Citrus (Central Valley)

• Pre-bloom period activities
• Bloom period activities
• Petal fall activities

• Fruit development period activities
• Fall period activities
• Pesticide application checklist
  

Monitor California red scale males using pheromone-baited sticky traps (March through October), plus additional methods depending on the situation.

• Keep records of scale monitoring results.
• Learn to distinguish male scales from scale parasites and other important insects caught in sticky traps.
• Release Aphytis melinus if biological control is compatible with the overall management program.

Look for spider mites and other mites.

• Monitor leaves for citrus red mite (February through June).
• Keep records of mite monitoring results.
• Look for natural enemies, especially Euseius tularensis.

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Look for cottony cushion scale and predatory vedalia beetles (March through July).

• Collect and relocate vedalia to cottony cushion scale-infested orchards if vedalia have not arrived by the end of March.

Look for other pests and their damage to fruit or damage to leaves and twigs, especially:

• Earwigs (March through June)
• Forktailed bush katydid (March through June)
• Caterpillars, including amorbia, citrus cutworm, fruittree leafroller, omnivorous leafroller, and orange tortrix

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Look for brown garden snail.

• Collect and relocate predatory decollate snails if decollates were not previously found in the orchard, brown garden snail has been a problem, and decollate introductions are permitted in your county.

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Look for diseases that cause symptoms on fruit, leaves and twigs, and on limbs, trunks, and roots, especially:

• Bacterial blast (Citrus blast)
• Brown rot and Septoria spot fruit decays
• Dry rot
• Phytophthora gummosis and Phytophthora root rots

Record the date and location of problem trees or sites. Manage if needed according to PMG.

Survey winter weeds. Identify common winter broadleaves and grasses.

• Record weed survey results at least twice annually (during late winter and in summer).

Manage vegetation if needed according to PMG.

Look for vertebrates, especially ground squirrels, pocket gophers, rabbits, and roof rats. Manage if needed.

Provide proper cultural care and good growing conditions to improve tree health and fruit yield, including:

• Fertilize if needed.
• Inspect irrigation systems by late winter and irrigate if rainfall has been insufficient.
• Provide frost protection when cold threatens.
• Prune if needed, but only after frost is no longer a threat.

Harvest mature fruit in coordination with other management activities to ensure good postharvest fruit quality and food safety.

• Educate and supervise workers regarding fruit-handling Best Management Practices (BMPs) (376 KB, PDF).
• Inspect fruit quality before bins are moved from the picking site to identify grove areas where management practices need improvement.

Monitor California red scale males using pheromone-baited sticky traps (March through October), plus additional methods depending on the situation.

• Keep records of scale monitoring results.
• Learn to distinguish male scales from scale parasites and other important insects caught in sticky traps.
• Release Aphytis melinus if biological control is compatible with the overall management program.

Look for spider mites and other mites.

• Monitor leaves for citrus red mite (February through June).
• Keep records of mite monitoring results.
• Look for natural enemies, especially Euseius tularensis and sixspotted thrips.

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Look for cottony cushion scale and predatory vedalia beetles.

• Collect and relocate vedalia to cottony cushion scale-infested orchards if vedalia have not arrived on their own during April.

Look for other pests and their damage to fruit or damage to leaves and twigs, especially:

• Earwigs (March through June)
• Forktailed bush katydid (March through June)
• Caterpillars, including amorbia, citrus cutworm, fruittree leafroller, omnivorous leafroller, and orange tortrix

Other pests:

• Ants, including fire ants and gray ants
• Citricola scale honeydew and females on twigs (be sure to distinguish citricola scale from brown soft scale)

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Look for brown garden snail.

• Collect and relocate predatory decollate snails if decollates were not previously found in the orchard, brown garden snail has been a problem, and decollate introductions are permitted in your county.

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Manage pesticides to avoid killing honey bees.

