LAKE ALFRED, Fla. —  An updated perennial resource for Florida commercial citrus growers is available to support their efforts to produce a successful citrus harvest. The 2023-2024 UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Citrus Production Guide will be available to growers at the August Florida Citrus Expo in Tampa and through their local UF/IFAS Extension citrus agents afterwards.

The 2023-2024 publication includes the latest technical advice on citrus greening disease management, tree nutrition, grove management and other aspects of Florida citrus cultivation. The document is a comprehensive reference meant to assist growers in development and management of citrus groves in Florida, said Tripti Vashisth, a UF/IFAS horticulture associate professor and a member of the guide’s editorial team.

Additions this year include new fertilizer recommendations for some nutrients that have been recently changed and information on the plant growth regulator gibberellic acid (GA). Information on pesticides registered for use in Florida citrus is also updated in every new edition.

Topics covered in the guide include planting, irrigation, fertilization, weed control, insect management and disease management, she said. For a grove management practice to be recommend in the guide, a minimum of two years of field validated data is required.  About 50 UF/IFAS personnel contributed to the latest edition.

“Each year, we update the guide with new information as it becomes available. This is a fundamental component of the UF/IFAS faculty mission to continue to meet the needs of our growers as we learn about and/or develop new tools and strategies for citrus production,” Vashisth said.

Hard copies of the updated guide will be available at the UF/IFAS booth at the Florida Citrus Expo held at the Florida State Fairgrounds in Tampa, August 16 – 17. After that, they will be at local UF/IFAS Extension county offices (please see chart) in citrus growing counties.

For a directory of citrus agents, visit http://citrusagents.ifas.ufl.edu/locate/index.shtml.

Another way to access the guide is on-line through the UF/IFAS Extension Electronic Data Information Source library at the EDIS website. It will also be available at the UF/IFAS Citrus Research and Education Center and the cirtrusresearch.ifas.ufl.edu websites.

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The mission of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) is to develop knowledge relevant to agricultural, human and natural resources and to make that knowledge available to sustain and enhance the quality of human life. With more than a dozen research facilities, 67 county Extension offices, and award-winning students and faculty in the UF College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, UF/IFAS brings science-based solutions to the state’s agricultural and natural resources industries, and all Florida residents.

ifas.ufl.edu | @UF_IFAS

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