Citrograph_Fall2013

8/13/2019 Citrograph_Fall2013

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PRSRTSTDU.S.POSTAGEPAIDPONTIAC,IL61764

PERMIT125

CITRUSRESEARCHBOARD,P.O.Box230,Visalia,CA93279

AddressServiceRequested

CitrographFall 2013

Meet the newCRB Chairman,

Dr. Etienne Rabe


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Fall 2013 Citrograph3

IN THIS ISSUE

Citrographis published quarterly by the Citrus Research Board, 217 N. Encina, Visalia, CA 93291.Citrographis sent to allCalifornia citrus producers courtesy of the Citrus Research Board. If you are currently receiving multiple copies, or would like

to make a change in your Citrographsubscription, please contact the publication office (above, left).Every effort is made to ensure accuracy in articles published byCitrograph; however, the publishers assume no responsibility

for losses sustained, allegedly resulting from following recommendations in this magazine. Consult your local authorities.The Citrus Research Board has not tested any of the products advertised in this publication, nor has it verified any of the

statements made in any of the advertisements. The Board does not warrant, expressly or implicitly, the fitness of any producadvertised or the suitability of any advice or statements contained herein.

An Official Publication of the Citrus Research Board

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Louise Fisher, Managing Editor

Dr. MaryLou Polek, Chief Science Editor

Dr. Mary Lu Arpaia

Richard Bennett

Franco Bernardi

Dan Dreyer

Dr. Ben Faber

Jim Gorden

Julia Inestroza

Ken Keck

EDITORIAL BOARD SCIENCE REVIEW PANEL

Dr. Mary Lu Arpaia

James A. Bethke

Dr. Abhaya Dandekar

Dr. Akif Eskalen

Dr. Stephen Garnsey

Dr. Joseph Smilanick

Editorial services provided by Ivy Leventhal, Brandon, FL.

FAX: 559-738-0607

Web Site:

http://www.citrusresearch.org

FALL 2013 VOLUME 4 NUMBER 5

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Cover photo of Dr. Etienne Rabe courtesy of JoseLima, Nursery Director, Paramount Citrus. Seearticle on page 10.

4 Editorial

8 Chairmans View

10 Meet new CRB Chairman Etienne Rabe

14 Industry Views

18 Report on 19th IOCV Conference inSouth Africa

22 California and Florida explore researchcoordination

24 Getting a first-hand look at psyllidinfestations

26 The new economics of solar in agriculture

30 SoilWeb

34 Core Citrus Breeding and EvaluationProgram

40 Update on the Asian citrus psyllidcooperative biological control program

50 CCQC honors Batkin with Salter Award

51 Youngs Nursery earns recognition by

Cal/OSHA52 Part II Brevipalpus mites in California

citrus

60 Le Cordon Bleus citrus challenge

63 Citrus Roots:The assault againstJack Frost


3/35

Fall 2013 Citrograph5Citrograph Fall 2013

EDITORIAL BY JOEL NELSEN, President of California Citrus Mutual

District 2 Southern California Coastal

Member Alternate

Earl Rutz Alan Washburn

Joe Barcinas John C. Gless

District 1 Northern California

Member Alternate

Toby Maitland- Lewis Jack Williams

Donald Roark Dan Dreyer

Jim Gorden Dan Galbraith

Joe Stewart Franco Bernardi

Etienne Rabe John Konda

John Richardson Jeff Steen

Kevin Olsen Tommy ElliottRichard Bennett Justin Brown

CITRUS RESEARCH BOARD MEMBER LIST BY DISTRICT 2013-2014

Citrus Research Board

217 N Encina, Visalia, CA 93291

PO Box 230, Visalia, CA 93279

(559) 738-0246

FAX (559) 738-0607

E-Mail [email protected]

www.citrusresearch.org

District 3 California Desert

Member Alternate

Mark McBroom Craig Armstrong

Public Member

Member Alternate

Ed Civerolo Steve Garnsey

The Mission of the Citrus Research Board:

Develop knowledge and build systems for grower vitality.Focus on quality assurance, clonal protection, production research,

variety development, and grower/public education.

TRIVIA QUESTION

Strengthening a valuable partnership

CALENDARDecember 13-14, 2013 LREC Fruit Display and Tasting - Lindcove

Research & Extension Center Exeter, CA. For

information, contact Anita Hunt 559-592-

2408 Ext 151.

January 8, 2014 CPDPC Board meeting - Visalia, CA. For more

information, call CDFA at 916-403-6652.

January 22, 2014 CRB Board meeting - Bahia Resort, San

Diego, CA. For more information, contact

CRB at 559-738-0246.

January 22-24, 2014 CRB New Technologies Conference - Bahia

Resort, San Diego, CA. For more information,

contact CRB at 559-738-0246.

February 11-13, 2014 World Ag Expo - International Agri-Center,

Tulare, CA. For more information, contact

CRB at 559-738-0246.March 6, 2014 California Citrus Mutual Showcase - Visalia

Convention Center, Visalia, CA. For more

information, contact CCM at 559-592-3790.

The operational

strength of the

ACP/HLB effort

requires a sustained

financial partnership

from industry, the

state and the federal

government.

The California Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Program (CP-DPP) has three partners from a financial perspective (the cit-rus industry, state of California and federal government) Yes, Iagree!and thousands of participants from an operational per-

spective covering a vast amount of territory. Millions of trees, several bil-lion pieces of fruit, thousands of jobs and billions of dollars of economicactivity hang in the balance. The success or failure rests in the strength ofthe partnership, both from an operational perspective and by insuring thatfinancial resources are adequate to guarantee an efficacious program.

