Posts Tagged: agriculture
New Weed Control Method
- Posted by: Gale Perez
Sterile Pollen Technique Shows Promise for Palmer Amaranth Weed Control
Newly published research provides a novel and sustainable weed-management strategy
WESTMINSTER, Colorado – 22 May2024 – Recently published research in the journal Weed Science shows that a sterilization technique commonly used to control insect pests can be modified to control weeds that require pollination to reproduce. More specifically, the researchers determined that employing a sterile pollen technique (SPT) could effectively disrupt Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri S.) reproduction.
Palmer amaranth remains among the most detrimental weeds in North American agriculture, and its resistance to several herbicide groups makes its control a serious challenge. Yet, researchers in this study were able to find a promising new control method for Palmer amaranth and possibly for many other difficult-to-control weeds.
“Our results indicate that SPT, using irradiated pollen, can be a valuable approach for reducing weed-seed production,” says Mohsen B. Mesgaran, Ph.D., a plant sciences assistant professor at the University of California Davis, and the article's corresponding author. “SPT also holds potential for broad-spectrum weed control by mixing sterile pollen from multiple weed species in a single application.”
Additionally, the researchers found that SPT shows promise for managing troublesome herbicide-resistant weeds that have survived in-season control efforts.“We observed the greatest reduction in seed set when irradiated pollen was introduced to the stigma through artificial pollination prior to open pollination,” notes Mesgaran. “It appears that irradiated pollen exerts a preventive effect on naturally occurring pollen that arrives later.”
While the researchers determined that a dose of 300 units of ionizing radiation (Gy) strikes the optimal balance to achieve both efficient Palmer amaranth pollination and seed sterility, challenges still remain. For example, irradiated pollen is currently less competitive than naturally occurring pollen. Thus, field managers may need to employ additional measures to successfully control Palmer amaranth with SPT, such as dispersing irradiated pollen in the field before male anthesis and releasing it multiple times.
More information about SPT and Palmer amaranth control can be found in the article (by Wenzhuo Wu and Mohsen B. Mesgaran), “Exploring sterile pollen technique as a novel tool for management of Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri).” The research is featured in Volume 72, Issue 3 of Weed Science, a Weed Science Society of America journal, published online by Cambridge University Press.
Original source: Weed Science Society of America (https://wssa.net/2024/05/sterile-pollen-technique-shows-promise-for-palmer-amaranth-weed-control/)
palmer amaranth
Dragon Fruit Workshop
We are happy to invite you to participate in the upcoming Dragon Fruit Workshop to be held at the Miami-Dade County Extension Service (Homestead, FL) during July 17-18, 2024. This is a free event, where lunch and light refreshments will be provided. This meeting is part of the grant entitled “Evaluating the Potential Expansion and Diversification of the Dragon Fruit Industry in North America” (FLA-TRC-006408). At this workshop you will learn about Dragon fruit pollination, production and post-harvest practices, insect pests and diseases, and more.
We will also visit two Dragon fruit plantings. You can find the tentative agenda at the end of this message. In order to attend in-person or online you MUST register (the link below). We will be sharing more information as the date gets closer.
https://ufl.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0SpTDLWnPxRoRuJ
If you have additional questions, please contact Dr. Romina Gazis (r.gazisseregina@ufl.edu) or Shelby Weber (shelby.weber1@ufl.edu)
Tentative Agenda
DAY 1 [July 17, 2024 / 8 am – 5 pm]
8:00 – 9:00: Registration, coffee & snacks.
9:00 – 9:15: Welcome words from the organizers. Housekeeping items.
9:15 – 10:10: State Reports. Five States (FL, CA, TX, PR, HI).
10:10 – 11:00: Growing dragon fruit in a changing climate.
11:00 – 11:30: Dragon Fruit Diseases [general]
11:30 – 12:00: Dragon fruit stem and fruit canker.
12:00 – 1:00: LUNCH [included for all participants]
1:00 – 1:30: Dragon Fruit Pests and Pollinators.
1:30 – 2:00: Cultural practices related to crop health.
2:00 – 3:00: Section industry perspective.
3:00 – 4:00: Section economics.
4:00 – 5:00: Section postharvest and consumer preferences.
5:00 – 5:10: Wrap up / Housekeeping items for day 2.
DAY 2 [July 18, 2024 / 8 am – 5 pm]
8:00 – 9:00: Group meet up, coffee & snacks.
9:00 – 12:00: Visit to two dragon fruit fields (two local plantings).
12:00 – 1:00: LUNCH [included for all participants]
1:00 – 2:00: Visit to TREC's Dragon Fruit variety planting.
2:00 – 3:00: Industry brainstorming session and research priorities selection.
