Riverside Citrus Owners Asked to Stay Vigilant After Fourth Case of HLB Found
Published: 05/24/2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
May 24, 2019
Contact:
Phil Pitchford
Public Information Officer
951-826-5975
Riverside Citrus Owners Asked to Stay Vigilant After Fourth Case of HLB Found
Huanglongbing, or HLB, also known as citrus greening disease, is a threat to citrus across the state
RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Residents and business owners who have citrus trees on their property are encouraged to examine them for possible disease after a fourth case of the citrus disease Huanglongbing (HLB) was discovered in Riverside.
The tree is on the same property in north Riverside where HLB was previously detected in 2017, which spurred the creation of a quarantine and treatment program.
The most recent discovery of HLB, also known as citrus greening disease, marks the first new case in two years. But it also emphasizes the point that the spread of the bacteria causing HLB remains a threat to citrus trees in Riverside and surrounding communities.
The disease is carried by a pest called the Asian Citrus Psyllid. More than 1,300 trees are infected with HLB in Los Angeles and Orange counties alone.
Citrus greening disease, which devastated citrus in Florida, attacks plants’ vascular system, but does not pose a threat to humans or animals. The Asian Citrus Psyllid can spread the bacteria when the pest moves from one location to another, feeding on citrus trees and other plants. Once a tree is infected there is no cure, and it typically declines and dies within a few years.
Florida first detected the pest in 1998 and the disease in 2005. The University of Florida estimates that the disease causes an average loss of 7,513 jobs per year, and has cost growers $3 billion in lost revenue since it was first detected there. The Asian Citrus Psyllid was first detected in California in 2008.
More information can be found at http://californiacitrusthreat.org/