This past year, financial uncertainty, controversy, and concern werespotlighted;. bBut, industry engagement and support wereas unques-tionable. In June, the California Department of Food and Agriculture(CDFA) conducted a review of the program, and not a single negativecomment was received. In fact, grower comments were overwhelminglypositive, and the California Citrus Mutual (CCM) Board passed a motionsupporting the continuance of the program. The cost to the industry is not

taken for granted. Growers participate on an annual basis ata $15 million level. Industry investment to-date is at $60million.

Overseeing the program is the California CitrusPest and Disease Management Program comprisingedof a 14-person industry Advisory Committee to theCDFA Secretary. The Committee was established to

offer operational guidance and, fiscal direction, and toserve as the eyes and ears for and of the industry.

At the Federal level is the Citrus Health Re-sponse Program (CHRP), a national vehicle

to assist producers and state departmentsof agriculture with financial support to

achieve state-specific objectives, de-termined by the industry, relative

to pest and disease pressures. Thispast year, however, CHRP took afinancial hit due to sequestrationmandates. The allocation to Cali-fornia was reduced by almost two$2 million dollars. Yet, the indus-trys commitment and a strongrelationship with USDA AnimalPlant Health Inspection Service(APHIS) by CCM and Sunkisthaves sustained Federal financial

support against threats of greaterbudget cuts. For the 2012-2013 and

continued on p. 6

An orangery (or orangerie) refers to a glass structure (conservatory)

used to house potted citrus. In the past, they usually were found in

royal and aristocratic gardens, sheltering orange trees during the winter

months. The earliest known orangery was established when and where?

A) London, England 1503, B) Padua, Italy 1545C) Paris, France 1617, D) Wertheim am Main, Germany 1773

(Go to page 32 for the answer.)


4/35

Citrograph Fall 2013

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013-2014 fiscal years, APHIS has committed to $10.1illion.

Grower support and federal funding combinedake up this $25 million per annum program to stop

r suppress the spread of the Asian Citrus PsyllidACP) and find HLB before it finds the CA Californiatrus industry and backyard citrus trees in abundance.

deally, the state of California would participate to aeater degree financially, but funds have been lacking

ue to the states fiscal situation.This past year, the industry, via CCM, made a con-

erted effort to engage state support. The objective wasot solely to achieve state funding, but to raise aware-ess that strong financial support from the state willrengthen the USDAs role in the entire program. Well short of our objective; obviously, greater educationnecessary to achieve our goal.

We had full support from the State Legislature, butthe Governor weighed the states overall needs, he

as advised that a more thorough discussion and a dif-rent path for state funding was needed. It was disap-

ointing to be sure, but in a message to the industry,DFA Secretary Ross confirmed the Departmentsnd the Governors commitment to participate in thefort to protect California citrus.

The industry Advisory Committee will continue to

address program needs and articulate to the Secretarywhere and how the state can partner to a greater de-gree. CCM and Sunkist will continue to work with theUSDA and Congress to maintain, if not increase, thepartnership at the federal level. We have two options- one is to succeed and the other is to fail. One leadsto continued economic prosperity. The other could re-sult in the same calamity affecting Florida, Mexico, andBrazil. One leads to supplying the nation with 85 per-cent% of its fresh citrus demands, while the other cre-ates opportunity for offshore imports, a tremendousloss of jobs, and a large jolt to the state general fundand local communities.

The operational strength of the ACP/HLB effortrequires a sustained financial partnership from indus-try, the state and the federal government. It is a bigtask requiring an unbreakable partnership at all threelevels. A successful and honest partnership will un-doubtedly have discord and contentious periods. Butthe important thing to remember is not to lose sight ofour goal.

Our goal collectively has to be the continued pro-tection of Californias first agricultural commodity,California citrus.

Joel Nelsen is the president of California CitrusMutual.

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More than a decade ago, sc ientists, researchers and citrus people from

throughout the country gathered to discuss disease pressures antici-

pated for our industry. They developed a list of major diseases that

required preparation. The first questions were how to accurately

detect and diagnose the various pathogens and in what order we should expect

them to arrive in the U.S. Citrus canker already had established itself in Florida.

Huanglongbing (HLB) was on the move around the world, with citrus variegated

chlorosis (CVC) moving north from South America. Accurate and early detection

and diagnosis became the top priority.To best meet our own forward-thinking criteria, extensive research projects were

undertaken, sponsored by industry sources in California and Florida, as well as na-

tional groups such as the USDA Agricultural Research Service. Even the National

Labs in Los Alamos became involved due to their biology expertise and concerns

for national security.

Thus began our education in the world of genetics and molecular biology. We

found this new area of research to be vastly complex and costly. Detection platforms

such as the lateral flow microarray device were developed to detect pathogen DNA

and enable the detection of several diseases simultaneously. Development started on

other platforms, including the electronic nose for the detection of volatile organic

compounds (VOCs), improved methods for the PCR (polymerase chain reaction

testing) and ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) processes, nuclear mag-

netic resonance (NMR) for the detection of proteins/molecules produced during the

disease process, and numerous equipment improvements.

