HLB Confirmations The number of trees confirmed as being infected by HLB has reached 520 (300 in Orange County, 217 in Los Angeles County and 3 in Riverside County). All were in residential settings, not 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. ACP Areawide Treatments The winter ACP areawide treatment window ended March 16. Please remember to submit your Pesticide Use Reports (PURs) to the County Ag Commissioner's office immediately after treatment to ensure your ACP treatment is recognized. ACP treatment percentages will be calculated in about a month, to allow time for all PURs to be filed. The spring-summer uncoordinated ACP treatment window begins now and continues through July. Although these treatments are not coordinated, psyllid populations need to be kept low to reduce the risk of HLB. Scout/monitor and treat if you see any ACP, and use an ACP-effective material during spring/summer management. Click here to access the University of California recommendations for ACP monitoring. Save the Date The fall 2018 areawide-treatment protocols and schedule will be discussed at a grower workshop on Thursday, April 26, at the Agriculture Museum in Santa Paula. Additional details will be distributed soon. Meetings The Citrus Pest & Disease Prevention Program will conduct a free crew boss training from 7 to 9 a.m. on March 28 at the Limoneira Visitor Center, 1141 Cummings Road, Santa Paula. Growers and packers are encouraged to send crew bosses, foremen, ranch managers and packinghouse representatives to this hands-on learning experience. Presented in Spanish, these trainings will inform front-line leaders in the field about what they can do to reduce the risk of spreading HLB and ACP at work. Click here for more information and to register. The Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Committee will meet in Ventura County on Wednesday, May 9. Attendance is free. The CDFA site with agenda, venue, and webinar information is at https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/citruscommittee/. On a related note, the CPDPC recently approved the appointment of Ted Grether of Somis to represent coastal citrus growers on the committee. Ted works for the family farming business, Grether Farming Company, growing lemons, avocados and mandarins as an operations manager and administrator. Resources Please direct questions about regulatory or compliance agreement issues to the County Agricultural Commissioner's Office (David Navarro, david.navarro@ventura.org, 805-388-4343) or CDFA (Michael Soltero, Michael.Soltero@cdfa.ca.gov, 805-445-1382). Click here to sign up for the Ventura County ACP-HLB Task Force mailing list. If you need pest control or tree removal referrals, please contact your grower liaisons, Sandra Zwaal and Cressida Silvers. Low- or no-cost tree removal assistance can also be obtained through California Citrus Mutual's ACT NOW program. More information can be found at https://citrusmatters.cropscience.bayer.us/commercial-grower/act-program.
Cressida Silvers (805) 284-3310
Sandra Zwaal (949) 636-7089 |
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