3:00 – 4:00: Closing Remarks and future efforts.
dragon field hills
Avocado Workshop - June 25
California Avocado Growers Seminars Series 2024
Scheduled Topics
June 25 (9 AM - 12 PM)
Field Day at Jackson Avocado Ranch
Valley Center (Near Escondido)
grower meeting
Movento 24C renewed for Citrus in CA
Movento (spirotetramet) has been renewed for use on citrus Asian citrus psyllid in California. It's a foliar spray that is systemic especially moving to new tissue where ACP feeds. It also controls some other pests, such as thrips and leafminer. It has a short persistence effect on natural enemies and has low toxicity issues.
As an interesting aside, I just learned that cryolite (Kryocide, Pro-Kil) which was considered for organic registration at one time, has lost its registration. It was a stomach poison that worked on leaf-feeding beetles and lepidopteran pests like orange tortrix. The high level of fluoride necessitated its loss of registration.
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ACP News
HLB Update - Ventura County Detections
There have been no new confirmed positive HLB detections in Ventura since early February, and no recent expansions to the 5-mile HLB quarantine in place in the Santa Paula area. To see a map of the current HLB quarantine areas and other details of HLB detections throughout the state, updated weekly, please visit maps.cdfa.ca.gov/WeeklyACPMaps/HLBWeb/HLB_Treatments.pdf.
Visit Information for Citrus Growers/Grove Managers for the most up to date mitigation requirements for moving bulk citrus to, from, and within an HLB quarantine. Even if mitigation is not required, it is still required for growers to submit an ACP-Free Declaration Form to the applicable county agricultural commissioner's (CAC) office in advance. The ACP-Free Declaration Form has been updated to reflect these changes.
There have been no confirmed positive HLB detections or HLB quarantines in Santa Barbara county to date.
2024 Ventura County ACP-HLB Grower Meeting June 11 - In person or via Zoom
All are welcome. June 11th, 8:30am - 1pm at United Water Conservation District, 1701 Lombard Street in Oxnard, or on Zoom (Meeting ID: 833 1062 0864, Passcode ACPHLB). This meeting has been approved for 4 DPR CEUs (1.25 Laws, 2.75 Other). To receive CEUs you must attend in person and pre-register with DPR at https://cereported/courses/290. If you are not seeking CEUs, there is no registration required.
The full agenda is below.
Citrus Program Leadership Changes
The California Department of Food and Agriculture's (CDFA) Pest and Disease Prevention Division (CPDPD) has announced that as of May 14, 2024, Victoria Hornbaker, former director of the CPDPD, transitioned to her new role as the director of the CDFA's Plant Health and Pest Prevention Services (PHPPS) Division. David Gutierrez, branch chief of the CPDPD, will serve as interim director while a recruitment process is conducted to find a permanent hire for the role. Read Full Article Here
Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Committee Meetings -- Webinar and In Person
All meeting agendas and eventually the minutes are posted at www.cdfa.ca.gov/citrus committee/. The 2023-24 schedule for the Full Committee is here, and the schedule for Subcommittees is here.
- Executive Subcommittee - June 26
- Finance Subcommittee - July 9
- Operations Subcommittee - July 10
- Outreach Subcommittee - July 17
- Full Committee - August 8
All meetings are free and open to the public to listen to or make public comment. Meetings are currently in person and accessible via phone and/or webinar. Links to register for and join meetings are included in agendas when posted.
For a list of all current committee members, click here.
Important ACP/HLB Documents and Resources
- CDFA Citrus Division website: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/Citrus/
- Regulatory/Quarantine
oSign up for regulatory updates from the Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Division at www.cdfa/signup-email-updates.
oInteractive map to find out how close you are to HLB detections.
oRegulatory requirements for moving bulk citrus: Information for Citrus Growers
oSummary of regulatory requirements in the event of an HLB detection in commercial citrus: citrusinsider.org/Regulatory-Flyer
oSanta Barbara County Ag Commissioner's Office
- General ACP/HLB
oInformation on the state ACP/HLB program including maps, quarantine information, and a signup option for email alerts: citrusinsider.org/
oBiology of ACP and HLB, detection maps and recommendations for monitoring, eradication and management: ucanr.edu/sites/acp/
oUC IPM recommendations for ACP insecticides
oVideo on Best Practices in the Field, available in English and Spanish
oEn español -- Spanish-only ACP/HLB presentation video presentation and audio-only recording.
- Research
oLatest Science Advisory Panel Report
oUC Ag Experts Talk presentations on management of various citrus pests and diseases are available for viewing here and here on YouTube.
oCitrus Research Board video presentations from webinar series and California Citrus Conference
oSummaries of the latest research to combat HLB: ucanr.edu/sites/scienceforcitrushealth/
oScience-based analyses to guide policy decisions, logistics, and operations: www.datoc.us
-------- FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT
Cressida Silvers
CA Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Program
ACP/HLB Grower Liaison
Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties
805 284-3310 (phone or text)
ACP grower meeting june 2024