Along with the many methods of detection, the need to understand a pathogens

genomic make-up led to the need for sequencing its DNA. The human genome-

sequencing project laid the foundation for this work. Several varieties of citrus

have been fully sequenced, as well as the various species of Liberibacter. The cost

of sequencing has dropped dramatically, but the complete understanding of HLB

is still elusive. Research into how to find, detect, diagnose and develop methods to

mitigate the problem is ongoing with ever-increasing complexity and cost. Many of

the scientific advancements have allowed for improved engineering and traditionalbreeding for resistance and tolerance. We are gaining the use of applied knowledge

rapidly; however, all seemed easier a decade or so ago. Now where are we?

We are trying to learn from the rest of the world about how ACP and HLB spread.

In California, we are mapping ACP spread via the development of the CRB database

and prediction models for HLB spread. With the assistance of the Jet Propulsion Lab

(JPL), aerial surveys will find citrus trees in residential areas and, hopefully, with data

base analysis, differentiate trees with HLB-specific symptoms. Understanding this

pathogens biology, movement and other characteristics will allow for the applica-

tion of all our technologies. LikeBack to the Future, Part II, how nice it would have

been a decade or so ago to travel forward in time to see what we would be facing

in the future. We could have predicted the sequence of research events, the disease

progression we are experiencing and the costs associated with the process. We would

CHAIRMANS VIEW BY EARL RUTZ, Past CRB Chairman

Back to the future, Part II

have known which research lines to continue to follow,

which ones to throw out and how much our escalating

costs would be. Investment in research is a mustfor the

future of the industry!

The CRB is undergoing positive change and is focused

on long-term productivity of the industry. President Ken

Kecks energetic resolve is already improving CRBs

systems. The cost of doing research is increasing rapidly,

so we need to be focused. Choosing the correct research

projects has become harder, as proposals today are far

more complex and costly. Industry needs are ever chang-

ing. Expect to see the following: a focus on the financial

aspects of running a more complex organization, im-

proved scientific review of new proposals and ongoing

projects, research in UC Daviss new containment facility

of all the detection methods yielding useful results, and

increased efforts with partners across the country to fund

the more complex research areas.

Future challenges will not be any easier. Biocontrol

and conventional chemical methods will be integrated.

The future of dealing with engineered breeding is now.

How do we integrate engineered health aspects or resistance

to disease with all the regulations that must be satisfied, much

less the public acceptance of engineered products? How do we

integrate all that we have learned over the last decade for our

use? More importantly, how do we best inform growers and

receive the feedback necessary to keep our efforts focused?

Which disease challenge is next? Do you have a future as a

citrus grower? How wonderful it would be to gaze both back

in the past and forward with a crystal ball to see our future

needs and our successful research applications.

The CRBs new chairman , Dr. Etienne Rabe, will be

wonderful for the industry. He is also chairman of the Cit-

rus Health Response Programs Science and Technology

Committee, which brings key industry representatives and

researchers together to review the current status of citrus

research. Under his leadership, the CRB will prosper by

increasing focus , efficiencies and results for industry use

in all areas of our research.

It was both a privilege and an honor to serve the citrus

industry in this capacity. I wish Etienne all the best and

encourage all of you to get involved.

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stone fruit and avocados. Since 2008,he has the privilege to serve as VicePresident of Agronomy for ParamountCitrus, where he is involved in all citri-cultural aspects.

In addition to his duties at theCRB, the new chairman also serves asa Board member of California CitrusMutual, the California Citrus Pest andDisease Program, the California CitrusAdvisory Committee (overseeing Cali-fornias maturity program), as well asthe Federal Citrus Disease Researchand Development Advisory Committee.Im in a nice situation, whereby Imfortunate enough to be on a number ofcommittees, providing me insight intothe citrus business and allowing meto be able to play a small part in thestrategic direction of the industry froma technical vantage point, specificallywith the increasing disease threats thatthe industry faces, he said.

This September, the Citrus Re-search Board (CRB) welcomedits personable, practical, plain-

oken and visionary new chairman,tienne Rabe, Ph.D., a man well knownnd respected throughout the globaltrus industry.

Its a privilege to have been choseny the board to lead them for the nextwo years, as well as a responsibility andchallenge, Rabe said.

The new chairman understands thattrus competes with other fruits andacks for consumer share of stomach,

nd that it must taste good to ensurepeat purchase. To stay profitable, we

eed to continue to grow enough qual-

y fruit to reach consumers in excellentndition at a reasonable cost, he said.is motto is if you respect consumers

y giving them something theyll enjoy,eyll want to go back and buy more,

nd youll stay in business.

ision and goalsRabe stated that he has been very

appy with how Ken Keck is fittingand performing as the CRBs newesident. His arrival is an oppor-nity for us to adapt to some extent

ow the board operates. The boardas been very much involved inoject evaluation and spending

n inordinate amount of timen CRB business. This is not astainable path.

He believes that theoard needs to operaten more of a gover-ance level and letubcommittees and

aff members handlee day-to-day work.Weve expected ouroard members to bechnically-focused so thatey understand what theojects entail to some ex-nt, Rabe explained, however,e dont have the background totally understand what scientistse talking about. The business ofsearch, especially at the molecu-r level, is very complex. Its notir to expect our board members tonderstand the intricacies of these

projects inside and out. All board mem-bers have a day job to attend to, as well.

