- Author: Michael Hsu
![Red leaf blotch (RLB) blotches that are large, yellow-orange and reddish-brown in their center](https://ucanr.edu/blogs/food/blogfiles/107462small.jpg)
Detection of fungus causing red leaf blotch spurs call for grower vigilance
Symptoms of red leaf blotch (RLB), a plant disease caused by the fungus Polystigma amygdalinum, have been observed for the first time in California across the Northern San Joaquin Valley.
Molecular DNA testing by the laboratory of Florent Trouillas, University of California Cooperative Extension fruit and nut crop pathology specialist, has detected P. amygdalinum. Pest identification was confirmed by the California Department of Food and Agriculture and U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The disease, named...
/h3>- Author: Trina Kleist, UC Davis
![Worker harvests pistachios](https://ucanr.edu/blogs/food/blogfiles/96625small.jpg)
Growers invited to participate in study by sharing their experiences
A multi-state team led by Patrick J. Brown has been awarded nearly $3.8 million over the next four years for a project to improve pistachio production as the industry faces warmer winters and scarcer water.
“We are at this unique point in history where we can do this,” said Brown, an associate professor in the UC Davis Department of Plant Sciences.
The project aims to ensure the industry can thrive in coming decades despite the challenges faced. Growers are...
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