- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
CDFA announced in a news release yesterday that five Asian citrus psyllids were found in the Orange County community of Santa Ana, triggering the first ACP quarantine north of San Diego and Imperial counties.
The northward movement of the psyllid may raise fears of the state's citrus growers, but there is also some good news about the effectiveness of state-sponsored pest eradication programs. CDFA announced in another news release yesterday that a Mediterranean fruit fly infestation San Diego's Spring Valley has been eradicated.
To eradicate...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
While the story's heroine, a plant-sniffing dog named Chelsea, didn't appear in the article until the 17th paragraph, UC Riverside citrus entomologist Beth Grafton-Cardwell was the first expert quoted, way up in the third paragraph.
Grafton-Cardwell told the reporter that a disease carried by the Asian citrus psyllid - an insect already established in northern Mexico - is "a citrus grower's worst nightmare."
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
"It's very, very scary," the Bee story quoted Joel Nelsen of California Citrus Mutual. "This is not hyperbole. That could destroy our citrus industry in California."
UC scientists are working closely with industry groups to monitor the movement of Asian citrus psyllid, which was found...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
Director of the UC Lindcove Research and Extension Center Beth Grafton-Cardwell predicted Valley citrus growers' fears will be realized. Eventually, she believes, the Asian citrus psyllid will make its way northward from San Diego County, were it was first discovered in California last year.
Grafton-Cardwell shared her view in the lead business story of yesterday's Fresno Bee. Written by reporter Robert Rodriguez, the story said growers are mobilizing resources to get ahead of the invasion and protect the state's $723 million citrus industry.
However, Grafton-Cardwell told Rodriguez that quarantines, trapping and pesticide...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
California's citrus farmers are asking homeowners to inspect their backyard citrus trees for symptoms of citrus greening, according to a Los Angeles Times article published today. The disease hasn't been reported in the state, but officials fear an illegally imported tree somewhere in the Southland might be a time bomb waiting for an Asian citrus psyllid to begin the disease's spread.
Asian citrus psyllid moved into the state from Mexico last summer. In other parts of the world, the pest has devastated the citrus industry by spreading citrus greening disease.
"The disease could be a catastrophe for California's...