Weslaco citrus scientist proposes an orange revolution

A scientist in Weslaco thinks it's time for a citrus revolution.

 

He says he has the tools to help growers survive today's adversities by making major changes and improvements in the way they produce fruit.

 

Dr. Mani Skaria, a plant pathologist at the Texas A&M-Kingsville Citrus Center at Weslaco, said planting ultra-high density orchards with micro-budded trees has the potential to rescue the nation's stressed citrus industry.

 

Using these strategies, citrus growers can increase profits while saving time, space and money. It will help them survive the challenges that threaten the industry today."
Those threats include new citrus diseases, hurricanes, freezes, soaring land prices, urbanization, labor shortages and ecological factors, Skaria said.

 

Skaria's method of micro-budding trees dramatically reduces the time and costs associated with the century-old method of mechanically grafting buds from tasty fruit trees onto hardy sour orange rootstocks.
Traditionally, a budded tree is kept for 18 months or more in a nursery before it can be transplanted to an orchard where it spends another three to four years maturing sufficiently to produce fruit, Skaria said.
In micro-budding, rootstocks are grown from seeds in tube-like containers. Under a microscope, a single bud is then inserted into the rootstock. Within two or three weeks, the newly budded rootstock begins to grow and is soon ready for transplanting to an orchard.

 

Skaria planted his first micro-budded orchard in the summer of 1997, and by the fall of 1999, several varieties of micro-budded citrus, including lemons, oranges and grapefruit, were producing fruit and continue to do well today.