Chairman Rabe is looking forwardto upcoming strategic meetings. Inaddition to focusing on the issues at

hand right now HLB and invasive dis-eases California currently still has theluxury to invest in other research issuesas well, he said. These include marketaccess and keeping markets open, main-taining good post-harvest practices andkeeping a good arsenal of pest-fighting

compounds for growers to use.The chairman expects funding to re-

main fairly constant, citing that withoutoutside contracts,

the CRB cur-rently spends

about $7.5million on its

research,associatedfunctions

(California Clonal Protection Programand California Quality Control Council)and administration budget, but notingthat the industry spends a lot more onthe HLB effort. We spend $5 million

on projects, and I dont expect that togo up or down significantly, Rabe said.There is a healthy balance of the Boardadvocating for higher assessments vs.those trying to be more conservative.Id like it to stay at a reasonable level.Growers are assessed up to about $200

an acre in industry-wide assessments.You have to spend what you need tospend to solve the problems, but wedont want things to get too luxurious.We need to make sure that growers getvalue for their money.

He added, From a communica-tion standpoint, we need to continueconvincing the general public that weare good custodians of the land andresources. We keep being inundated byan increasing number of regulations, butcitrus farming, by definition, is sustain-able. Our farming practices are geared

at staying viable over the long term.There are orchards in the Central

Valley older than a century and stillproductive.

Rabe also believes that theindustry cannot operate in a

vacuum and must work closelywith the USDA and other

regulatory and researchbodies. Citrus growers

are charged with provid-ing good quality and safecrops, all while making a

profit to stay in business, hesaid. The role of the CRB

and its sister organizationsis to try to remove obstacles to

the growers and help keep them inbusiness. Thats where our research andtechnical endeavors come in - to keepthem on the cutting edge.

Additionally, Rabe envisions Citro-graphevolving into the voice of and forthe California citrus industry, coupledwith periodic grower conferences.

The 10,000-mile journeyAlthough now entrenched in Cali-

fornia, Rabe grew up thousands of milesaway on a vegetable farm near CapeTown, South Africa. I was always in thefields and had an interest in the land,he explained. The South African citrusindustry was very good to me, offeringme a scholarship to study horticultureat the University of Stellenbosch andlater paying for me to go to California toobtain my P h.D. in Botany. At that time,the University of California at Riversidewas the mecca of citrus research.

Between his bachelors and doctoratedegrees, Rabe earned his Masters degreein Horticulture from the University ofPretoria while working as a researcherfor Outspan International, which servedthe research and technical needs of theSouth African citrus industry.

Upon his return to South Africa asa newly-minted Ph.D., Rabe rejoinedOutspan as a senior researcher and thenmanager of the research team. In 1991,he became a Professor of HorticulturalScience and then Department Chairmanat the University of Stellenbosch, wherehe remained for 12 years, specializing incitrus, training a number of Masters andPh.D. students and authoring numerouspeer-reviewed and technical papers.

Meet new CRB Chairman Etienne Rabe

Family

Rabes wife, Ronel, is an avid

tennis player. The couple has

a married son in London anda daughter in South Africa,

who is married to a cattle

rancher and is involved in an

outdoor environmental school

for teenage students.

Interests

The CRB chairman enjoys

cycling and watching

American football, particularly

the San Diego Chargers. He

also roots for Peyton Manning

and Drew Brees, sayingthat even though theyre

successful, they come across

as humble.

Little-known fact

He is a former rugby and

cricket player.

UP CLOSE

AND PERSONAL

with Etienne Rabe

During his academic career, Rabeserved in various consulting capacitiesin South Africa and South America. Hetraveled frequently to citrus-producingregions throughout the world, gainingan in-depth understanding of issuesand trends.

Pioneering California mandarinsIn 1998, he became a consultant to Sun

Pacific Farming and Paramount Citrus inCalifornia, assisting in the establishmentof the mandarin program. These enti-ties were the first to see the potential formandarins in California, Rabe explained,with the initial major orchards planted in1999. The two companies jointly mar-keted the Cutie brand along with FowlerPacking for a number of years. Paramountcurrently is launching a new brand, Halos.

At the beginning of the professorsconsultancy, there were only 5,000acres of mandarins inCalifornia, virtually ex-clusively Satsumas and

Fairchilds; today, thatnumber has increasedtenfold to 50,000 acreswith the majority be-ing Clementines andWMurcott/Tango. Ifeel privileged to havebeen part of the manda-rin explosion, he said.

Rabe moved to Cal-ifornia in 2004 to joinSun Pacific Farmingfull-time in a technicalcapacity, with involve-ment in citrus, kiwis,

We must grow quality fruit to keep theconsumer coming back to buy more.

Above: The new CRB Chairman, who was instrumentalin the growth of Californias mandarin output, stilltakes a hands-on approach.Facing page: Rabe cuts amandarin to examine it for color, taste and seeds.

Rabe checks the fertigation/chemigation system, which precisely injects desiredamounts of fertilizer and/or pesticides through the irrigation system.


