Once again I would like to remind everyone about wanting to plant citrus trees. My thoughts on the subject are: Do Not. All legally sold citrus trees in Florida must be grown in Northern Florida under quarantine. In addition, the disease called citrus greening is rampant throughout the state. It is not seen with the…
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Over the past few years, Richard Lyons’ Nursery has reported from time to time on disease problems in avocado and citrus that have imperiled the future of both fruits as commercial crops in Florida. It is time for another update. Avocados have been hit hard by laurel wilt, a disease spread by Xyleborus glabratus, the…
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As Richard Lyons’ Nursery has noted several times over the past few years, the citrus industry in the State of Florida has been taking a significant tumble. First came citrus canker, followed by citrus greening disease and several hurricanes and tropical storms. Most recently, far-reaching Hurricane Irma unleashed severe damage throughout the citrus-growing region of…
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For a number of years now, Florida citrus has been pummeled by disease. Citrus canker appeared first, only to be supplanted by a newer scourge, citrus greening. Orange production alone cratered from a peak of 244 million 90-lb. boxes in 1997-98 to 68.36 million (or 68.75 million, depending upon the source) in 2016-17. But for…
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From time to time in this space, we report on the course of citrus greening in Florida. Citrus greening is a bacterial disease spread primarily by an insect known as a psyllid, and its presence in the state has been documented since 2005. The disease has had a devastating effect on commercial production here. Unfortunately,…
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