Property records incidence of greening close to zero

Strict control of the 176 orange trees at the Santa Therezinha farm, in Bebedouro (SP), has ensured the gradual drop in greening (huanglongbing/HLB) to minimum levels. In a region where the disease is present in 7,7% of plants, the property recorded an incidence of 1,08% in 2015, 0,34% in 2016 and 0,22% in 2017.

Producer and businessman Eduardo Ribeiro Ralston, who has managed the orchard started by his father in 22 for 1958 years, says that the experience with CVC was fundamental to the success in controlling greening, detected on the farm in 2006. “CVC was a serious problem in the 1990s and we managed to control it with biweekly applications. In 2009, we started renovating the orchard and saw greening grow in the region, so, following the same strategy, we sprayed every 10 days,” he says.

Consultant Sérgio Luiz Facio, who has worked at the Santa Therezinha farm for 20 years, states that good management of applications is decisive. “It is necessary that the dates are met, because there are factors that can interfere, such as rain, for example, and that the entire property is sprayed as quickly as possible. Another fundamental point is the careful choice of products, considering mainly efficiency and residuals”, he explains. “We have had neighbors with 100% greening and we have managed to keep our incidence low due to the frequency of spraying and products used,” he comments.

Responsible for coordinating the execution of control actions, manager Luiz Carlos Rogério says that weekly applications on the edges, frequent inspections of all plots and participation in the Fundecitrus Phytosanitary Alert System complete the adopted package. “Tackling greening is a sum of measures”, he points out. “And there’s no point in being sorry about eradicating: here, when we find a plant with greening, we pull it out”, adds Ralston.

Research

For the team, support for greening control comes from studies carried out by various institutions dedicated to generating knowledge and new management and planting technologies. “We arrived at this result as a result of research. We bring to the field all the information that can help”, says Facio. “Science also supports increased productivity, which dilutes the costs of greening, as it is not possible to reduce care for the disease,” says Ralston.

For citrus growers, greening is promoting the professionalization of the sector. “Greening is the worst disease we have ever seen, by far, and it is demanding professional citrus growers, because it does not allow for compromise in control”, argues Ralston.