7/35


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Map of Asian citrus psyllid detections, ACP quarantines and HLB quarantines in

California and neighboring portions of Arizona and Mexico through November 8, 2013.Date Printed: 11/14/2013Time Printed: 11:15 hrs PT

Data Source:CA Dept of Food & Agriculture

USDA, APHIS, PPQUSDA, APHIS, ISTeleAtlas Dynamap

USDA, APHIS, PPQGIS Specialist

650 Capitol Mall, Suite 6-400Sacramento, CA95 814

Coordinate-System:CATeale Albers, NAD83

These data, and all the informationcontained therein, have been collectedby the U.S. Department of AgriculturesAnimal and Plant Health Inspection Service(APHIS), or by its cooperators on APHISbehalf, for restricted government purposesonly and is the sole property of APHIS.Data may be disseminated on a need-to-know basis only and must be used fortheir intended government purpose(s).All information contained within thesedata are subject to required Federalsafeguards and shall only be shared and/or used consistent with the Trade SecretsAct [18 U.S.C. 1905], the Privacy Act of1974, as amended [5 U.S.C. 552a], theFreedom of Information Act [5 U.S.C.552], the confidentiality provisions of theFood Security Act of 1985 [7 U.S.C. 2276],Section 1619 of the Food, Conservation,and Energy Act of 2008 [7 U.S.C. 8791],and other applicable Federal laws andimplementing regulations, as well aswith the confidentiality or non-disclosureprovisions of any other agreement enteredinto between APHIS and a cooperator.


8/35


NDUSTRY VIEWS

asks:Citrograph What do you believe is the most interestingesearch project coming up in your committee, and why?

he 2013-14 fiscal year has begun for the Citrus Research Board (CRB) and its programs. New research and scientific projects

ere launched at the CRBs annual meeting on September 17. Each one is designed to bring new tools and beneficial knowledge

the California citr us industry. To get a sampling of whats ahead, Citrograph asks each of the Research Committee Chairmen

e following question:

Joe Barcinas, Pest Management

In my committee, it is not just one project, but one effort. The CRB has funded sev-eral projects regarding the management of ACP using biological control strategies.This is most exciting. Dr. Richard Stouthamer and his lab at UCR have developed amethod of assaying the gut of predators to determine which beneficials feed on the

ACP and at what time of year this feeding occurs. The implication of this is immense.In addition, Dr. Mark Hoddles group will soon release another parasite, Dia-

phorencyrtusaligarhensis, which will complement the Tamarixia. Dr. Joseph Morsesteam is evaluating pesticides that can be used in organic groves. Growers will imple-ment both chemical and biological strategies to control the ACP within commercialgroves, but most homeowners will not treat backyard citrus trees. Releasing Tamarixiaradiatain residential and commercial interfaces to create a barrier is critical. Wewelcome these additional tactics in the war against the ACP and HLB.

Mark McBroom, Vectored Diseases Committee

Of the 12 projects funded within my committee, seven are related to findingmethods to detect HLB much earlier than the expression of visible symptomsand the current laboratory method of PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction). KarenRoss, the California Secretary of Agriculture, released a mandate that trees confirmedpositive for the disease mustbe removed. The sooner we can identify HLB+ trees,the sooner we can remove them and, thereby, limit disease spread. We dont wantto be in the same boat as Florida. Before they had even detected the first positivetree, the disease had already spread almost statewide.

Don Roark, Non-vectored and Post-harvest Diseases

Dealing with post-harvest decay pathogens is a continuous battle and CRB-fundedresearchers have kept us ahead of that curve by testing new formulations andcombinations of treatments.

However, a more serious problem is looming in our midst; we must prevent tradebarriers to keep our export markets open. Several years ago, the NAVEK (Naveland Valencia Export to Korea) program was implemented in response to Koreasconcern over Septoria spot. Today, Koreas concern is brown rot caused by severalspecies of Phytophthora. The Department of Plant Pathology at the University ofCalifornia, Riverside is world famous for its expertise in the diseases of citrus andavocado caused by Phytophthora species. We have faith these experts will expandour knowledge of the pathogens and develop control and management strategiesthat will preserve our export markets.

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Franco Bernardi, Research Development and Implementation

There is no better cause for accelerating a research tools availability than onethat fights HLB. After thorough review, our committee released the funding al-located by the full CRB board for one of the most important new technologies avail-able for early detection of HL B for California citrus growers. CRB has spearheaded

the research effort with universities and private companies through leadership andsubstantial grower funds. This year, CRB once again funded research for further ex-perimentation to fight HLB by funding both public and private research, diagnosticequipment testing and manufacturing.

One of the main tools for early detection of HLB is the use of an analytical instru-ment to search for citrus trees that may be infected with the bacteria responsible forHLB. A portable sniffer analyzes air samples of organic compounds (VOCs) producedby citrus trees. Research has shown that the VOC sensor method to detect early HLBpresence is a reliable research tool that someday will be a grower tool. Current fund-ing levels will continue to confirm the effectiveness of the portable equipment, butalso develop a smaller suitcase-size battery-powered unit with the same accuracy asthe labs tabletop equipment. The industry soon will have two portable VOC units tosearch out HLB in urban settings and commercial citrus groves. The research fundingand interface with universities and private industry, while new at CRB, has provenvaluable in speeding up research and give growers a working tool.

Richard Bennett, New Varieties

The team of Dr. Michelle Cilia, USDA-ARS at Cornell University, and Dr. JamesBruce, Washington University, is analyzing more than 100,000 proteins, proteinfragments and effectors associated with the infection process. Their research willanalyze proteins and follow how they change and recombine during the process ofbeing acquired and ingested by the insect vector (ACP), where and how the proteinsinteract within the salivary glands and gut of the insect, the function of these sites,and the interactive process during egestion back into the citrus tree.

This research is unique in the sense that they are studying the role of proteinsin every stage of the disease process and simultaneously looking at proteins of thehost plant, bacterial pathogen, and insect vector. This enormous undertaking willgenerate volumes of data and requires the utilization of two super-computer sites.

