The Tropical Fruit Forum

 The additional pesticide and nutritional spraying needed to control greening has more than doubled the cost of grove caretaking, currently estimated at about $2,500 per acre.
Millet

Plant breeders at the Citrus Research and Education Center in Lake Alfred have developed two new Valencia orange hybrids ready for harvesting as early as December, three months earlier than current Valencias. "I think it has the potential" to replace Hamlins, Grosser said after his presentation. "If you think about declining OJ sales, one of the answers may be to have a more attractive product." Most Florida growers plant several orange varieties that mature at various times during the Florida citrus season, which begins in October and runs into June..Valencias have better juice quality, including more sweetness and a darker orange color, so processors pay growers a higher farm price, an estimated 18 percent higher in the 2014-15 season, for Valencias. Juice processors buy 95 percent of Florida's annual orange harvest.
Millet

http://www.theledger.com/article/20150407/NEWSCHIEF/150409498/1178?Title=Valencia-Hybrids-Could-Replace-Hamlin-Oranges

Consumption of mandarins has increased significantly in the past decade. To meet a 400 percent increase in demand, mandarin plantings have grown exponentially in the past 10 years in both the northern and southern hemispheres. Consumers have gravitated to ‘easy-peelers’ and now, many favor mandarins over other citrus because they are easy to peel and are delicious to eat, especially for children. Although this is a very positive development, at certain times of the year, it can be challenging to meet the demand for these varieties

http://venturacoastal.com/

Millet

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/jon-busdeker/os-orange-juice-float-red-hill-grove-post.html

Man this sounds soooo good. - Millet

http://www.floridacitrus.org/newsroom/news/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-florida-citrus-grower/

Millet

The annual report that Chiquita banana presented to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission revealed that Chiquita  registered losses last year of $62.5 million dollars. Details about the compensation package given to the leaving management team members were also in the annual report. Ed Lonergan, departing CEO, received a total of $16.2 million . Overall, 36 million dollars were paid to the seven former Chiquita executives as they were let go. Interim CEO Brian Kocher could receive up to $7.6 million for his services while  the company looks for a permanent CEO.
 
Millet - PERSONAL NOTE: Wonder why Chiquita is losing money???

Can you leave tree seedlings in containers too long? Yes, and they will start to get tall and spindly due to restriction of the roots as they run out of space to grow. You must pay attention to timing relative to tree growth.  Once trees in containers, any containers, reach the sidewalls and branch or begin to  circle space for further root development becomes limiting, it is like squeezing tooth paste out of the tube, the growth is straight up and there is no way to get it back into the tube.  ALWAYS leave the lower limbs on the young tree trunk as long as practical.  Research has shown that leaves on the lower trunk contribute most to the development of trunk diameter, strength and root growth.  The sugars manufactured by the leaves in the upper part of the tree stay in the upper tree plus develop buds for the next flush of growth and for flower and fruit development.  Trees properly grown will have a trunk taper like a good deep sea fishing rod.  You will not get such trunk development without leaving on the lower limbs AND allowing them sufficient light and space to function. Tree height is not the criteria to use when evaluating young tree quality. Trunk diameter or taper is far more important.  Plus tall slender trees always have poor root systems, because roots cannot grow without energy and the energy  for their growth comes from the lower limbs. (Taken from "Plant Production In Containers-II" by Carl Whitcomb, Ph.D.)
Millet

Along with millions of other people and businesses this time of year, Florida citrus growers are seeking the tax man's indulgence.
 In this case, growers are looking for a change in federal tax law that would allow them immediately to write off the cost of planting new citrus groves. Current law allows them to begin deducting their costs, known as depreciation, only when a new grove begins producing income, generally in the fourth year after planting. Growers would not have to wait four years to claim the tax benefit, but the write-offs would be limited to the first 10 years of the new grove, as current law allows. The change, potentially worth billions of dollars for the Florida citrus industry, could provide the incentive to growers to increase planting new groves, the first, vital step in recovery from a decade of losses to the fatal disease citrus greening.
Millet

During the bloom period, citrus growers, beekeepers and pest control operators must comply with California state laws to protect bees that visit the groves during bloom. The law pertains not only to the citrus groves themselves, but as far away as one mile distant of any citrus planting of one acre or more is designated as a citrus/bee protection area. - Millet

Although there is no cure for HLB, scientists and the citrus industry have done extensive research and have successfully developed effective methods for combating the effects of greening. Homeowners who wish to grow backyard citrus can duplicate these methods in order to ensure the long-term success of their trees.

These methods include:

•Controlling the Asian psyllid by using a systemic root drench containing imidacloprid every two months.

•Regular, ongoing applications of a high quality, controlled release fertilizer.

•Regular applications of a foliar fertilizer developed for citrus.

•Providing consistent irrigation, proper pruning, sunny location, good drainage and maintaining the root area free of weeds, grass and mulch.

•Elimination of any lakeview or orange jasmine plants on the property because this plant is a host plant for the Asian citrus psyllid.

All citrus varieties are susceptible to greening and serious root damage occurs even before the appearance of the obvious symptoms.
Millet

The peel contains more than four times as much fiber as the fruit inside, and more tangeretin and nobiletin—flavonoids with anticancer, antidiabetic, and anti-inflammatory properties. A 2004 study on animals suggests that these nutrients may even reduce harmful LDL cholesterol better than some prescription drugs.
Millet

Q: What advice would you give California growers and its citrus industry about dealing with HLB and its vector?

A: The first thing I would tell them is try to learn from Florida as well as Brazil. I think they are in a certain state of denial just like we were in denial. We as Florida citrus growers were full of reasons why this disease was going to be worse in Brazil than in Florida, then we in Central Florida thought the disease wasn't going to be as bad here as it was in South Florida. We were all wrong. When I first went to Brazil, they were spraying 10 times a year as well as rouging infected trees. The rouging didn't work in the small groves of Florida, but the spraying does.

Millet