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« on: November 28, 2016, 10:42:21 PM »
Quarantine area is about 5 miles from me. I wonder how many were sold?
Richmond, Fort Bend County.
Citrus nursery trees at a retail nursery in Richmond, Fort Bend County, Texas, were routinely inspected by TDA on July 28, 2016. Some of the trees were found to be symptomatic for citrus canker; whereupon, TDA collected samples, placed the trees under seizure, and rushed the samples to USDA for identification. USDA immediately screened then sent the samples off for laboratory confirmation, which confirmed the trees were infected with citrus canker. TDA inspection determined that most of the approximately 300 citrus nursery trees at the retail nursery were infected with citrus canker. With the nursery’s consent, TDA destroyed all the symptomatic and the suspect citrus nursery trees and disposed of them according to sanitation procedures, to prevent accidental spread of the disease. USDA began survey work to identify all infected plants in the area and to determine how far the infestation extended in all directions. On August 10, 2016 TDA established the Richmond Citrus Canker Quarantined Area, in collaboration with USDA-APHIS-PPQ. Inspection of plants, their labels and nursery purchase records, disclosed that the nursery’s multiple varieties of infected citrus trees were from four propagative nurseries in Texas. All nurseries that had sold citrus plants to the retail nursery were thoroughly inspected and found to be free of citrus canker. The citrus nursery plants must have become infected after they had arrived at the retail nursery in Richmond. Currently there are no commercial producers of citrus fruit and no producers or retailers of citrus nursery trees inside the quarantined area. Only dooryard (ornamental/personal use) citrus trees are found inside the quarantined area. To combat the infestation, as soon as USDA locates a citrus canker infected tree, TDA inspectors seek homeowner cooperation, then destroy and sanitarily dispose of the tree. All varieties of citrus and other quarantined articles inside the quarantined area are subject to the quarantine restrictions and requirements."
Houston, Harris County.
Two adjacent sour orange trees in a city park in Houston, Harris County, Texas, were sampled on May 13, 2016, and confirmed by USDA to be infected by citrus canker. Both trees were destroyed and a delimiting survey of potential hosts has found no further infected plants. The department has quarantined the area that contained the infected plants. All varieties of citrus and other quarantined articles inside the quarantined area are subject to the quarantine restrictions and requirements.