The ultimate benefit of this research to the grower will be alternative methods ofdisease and psyllid control. Acquiring the fundamental knowledge of protein functionand how these proteins interact will allow us to find ways to disrupt these processesand not always rely on the application of pesticides.

Dan Dreyer, Production Efficiency

The early detection of H LB must remain a priority. Presently, the PCR test is theonly approved method for confirming an infection, but there are many drawbackswith this method. The bacteria must be present in the sample collected and taken tothe lab; but bacteria are not evenly distributed within the tree, so the sample collectedmay test negative when the tree is actually infected. . Currently, the VOC early detec-tion equipment is making great progress. It is hoped that this will be confirmed as aviable method that could lead to early tree removal, thereby lessening the spread ofthe bacteria by the psyllid to other trees. Additionally, the project detecting uniquemetabolomics compounds also has great promise to achieve the same. There aremultiple projects, all working together, to achieve this goal.

Although the continued threat of H LB being vectored by ACP remains a priority,other ongoing projects involving the efficient use of water and nitrate applicationsgarnered continued support. With the scarcity of water due to present drought con-ditions combined with the continued pumping of ground water, efficient irrigationmethods of crops warrant further study.

Furthermore, with the pending implementation of the Irrigated Land ReformPlan, nitrate leaching into the ground water aquifers, whether through current farm-ing practices or historical events, needs the industrys attention.

6Citrograph Fall 2013

NDUSTRY VIEWS continued


10/35


MaryLou Polek

With Citrus Research Board (CRB) approval, I attended the 19th Interna-tional Organization of Citrus Virologists (IOCV) Conference this sum-mer in Kruger National Park, South Africa. There were approximately

100 participants at the triennial conference, which allowed for quality discussionsthat are summarized below.

NGS DiscussionsSeveral speakers addressed using next generation sequencing(NGS) to replace

host indexing. NGS is a powerful tool/technology that can greatly simplify screening,routine diagnosis, detection and characterization of citrus pathogens. The CRB wasprudent to have funded research proposed by Shou-Wei Ding and Georgios Vidalakis/Jingbo Wang, astheir projects were precursors to this new technology.The actual analysis is routine, but the bio-informaticsare still a challenge.

Hano Maree - meta-genomic sequencing ofdsRNA can be implemented to establish the viromeof citrus trees with unknown virus etiology. Thismethod was used to detect several CTV genotypesplus Apple stem-grooving virus (ASGV) (aka tatter-leaf) in one plant. Another plant displaying atypicalpsorosis symptoms was determined infected withthree viroids plus multiple CTV genotypes.

IVIA Spain (Antonio Olmos) - allows se-

quence data generation at a fraction of the cost ofbiological indexing. Three new citrus virus specieswere identified. NGS technology will greatly sim-plify the screening, routine diagnosis, detection andcharacterization of citrus pathogens.

Antonio Catara Italy used NGS technology to genotype isolates of CTVin Sicily.

Marcos Machado - used this technology to analyze Citrus Sudden Death inBrazil.

Gerhard Pietersen (South Africa) - characterized CTV populations.Etienne Rabes presentation on phytosanitary purity diminishing horticul-

tural integrity and economic value stimulated a feisty discussion that called fora special evening session attended by almost all delegates. Whereas the majoritystill believed in the distribution of pathogen-free propagation material, there wasconsideration of using NGS technologies to better understand the genomics of the

Report on 19thIOCV Conferencein South Africa

The 19th Conference of the International Organization of Citrus Virologists (IOCV) was held in the Kruger NationalPark in Mpumalanga, South Africa from July 28 August 2, 2013. The conference is held every three years and bringstogether scientists who study graft-transmissible diseases of citrus.

NGS is a powerful

tool/technology

that can greatly

simplify screening,

routine diagnosis,

detection and

characterization of

citrus pathogens.


11/35


In addition to a vigorous scientic program, attendees experienced a varietyof different foods. CRB Vice President of Science & Technology MaryLouPolek sampled warthog. Other unique foods served included crocodile, kuduand Mpumalanga silk worms. Polek shared CRB activities in her talk entitled

Californias pursuit of early diagnostics for huanglongbing.

Metagenomics: The study of genetic material recovered directlyfrom environmental samples. Historically, only specific genes wereexamined from cloned, laboratory cultures and, therefore, muchbio-diversity was missed. The broad field may also be referred toas environmental genomics, ecogenomics or community genomics.

Next Generation Sequencing (NGS): DNA sequencing is amethod to determine the order of the nucleotide basesadenine,guanine, cytosine, and thyminein a molecule of DNA. NGS is atechnology that combines high speed equipment and bioinformat-ics to sequence much larger pieces of DNA, much faster, and at areduced cost.

Viruliferous: An insect vector that has acquired a virus and iscapable of transmitting it to a new host plant.

coming CRB Board Chairman Etienne Rabe gave a talk entitled Does phyto-

nitary purity diminish horticultural expression and, thereby economic value?s topic caused quite a stir, and a special discussion was added to the program.

ne of the Big Five animals of Kruger National Park, a leopard points the waythe Skukuza Camp where the IOCV attendees stayed during the conference.rticipants were delighted being in such close proximity to the African wildlife.any saw the Big Five, which includes the leopard, African elephant, waterffalo, lion and white rhino.

host and potential pathogens in order tomonitor and identify the exact geneticsof a specific cultivar.

