A three-year study of a new citrus greening treatment shows promise in offering a new option for combating citrus greening.
A UF/IFAS research team has found good results with a new citrus greening treatment. The three-year study of the new treatment shows it has slowed the spread of bacterium that causes citrus greening and supported increased fruit yield, according to a Citrus Industry article. Explore the details of the treatment and research below.
New Citrus Greening Treatment Details
The three-year project, which included greenhouse and commercial field trials, looked at injecting citrus trees infected by the citrus greening bacteria with solutions of benzbromarone (benz), tolfenamic acid (tolf). Some trees were injected via the trunk with one or the other of the solution, some trees were injected with both, and trees in the control group received no injections.
Per the article, highlights of the research include:
- The treatment decreased infection in citrus tree roots compared to the control trees.
- Fruit production increased by 15 percent following 12 months of treatment.
- The amount of fruit that would be classified as having a higher marketable value “significantly” increased after treatments.
- The treatments did not “compromise tree viability or the soil surrounding the trees.”
- The treatment did not create any negative long-term effects that would affect the safety of the fruit.
“Our findings present another solid block of information in the foundation of finding solutions to citrus greening,” said Christopher Gardner, a member of the research team, in the article.
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