Look for diseases that cause symptoms on fruit, leaves and twigs, and on limbs, trunks, and roots, especially:

• Brown rot and Septoria spot fruit decays
• Dry rot
• Phytophthora gummosis and Phytophthora root rots

Record the date and location of problem trees or sites. Manage if needed according to PMG.

Provide proper cultural care and good growing conditions to improve tree health and fruit yield, including:

• Fertilize if needed.
• Irrigate and adjust scheduling to meet trees’ varying water needs.
• Prune if needed.

Harvest mature fruit in coordination with other management activities to ensure good postharvest fruit quality and food safety.

• Educate and supervise workers regarding fruit-handling Best Management Practices (BMPs) (376 KB, PDF).
• Inspect fruit quality before bins are moved from the picking site to identify grove areas where management practices need improvement.

Monitor fruit for immature citrus thrips (late April through June).

• Keep records of thrips monitoring results.
• Examine leaves for natural enemies, such as Euseius tularensis.

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Monitor California red scale males using pheromone-baited sticky traps (March through October), plus additional methods depending on the situation.

• Keep records of scale monitoring results.
• Distinguish male scales from scale parasites and other important insects caught in sticky traps.
• Release Aphytis melinus if biological control is compatible with the overall management program.

Look for spider mites and other mites.

• Monitor leaves for citrus red mite.
• Keep records of mite monitoring results.
• Look for natural enemies, especially Euseius tularensis and sixspotted thrips.

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Monitor cottony cushion scale (May) to see if the vedalia beetle is providing biological control; it is too late to relocate vedalia. If threshold is exceeded, manage later according to PMG.

Examine twigs for citricola scale females to alert you whether management later may be needed. Be sure to distinguish citricola scale from brown soft scale.

Look for other pests and their damage especially:

• Earwigs (March through June)
• Forktailed bush katydid (March through June)
• Caterpillars, including amorbia, citrus cutworm, fruittree leafroller, omnivorous leafroller, and orange tortrix.

Miscellaneous pests:

• Ants, including fire ants and gray ants

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Look for brown garden snail.

• Heading into warm weather, relocation of decollates is not advised.
• Manage if needed according to PMG.

Look for diseases that cause symptoms on fruit, leaves and twigs, and on limbs, trunks, and roots, especially:

• Dry rot
• Phytophthora gummosis and Phytophthora root rots

Record the date and location of problem trees or sites. Manage if needed according to PMG.

Survey weeds. Manage vegetation if needed according to PMG.

Look for vertebrates, especially ground squirrels, pocket gophers, rabbits, and roof rats. Manage if needed.

Provide proper cultural care and good growing conditions to improve tree health and fruit yield, including:

• Fertilize if needed.
• Irrigate and adjust scheduling to meet trees’ varying water needs.
• Prune if needed, such as removing dead twigs and branches to reduce bacterial blast (citrus blast) inoculum.

Determine whether application of plant growth regulator is warranted, such as in mandarins.

Harvest mature fruit in coordination with other management activities to ensure good postharvest fruit quality and food safety.

• Educate and supervise workers regarding fruit-handling Best Management Practices (BMPs) (376 KB, PDF).
• Inspect fruit quality before bins are moved from the picking site to identify grove areas where management practices need improvement.

Monitor California red scale males using pheromone-baited sticky traps, plus additional methods depending on the situation.

• Keep records of scale monitoring results.
• Distinguish male scales from scale parasites and other important insects caught in sticky traps.
• Begin checking fruit for scale infestation and percentage parasitism by A. melinus and Comperiella bifasciata (July though October).
  • Keep records of fruit monitoring results.
• Release Aphytis melinus if biological control is compatible with the overall management program.

Monitor fruit for immature citrus thrips (late April through June).

• Keep records of mite monitoring results.
• Examine leaves for natural enemies, such as Euseius tularensis.

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Monitor leaves for citricola scale nymphs (August-September).