Worldwide IssuesFlorida has approved using real-time

PCR in their budwood certification test-ing program. In California, Vidalakis candistinguish all known citrus viroids andtheir variants using two, one-step each,reverse transcriptase (RT) quantitative(q) PCR reactions (patent pending) foruse in the Citrus Nursery Stock PestCleanliness Program. He stated thatit both reduces the cost of testing forthe seven distinct viroid species ($1.90/sample) and reduces the time (24 hours)compared to biological indexing.

Leandro Pena (Spain) reported onsecondary metabolites as a strategy forimparting resistance. The decrease of D-

limonine is linked to the up-regulationof genes involved in innate immunity. Inhis created transgenic plants, he foundresistance to citrus canker, green moldand black spot via biosynthesis of di-terpenoids that act as antimicrobials.

Bill Dawson shared that CTV symp-tom severity is NOT due to quantita-tive differences between strains in apopulation, but indicates that qualitativedifferences within and between eachpopulation influence symptom devel-opment (referring to mixed infectionswithin a tree).

CTV is still a problem in SouthAfrica (stem pitting in grapefruit), Ar-gentina (widespread severe genotypes),Chile (severe strains in the north), Uru-guay (severe strains from Argentina andIsrael) and China. The best managementtools are still the use of clean stock andcross-protection.

Despite African greening and theAfrican citrus psyllid being endemic,South Africa is concerned about the

introduction of the Asian citrus psyllidand Ca. Liberibacter asiaticus.

Ronel Viljoen discussed Ca. Liberi-bacter africanus subspecies capensis(LafC), which was found to infectCalo-dendrum capense, cape chestnut and iswidespread in South Africa. The purposeof the study was to examine other Ru-taceous hosts - Clausena anisata, Veprislanceolata, and Zanthoxylum capenseand Zanthoxylum davyl-to determinewhether they were infected with Laf,LafC or some other related Liberibac ter.These are being used to investigate theorigins of Ca. L. africanus (CLaf), which

thus far has only been identified fromAfrica and the Mascarene Islands. Citrusis not native to Africa, hypothesizingthat a host jump occurred to Trioza(African citrus psyllid). CLaf appearsto have multiple hosts.

Michael Melzar reported on a new,virus-like disease in pummelo fromHonolulu, Hawaii, causing sectorialdieback and severe chlorosis, corkingand necrosis of leaves.

Citrus viroid V (CVd-V), a newlycharacterized viroid, was detected inTexas in Rio-red grapefruit on sourorange rootstock.

Psorosis is still a problem in Argen-tina, where they suspect an insect vectorand are considering several species ofaphids.

There is no transovarial passage ofthe leprosis virus in mite vectors. Be-

tween 30-60 percent of mite populationsare viruliferous, and three viral genomeshave been sequenced. The host range isexpanding, and haplotypes are adaptingto different hosts resulting in geographicvariation.

Post-Conference TourFollowing the conference, par-

ticipants visited the privately-fundedCitrus Research International, whichrepresents commercial citrus in SouthAfrica, Zimbabwe and Swaziland. Thisorganization hires research scientiststo conduct research directly relevant togrowers. Similar to the CRB, they have aBoard of Directors that chairs researchcommittees. However, a committee ofscientists within each particular areaof expertise assists with evaluating andvetting each research proposal. Fundingcan go to any institution, not just theCRI scientists.

Fanie van Vuuren offered an in-novative idea using embryo rescue of

seeds from healthy chimera sections toavoid citrus greening. Results are verypromising. We visited his field plot withseveral sweet orange clones producedfrom tissue culture of the seeds. Treeswere planted in 2007 among older treeswith greening symptoms. This may bethe way to proceed here in Californiato avoid transgenic issues and expense.

African greening is very differentfrom Asian greening, and methodsof management vary accordingly. Wevisited Naranja Orchards, where thegrower uses a propane torch to girdlebranches exhibiting visual symptoms.

The branch dies, and disease progressis slowed.

At Nadorcott Orchards, the crop isgrown under screen, using an open hy-droponic system. They girdle the plant toset fruit, and believe that pruning will bethe greatest challenge. Workers are paidper bag of fruit and wear a badge thatregisters when they drop a load of fruitinto a bin. Nadorcott grows Clemen Gold,which is very successful. From the time ofarrival to their packing house, the fruit isprocessed and shipped within 24 hours.

We also spent an afternoon visitingthe industry-owned South African Foun-dation Block, hosted by Pau l Fourie. Theclosest commercial citrus is more than

15.5 miles; with a two-mile free-zone ofcitrus hosts (backyards). This voluntary

program, which undergoes an annualgovernment visual inspection, has 98percent participation. Nurseries do nothave multiplication blocks.

Interestingly, I was reluctant to say Iwas from California, since many SouthAfrican growers would like to obtainTango.

My deepest appreciation is ex-pressed to the CRB for allowing methe opportunity to interact with mycolleagues in such a fantastic location.

MaryLou Polek, Ph.D., is the Citrus

Research Boards Vice-President of Sci-

ence and Technology.

