Researchers closer to curing citrus canker (2014)

Researchers in Florida are a step closer to finding a possible cure for citrus canker.

citrus canker 24620163-bg1.jpg

Researchers in Florida are a step closer to finding a possible cure for citrus canker. Citrus canker is a highly contagious plant disease and spreads rapidly by wind, rain, and irrigation.

Scientists at the Institute of Food and Ag Sciences at the University of Florida have identified a gene that makes citrus trees susceptible to the bacterial pathogen.

In Florida, the last extensive canker outbreak was in 1995, which cost the state’s citrus industry more than a billion dollars.

Related Stories
Unlike facilities focused on merchant ammonia, Meadowlark would convert its on-site ammonia into UAN and sulfur-containing ATS fertilizers used by regional crop producers.
For producers, the issue is diesel, freight, irrigation fuel, and input delivery.
Reduced slaughter numbers and stronger export demand are helping push livestock by-product values higher.
LSU economist Dr. Michael Deliberto says fewer planted acres could tighten supplies and support prices for producers.

LATEST STORIES BY THIS AUTHOR:

Thailand will not replace major corn buyers overnight, but renewed access could create another outlet for U.S. corn demand.
Kentucky Farm Bureau President Eddie Melton joins us to discuss fertilizer affordability concerns, Senate Agriculture Committee testimony, and spring planting conditions in Kentucky.
Officials say the tool could give Florida citrus growers another option against a disease that has devastated production for decades.
NCGA President Jed Bower joins us to discuss the House passage of year-round E15 legislation, potential opposition in the Senate, China trade talks, and spring planting progress.
Scouts say yields are landing close to USDA projections as they monitor drought pressure and abandonment concerns.
U.S. Wheat Associates is expanding into global fish feed markets, with early gains in South America and new opportunities emerging in Ecuador’s shrimp industry.
Agriculture Shows
Hosted by Scott “The Cow Guy” Shellady and RFD News Markets Specialist Tony St. James, Commodity Talk delivers expert insight into the day’s ag commodity markets just before the CME opens. Only on RFD-TV and Rural Radio SiriusXM Channel 147.
A look at the news, weather and commodities headlines that drove agriculture markets in the past week.
Everything profits from prairie. Soil, air, water — and all kinds of life! Learn how you can improve your land with prairie restoration, cover crops and prairie strips, while growing your bottom line.
From soil to harvest. Top Crop is an all-new series about four of the best farmers in the world—Dan Luepkes, of Oregan, Illinois; Cory Atley, of Cedarville, Ohio; Shelby Fite, of Jackson Center, Ohio; Russell Hedrick, of Hickory, North Carolina—reveals what it takes for them to make a profitable crop. It all starts with good soil, patience, and a strong planter setup.