• Be sure to distinguish citricola scale from brown soft scale.
• Keep records of scale monitoring results.

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Look for citrus peelminer and search fruit for its damage. If susceptible variety of citrus, manage according to PMG.

Monitor (August through November) for bean thrips in navel oranges if navels may be exported to Australia. Plan ahead by ordering monitoring traps.

• Check for revisions to regulatory export protocol, currently:  adult trapping and cutting fruit preharvest and at the packinghouse.
• If trapping, learn to distinguish bean thrips from other thrips species caught in sticky traps.

Look for other pests and their damage to fruit or damage to leaves and twigs, especially:

• Earwigs (March through June)
• Forktailed bush katydid (March through June)
• Yuma spider mite (July through September)

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Look for diseases that cause symptoms on fruit, leaves and twigs, and on limbs, trunks, and roots, especially:

• Brown rot and Septoria spot fruit decays
• Dry rot
• Phytophthora gummosis and Phytophthora root rots

Record the date and location of problem trees or sites. Manage if needed according to PMG.

Survey summer weeds. Identify common summer broadleaves and grasses and sedges.

• Record weed survey results at least twice annually (during late winter and in summer).
• Look for and rouge favored weed hosts of bean thrips if navels might be exported to Australia.

Manage vegetation if needed according to PMG.

Provide proper cultural care and good growing conditions to improve tree health and fruit yield, including:

• Sample leaf nutrient levels at least once mid-August through October. Fertilize if needed.
• Irrigate and adjust scheduling to meet trees’ varying water needs.
• Prune if needed.

Monitor California red scale males using pheromone-baited sticky traps (March through October), plus additional methods depending on the situation.

• Keep records of scale monitoring results.
• Distinguish male scales from scale parasites and other important insects caught in sticky traps.
• Monitor fruit for scale infestation and percentage red scale parasitism by Aphytis melinus and Comperiella bifasciata (July though October).
• Release Aphytis melinus if biological control is compatible with the overall management program.

Monitor (August through November) for bean thrips in navel oranges if navels may be exported to Australia.

• Check for revisions to regulatory export protocol, currently: adult trapping and cutting fruit preharvest and at the packinghouse.
• If trapping, learn to distinguish bean thrips from other thrips species caught in sticky traps.

Look for citrus leafminer (June through November) and citrus peelminer. Manage if needed according to PMG.

Look for other pests and their damage to fruit or damage to leaves and twigs, especially:

• Brown garden snail
• Citricola scale
• Potato leafhopper (September through December)
• Texas citrus mite (October through December)

Manage if needed according to PMG.

Look for diseases that cause symptoms on fruit, leaves and twigs, and on limbs, trunks, and roots, especially:

• Armillaria root rot
• Bacterial blast (Citrus blast)
• Brown rot and Septoria spot fruit decays
• Dry rot
• Phytophthora gummosis and Phytophthora root rots
• Rind disorder (Mandarin rind disorder)
• Stubborn disease

Record the date and location of problem trees or sites. Manage if needed according to PMG.

Determine whether preventive application of certain materials are warranted including:

• Fruit rot, rind disorder, and twig blight (bacterial blast) protectants for diseases listed above.
• Plant growth regulator to reduce fruit drop.
• Whitewash to preserve fruit quality and to reduce fruit drop and sunburn.

Treat** if warranted according to PMG.

Provide proper cultural care and good growing conditions to improve tree health and fruit yield, including:

• Sample leaf nutrient levels at least once mid-August through October.
• Fertilize if needed.
• Irrigate and adjust scheduling to meet trees’ varying water needs.
• Provide frost protection when cold threatens.

Harvest mature fruit in coordination with other management activities to ensure good postharvest fruit quality and food safety.

• Educate and supervise workers regarding fruit-handling Best Management Practices (BMPs) (376 KB, PDF).
• Inspect fruit quality before bins are moved from the picking site to identify grove areas where management practices need improvement.