A New Way Of Thinking

When citrus greening was first confirmed in Florida in 2005, it might be fair to say that the industry had its head in the sand when it came to the threat posed by the disease. But, as greening quickly spread across all citrus-producing counties in the state, the industry woke up to the fact that this was a battle for survival.

The rapid onslaught of greening left many resigned that the days of the state's signature crop could be numbered. It is easy to see how people would feel this way. They were being told by the experts that this is one of the worst insect pest/disease complexes known to man. On top of that, science knew very little about greening and how to survive in its presence.

Turning The Corner

Once the true threat of greening was established, Florida's citrus industry did what it has always done — rolled up its sleeves and went to work. Today, we are just beginning to see the full effort to fight greening blossom as many research projects are under way in a multitude of disciplines to learn more about this disease. This year, the Citrus Research and Development Foundation was codified as the official research funding organization in the state. Its mission is to fund results-oriented projects and quickly transfer learning from the lab to the field. They have an eye toward commercialization of greening breakthroughs because they understand the fight against greening won't be won in the lab or scientific journals.

Because so many resources are being thrown at the greening problem, I've noticed a change in the attitudes of many growers in the past year. I wouldn't characterize it as a soaring confidence that we are about to defeat the disease, but more of a recognition that we are learning ways to live with greening. Short-term, we will learn better ways to manage greening's vector, the psyllid. And, long-term, there is a ton of research focused on genetics that could produce a resistant tree. In the meantime, growers are showing their own ingenuity with foliar nutrition programs that appear to be keeping infected trees productive longer than they would otherwise. While it is true the fight with greening is far from over, I do believe many hope we are turning the corner away from doom and gloom to the idea this industry will survive one of its greatest challenges.

Working Together

One of the biggest stories of the past year has been the push to establish citrus health management areas (CHMAs). The goal of CHMAs is to get growers to work together to coordinate psyllid sprays to reduce populations over large areas. Several successful sprays occurred in the past year and more are planned for 2011. While challenges remain, CHMAs are another reason growers are beginning to believe this is a battle that we'll win.

Many hope we are turning the corner away from doom and gloom to the idea this industry will survive one of its greatest challenges.