HungryPests Blog

Asian Citrus Psyllid and Citrus Greening Disease a Rising Concern in California

When most people think of citrus, they think of Florida. But did you know that California is the second top producer of citrus in the United States? And the top producer of citrus table fruit, the fresh oranges, lemons, grapefruit and limes you see in stores (not in juice cartons)? Citrus trees dot the state, from orchards of thousands to backyard trees providing fresh produce to home owners.

California and the Asian Citrus Psyllid

The spread of Asian Citrus Psyllid into California and the threat of citrus greening disease (Huanglongbing or HLB) becoming established here has been all over the news recently. It’s an important issue and one that we are closely following. Sometimes there are interesting articles out there about this and other invasive pest topics, with new or different perspectives, that we would like to share with our audience. When we see those items online, we’ll provide excerpts of the article or blog post along with our perspective. One of those excerpts is below, on Asian Citrus Psyllid. Read on…

What is Asian Citrus Psyllid and How Will it Affect Me?

Photo courtesy of Susan Halbert

You may have heard the news that a tiny insect, about the size of an aphid, has arrived in southern California and has the potential to cause great harm to the citrus industry. The Asian citrus psyllid lives on young leaves of all types of citrus (lemons, limes, oranges and grapefruit) and closely related plants such as kumquat, Indian curry leaves and an ornamental plant called mock orange. When it feeds, the psyllid injects a toxin that causes the new leaves to twist and curl or fall off completely.