited to 25 people and advance online registration is required.
Session 1 10 a.m. to noon in Fillmore. Register at https://acp-fillmore.eventbrite.com.
Session 2 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. in Moorpark. Register at https://acp-moorpark.eventbrite.com.
Registered participants will receive details about the physical location of each workshop by email 48 hours before the event.
Science For Citrus Health Interested in the research addressing Huanglongbing (HLB) disease? Check out the University of California website with the latest information. The site also has fact sheets, Powerpoint slides, and pictures that can be used for general outreach and presentation.
2018-2019 Area-wide treatments start soon for Ventura County The next round of coordinated AWM treatments begin in mid-July, and reminders for the first ACP treatment window have been sent. If you did not receive a reminder, do not receive ACP email blasts, or need pest control/tree removal referrals, please contact your grower liaisons Sandra Zwaal and Cressida Silvers. Please remember to file Pesticide Use Reports (PURs) electronically and on a timely basis. Manually filed PURs can take months for recognition as an ACP treatment. For a no-cost CalAgPermits account to file electronically and for training, contact the Agricultural Commissioner's Office.
As of June 29, the total number of trees confirmed as infected by HLB had risen to 676. None were found in commercial groves. The HLB quarantine boundaries and the latest tally of HLB confirmations, updated weekly, is available online at https://citrusinsider.org/maps/. As confirmations increase and spread closer to commercial citrus, it is a good time to consider removing citrus trees not worth the resources required to protect them from ACP and HLB.
Meetings and resources The Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Committee will meet July 11 in Visalia. Attendance is free. Here is a link to the CDFA site with agenda, venue, and webinar information: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/citruscommittee/
University of California ACP Areawide materials list and ACP monitoring protocols Movement of bulk citrus materials list Ventura County ACP-HLB Task Force mailing list signup
Feel free to contact your grower liaisons if you have questions.
Sandra Zwaal (949) 636-7089
Cressida Silvers (805) 284-3310 |
- Author: Ben Faber
Well it came again, the Citrus Tasting at Lindcove Research and Education Center in Lemon Grove near Exeter, close to Visalia and just down the road from Fresno and up from Tulare. They came, growers to see and taste new and old varieties. And then the next day, the general public with oooos and ahhhs to taste the range of flavors we call citrus. Big fruited pummelos and little fruited finger limes. Sweet, sour, not sweet, not sour, dull, and boing!. Growers came on Friday morning and the general public the following Saturday. It was crowded both days.
Citrus is wonderful, everyone knows, but it is also under dire threat of Huanglongbing and the potential destruction of this industry and the trees that are found in many backyards. So in a completely unscientific survey, I asked growers why they were there if their world was about to end. First of all, those who showed up were already optimistic about the future, so there was already a self-selection. But, growers felt like a solution would be found, science would find an answer. Driving across the Valley and through coastal counties like Ventura there are lots of new plantings......if there's water. But it's surprising how confident growers are about finding a solution. There are some hopeful signs out there like the new rootstock release from USDA of US-1516 which shows a lot of tolerance to the disease. Then there is the potential of disease tolerance in a citrus produced in Florida from a collaboration of Southern Gardens, USDA and a consortium of Universities. Yes, there is hope, but years are still needed to test and gear up for production for commercial applications.
So it was good to be around growers who have an enthusiasm for the future and looking for new planting varieites.
And they are both grapefruit, one is Melogold the one on right is Oro Blanco
Buddha's Hand citron
The Citrus Display at Lindcove Research and Extension Center, before the crowds
