Florida citrus on the rebound with new techniques and tactics
Florida citrus on the rebound with new techniques and tactics
The Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, headquartered in the state's capital of Tallahassee, is the largest state agriculture department in the United States. Craig Meyer, deputy commissioner of the department, said that the status of the Florida crop this year is very good quality, but the volume is still down from prehurricane damage the state suffered over the past couple of years.
"If you go back to August 12, 2004, before the first of that season's hurricanes hit the state, you would see that Florida had about 750,000 acres of commercial citrus production," said Mr. Meyer. "Today we are at about 620,000 acres."
The deputy commissioner explained that throughout 2004 and 2005, as groves were removed by canker disease or blown away from storms, there was a lot of talk about growers not replanting. A housing boom was also occurring at the time, and some producers felt it was to their advantage to sell to developers.
"Now the housing boom is over, and canker laws that forbid growers to replant on previously canker-infected land have been lifted," said Mr. Meyer. "But the state faces another crunch that will continue for the next two to three years. There is not a lot of reset plants available because canker swept through the nursery stock, and it will take some time to rebuild the inventory."
Florida developed a proposal, which was passed by the legislature earlier this year, mandating that by Jan. 1, 2008, all citrus nursery stock must have come from an improved structure. In short, this means that citrus nursery stock can no longer be grown in the open. This causes a little more of a delay in replenishing the stock because it is taking some time to build greenhouse structures.
At the same time, the state is moving nursery production into the northern and northern-central areas of Florida where it will be less susceptible to hurricane damage. The Florida Citrus Budwood Protection Program oversees the mandated program.
"Growers buy the foundation material for citrus -- the budwood -- from the state, and can cut from that product to create new plants for up to 18 months," explained Mr. Meyer. "They then must come back to us for new budwood. By growing in greenhouses, we are also eliminating the risk of citrus canker disease infecting the plants, which is spread through the air, and of citrus greening, which is carried by psyllids."
Citrus greening was first detected in Florida in 1998. It causes leaf distortion and curling which results from the withdrawal of sap from the foliage, and ultimately destruction of the trees. The new law regarding nursery stock also states that citrus nurseries must be at least one mile away from any citrus grove, further reducing the risk of the spread of either disease.
Despite the state's aggressive efforts to aid and protect the citrus industry, Mr. Meyer said that it is still difficult to forecast what the future will bring.
"A lot depends on demand, and if producers believe they can make an investment in their land and get a return," he said. "Variables include what will happen if the housing market comes back, what type of hurricane seasons we face in future years and other factors. Many growers who were affected by any of the recent citrus-related issues of recent times are determined get their operations back up, however, and if they can get the resets going, and the nursery level is able to meet the demand, the future will look hopeful. We don't know if we will ever reach the previous levels of citrus production that we had in the past, or how long it may take."
Mr. Meyer added that after the budwood and scion stages -- the next, or early tree stage following the budwood stage -- and plants are mature enough to be planted in a grove, it then takes six to seven years for them to produce a commercial profile.
It is a transition period for Florida's citrus industry, but Mr. Meyer pointed out that higher citrus prices today do encourage resets, and that could mean the beginning of a healthy recovery for Florida citrus in the future.
(For more on the Florida citrus deal, see the Dec. 4 issue of The Produce News.)
"If you go back to August 12, 2004, before the first of that season's hurricanes hit the state, you would see that Florida had about 750,000 acres of commercial citrus production," said Mr. Meyer. "Today we are at about 620,000 acres."
The deputy commissioner explained that throughout 2004 and 2005, as groves were removed by canker disease or blown away from storms, there was a lot of talk about growers not replanting. A housing boom was also occurring at the time, and some producers felt it was to their advantage to sell to developers.
"Now the housing boom is over, and canker laws that forbid growers to replant on previously canker-infected land have been lifted," said Mr. Meyer. "But the state faces another crunch that will continue for the next two to three years. There is not a lot of reset plants available because canker swept through the nursery stock, and it will take some time to rebuild the inventory."
Florida developed a proposal, which was passed by the legislature earlier this year, mandating that by Jan. 1, 2008, all citrus nursery stock must have come from an improved structure. In short, this means that citrus nursery stock can no longer be grown in the open. This causes a little more of a delay in replenishing the stock because it is taking some time to build greenhouse structures.
At the same time, the state is moving nursery production into the northern and northern-central areas of Florida where it will be less susceptible to hurricane damage. The Florida Citrus Budwood Protection Program oversees the mandated program.
"Growers buy the foundation material for citrus -- the budwood -- from the state, and can cut from that product to create new plants for up to 18 months," explained Mr. Meyer. "They then must come back to us for new budwood. By growing in greenhouses, we are also eliminating the risk of citrus canker disease infecting the plants, which is spread through the air, and of citrus greening, which is carried by psyllids."
Citrus greening was first detected in Florida in 1998. It causes leaf distortion and curling which results from the withdrawal of sap from the foliage, and ultimately destruction of the trees. The new law regarding nursery stock also states that citrus nurseries must be at least one mile away from any citrus grove, further reducing the risk of the spread of either disease.
Despite the state's aggressive efforts to aid and protect the citrus industry, Mr. Meyer said that it is still difficult to forecast what the future will bring.
"A lot depends on demand, and if producers believe they can make an investment in their land and get a return," he said. "Variables include what will happen if the housing market comes back, what type of hurricane seasons we face in future years and other factors. Many growers who were affected by any of the recent citrus-related issues of recent times are determined get their operations back up, however, and if they can get the resets going, and the nursery level is able to meet the demand, the future will look hopeful. We don't know if we will ever reach the previous levels of citrus production that we had in the past, or how long it may take."
Mr. Meyer added that after the budwood and scion stages -- the next, or early tree stage following the budwood stage -- and plants are mature enough to be planted in a grove, it then takes six to seven years for them to produce a commercial profile.
It is a transition period for Florida's citrus industry, but Mr. Meyer pointed out that higher citrus prices today do encourage resets, and that could mean the beginning of a healthy recovery for Florida citrus in the future.
(For more on the Florida citrus deal, see the Dec. 4 issue of The Produce News.)
