Fundecitrus holds a workshop on strategies for greening management

Fundecitrus promoted, on Wednesday (23/11), at its headquarters, in Araraquara/SP, the Greening Workshop: Strategies for disease management. The event was held in person and online, bringing together around 150 sector professionals in the institution's auditorium and 742 views of the online broadcast, carried out live on the Fundecitrus channel on YouTube.

The workshop was led by journalist Daniela Lemos, and aimed to present updated information on the current greening scenario, aiming to delve deeper into the subject and help understand the situation, providing detailed technical information to the public.

The general manager of Fundecitrus, Juliano Ayres, opened the event, highlighting the importance of the meeting. “This workshop came at a strategic and critical moment in the citrus industry. We brought experts from Fundecitrus and ESALQ-USP to talk about the biggest current challenge in citrus farming, greening. The world wants quality juice, and juice cannot be made with greening”, comments Ayres.

Then, Fundecitrus researcher Renato Bassanezi gave an overview of the greening scenario in the citrus belt, emphasizing that, with the adoption of appropriate management measures, it is possible to reduce the spread of the disease. “It is important to pay attention to some factors responsible for the increase in the disease in the citrus farm, such as the maintenance of diseased plants, inadequate control of the psyllid and some cultural practices that have favored sprouting in the orchards”, he highlights.  

Professor and researcher at ESALQ-USP João Lopes spoke about the dispersion of the psyllid in orchards. “The producer needs to know how the transmission and movement of the psyllid occurs, especially depending on the sprouts and climatic conditions. It is necessary to be prepared with external management measures, eliminate diseased plants and associate tactics with effective products”, he comments.

Celso Omoto, also a professor and researcher at ESALQ-USP, addressed the resistance of psyllids to insecticides. “Insecticide resistance should not be overlooked. Citrus growers need to rotate products with different modes of action and implement good practice strategies with neighboring properties, to avoid an increase in the insect population”, explains Omoto.

The last lecture of the event was given by Fundecitrus researcher Marcelo Miranda, who discussed the main actions to control the psyllid. “In addition to product rotation, we highlight several important points, such as the quality of the spraying and the good monitoring of the psyllid and nymphs as well as the sprouts”, he reinforces.

The closing of the workshop emphasized how Fundecitrus and partner institutions continue to work, through research, to help producers deal with the disease.