Growing Citrus in New Zealand a Practical Guide Hortresearch and New Zealand Citrus Growers Incorporated 2001 ISBN 0-478-06829-8
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Growing Citrus in New Zealand A practical guide HortResearch and New Zealand Citrus Growers Incorporated 2001 ISBN 0-478-06829-8 New Zealand Citrus Growers Incorporated gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the following organisations in the production of this manual: AGMARDT New Zealand Fruitgrowers Federation Charitable Trust Growing Citrus in New Zealand A practical guide Edited by Pauline Mooney 1 Contents Foreword Introduction ........................................................................................................................................4 Introduction ...................................................................................................5 It is with great pleasure that I introduce the revised New Zealand Citrus Manual. In The New Zealand Citrus Industry ..................................................................6 these times of expanding export markets it is necessary to have such a valuable manual Section 1. Varieties and Rootstocks ..............................................................................................8 on citrus production. 1.1 Orange and grapefruit cultivars ..............................................................9 The standards required by these markets as well as a more demanding domestic market 1.2 Mandarins, tangelos, and tangors ........................................................13 have required growers to produce higher quality fruit. 1.3 Lemons and limes ..................................................................................17 This manual written by New Zealand experts for local conditions is an essential part of 1.4 Rootstocks .............................................................................................21 all serious orchardists libraries’. The information it contains is very important for existing Section 2. Propagation and Topworking .....................................................................................26 and new growers alike. 2.1 The New Zealand Citrus Budwood Scheme (this chapter is no longer relevant and has been updated by best practice guidelines on the NZCGI website link- http://citrus.co.nz/Nursery_Tree_Guidelines.pdf .....27 2.2 Propagation ...........................................................................................30 2.3 Topworking ............................................................................................34 Section 3. Orchard Management .................................................................................................38 3.1 Planting a new block .............................................................................39 3.2 Citrus nutrition .......................................................................................45 Mike Willis 3.3 Organic management practices ............................................................55 Chairman 3.4 Training, pruning, and tree size control .................................................60 New Zealand Citrus Growers Incorporated. 3.5 Fruit thinning .........................................................................................65 3.6 Growth regulators .................................................................................69 Section 4. Harvest and Post-harvest ...........................................................................................73 4.1 Maturity testing .....................................................................................74 4.2 Picking and post-harvest practices .......................................................77 Section 5. Calendar of Operations ..............................................................................................88 5.1 Calendar of operations ..........................................................................89 Section 6. Pests and Diseases .....................................................................................................92 6.1 Citrus viruses .........................................................................................93 6.2 Citrus diseases ......................................................................................97 6.3 Citrus pests ..........................................................................................108 6.4 Pest and disease control programme ..................................................120 6.5 Weed control .......................................................................................130 Section 7. Business Management .............................................................................................133 7.1 Citrus economics (this chapter is no longer relevant and has been removed. Please refer to our website for more information: http://www.citrus.co.nz/ ...........................................................................134 7.2 Citrus marketing in New Zealand .......................................................142 2 3 Growing Citrus in New Zealand Introduction Richard Curtis A practical guide Since the First Edition of Growing Citrus in New Zealand was published the trend of increased planting of cultivars with export potential has continued. Satsuma mandarin production has increased dramatically especially in Northland where Introduction mandarins are now being grown on the light sandy soils of the Houhora Peninsula in an attempt to increase early production. The successful trialing and the subsequent Introduction introduction of C-35 rootstock, which has given a dramatic increase in yield, have graphically illustrated the value of research and development. The New Zealand Citrus Industry Likewise New Zealand’s premium export lemon the ‘Yen Ben’ has continued to increase in popularity and a strong market has developed for this product in Japan and Korea. ‘Yen Ben’ lemons are also being sold successfully in Australia in the summer months, a real coal to Newcastle story. Navel orange production has centred in Poverty Bay and with a move by growers to increase external quality a strong niche market is being developed for this product in Japan and Korea. This export market development has increased grower returns as local market prices have lifted with increased quality and a decrease in fruit available. All of these trends have led to an increasing realisation among growers that there are climatic differences between citrus growing regions and to maximise orchard gate returns growers must take this factor into account when making planting decisions. The successful introduction of the Thripobius semiluteus wasp to predate on greenhouse thrips is an excellent example of the cooperation possible between different product groups and is the first significant step into the world of integrated pest management for the citrus industry. I suspect it will not be the last time that we will be required to find the funds to carry out this type of work as the worldwide reduction in chemical use continues. In 1998, NZCGI went back to our growers to update research priorities and refocus the citrus industry on the future. As a result of a series of workshops in the three main © Copyright 2001 growing regions a strategic plan was produced and it is this document that provides executive members with direction for future research and development. New Zealand Citrus Growers Incorporated ISBN 0-478-06829-8 The last fifteen years have seen huge changes in the New Zealand citrus industry and All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced in any form without prior written rationalisation and change will mark our future. There are things happening in our permission of the New Zealand Citrus Growers Inc., P.O. Box 10629 Wellington. overseas markets that will have great impact on the way we carry out our business and Disclaimer to continue to be successful we must be alert to the dangers and the opportunities that The New Zealand Citrus Growers Incorporated and the authors have taken reasonable steps and these changes present. exercised skill, care and diligence in producing this publication to meet the needs of the growers and the market. However, there is no implicit or expressed warranty that the information is free from error or omission and the advice given in the publication is at the user’s risk. Similarly, no specific endorsement for any of the branded products mentioned by our advertisers is implied, and no responsibility will be accepted for any crop loss caused by the use of any chemical mentioned. Readers are reminded that this Manual was published in 2001 and has not been updated since that time. Some information included in the manual may be out of date and readers are strongly advised to obtain current advice from a consultant. 4 5 The New Zealand Citrus Industry Pat Sale A typical Mediterranean climate, that has proved to be very suitable for many citrus Scale of production varieties, has a long, hot, dry summer with a significantly cooler winter, when virtually There are almost 2,000 hectares of commercial citrus orchards in New Zealand. Roughly, all the rainfall occurs. Northland has a small but important average temperature Northland, Bay of Plenty, and Gisborne are each 30% of this total, Auckland is 7-8%, advantage over the Bay of Plenty and Gisborne, but Gisborne usually has very good and Hawke’s Bay, Taranaki, Waikato, and Nelson are the remaining 2-3%. summer temperatures. The Bay of Plenty soil, however, is far better for citrus than the The commercial production of citrus in New Zealand ranges between 25,000 and soils of the other two major districts. To overcome