GLOSSARY


12/35


This past August, a team from the

Citrus Research Board (CRB)

traveled to the Citrus Research

d Education Center in Lake Alfred,

orida, to meet with members of the

trus Research and Development Foun-

tion (CRDF). It was the first meeting

the two organizations. The purposes

the trip were twofold (1) to meet

th the CRDF to better coordinate and

llaborate on common-ground research,

us using funds more effectively; and (2)

discuss formation of a nationwide Sci-

ce Advisory Board to approve projects

mutual benefit.CRB Board members Jim Gorden,

arl Rutz, Etienne Rabe, Richardennett, Don Roark and Joe Stewart,ong with CRB staffers Ken Keck andaryLou Polek took part in the meeting.

Florida is in deep trouble andeds short-term solutions, said CRB

hairman Etienne Rabe. In California,lot of people think we have more

me {to deal with huanglongbing andsian citrus psyllid} and we can ride onoridas coattails so that they spend theoney to find a solution, and we piggy-

ack on their findings. Rabe believes

that would be foolhardy. It behooves usin California to join forces with Floridain lobbying to get federal attention andfederal research dollars and also bucketresearch dollars together to support vi-sionary research that would lead to thebreakthroughs we require.

Former CRB Chairman, currentBoard member and citrus grower JimGorden added, It is always interestingto collaborate on how to solve commonor similar problems.

The Florida model

At the gathering, California andFlorida representatives summarizedtheir research programs and the processof evaluating proposals for funding.

Floridas program comprises threecommittees: Industry Prioritization,Research Management and CommercialProduct Delivery. Approximately 141proposals are submitted annually, andawards total about $15 million. Researchprogress is assessed by highly technicalprogress reports submitted quarterly.Most recently, the CRDFs Request forProposals was released in early August,and funding decisions will be made at

the February Board meeting - a six-month process.

The CRDFs proposal evaluationprocess is a multi-step review, adaptedfrom the National Science Founda-tion and National Institutes of Health.Program Manager Tom Turpen hasdeveloped a pool of about 300 scientistsand technical people nationally whoare asked to provide an ad hoc reviewof four to six projects within their areaof expertise. Each proposal is sent outto five independent, anonymous read-ers so that at least three reviews are

completed. The ad hoc reviews aresent to the CRDFs Scientific AdvisoryBoard (SAB). The SAB is composed ofscientists (non-CRDF Board members)appointed by the Foundation. There areno term limits. Proposals are ranked andplaced into three categories:

Great science - high impact OK science - high impact great science - high risk

The SAB ranking is used by theResearch Management Committee,which also ranks each proposal for itspracticality and how well it matches theindustrys priorities.

Cross-country differencesThe CRB cannot totally utilize

Floridas SAB model. Members of theSAB were selected to scrutinize onlyFlorida-centric research; e.g. to mitigateinfectious diseases, primarily huanglong-bing (HLB) and the Asian citrus psyllid;whereas the CRB funds projects beyondthe scope of Floridas priorities, andhence beyond the expertise of the SAB.This year, we are spending 60 percentof our research dollars in California onHLB; the rest on horticulture, post-har-vest and other entomological research,Rabe explained, whereas Florida has tobe single-minded.

Additionally, the SAB is near satura-tion with the number of proposals andprogress reports that they currently haveto review.

Questions arose at the meeting

regarding decisions on timing (thegroups currently are six months apartin their funding cycles); intellectualproperty (dealing with the Universityof California, as well as the Univer-sity of Florida); which projects to fund(fresh citrus - west coast; processedcitrus - east coast); reporting of results;funding/research project audits; projectclassification; proposal formats; com-mercialization of resulting products;and data sharing and confidentialityagreements required by the CRDF.Both boards need to be re-assuredthat there is no duplication of projects,which would be addressed by the re-spective program managers.

Cooperating on the Tariff Bill andGMO

The group also discussed the TariffBill and how funds will be divided be-tween citrus-producing states. Fundinglanguage needs to be kept tight. Discus-sions should start now, as the process

cannot be changed once set by Congress.It was proposed that the National Agri-cultural Research Extension, Educationand Economics (NAREEE) Board helprun the process of the rule-making lan-guage. Normalization of project topiccategories is required.

California Citrus Mutual and itscounterparts in Florida and Texas willcarry the legislation through, but theywill need input.

Although not a component of theactual meeting, the group also took theopportunity to exchange views on howto proceed down the GMO path in the

future. The consensus was that a publicrelations/outreach program must bedeveloped now, as it will be a five - to ten-year process. The citrus industry must beunified on a national level.

The meeting was considered veryproductive by the attendees. It enabledus to get to know each other, see howour counterpart operates and discusscombining research dollars to fund big-ger projects, said Rabe. We learnedhow Floridas projects are evaluatedby the CRDF. We would like to fit intotheir science advisory board and createour own or a few mini-science advisoryboards on a variety of topics.

Gorden concluded, We came homewith better insight into the vision ofCRDF for researching their way out ofthe HLB challenge to their industry. I

was even more impressed than before,with the concern of the Florida indus-try for its continued viability withoutsome sort of significant research break-through. I think it benefits all of us towork more closely together, especiallywhere we have a common view as to theway forward.

MaryLou Polek is Vice President of

Science and Technology at the Cit rus

Research Board.

California and Floridaexplore research coordination

MaryLou Polek

California options

A number of options arebeing considered by the CRB:

1. Borrowing the CRDF reviewprocess model or parts of itby forming Californias ownSAB and ad hoc reviewerpool.

2. Using the CRDF SAB for thereview of HLB/ACP projectproposals only.

3. Forming an SAB to reviewproposals submitted to boththe CRB and the CRDF thatare on the fringe or beyondthe realm of HLB/ACP, i.e.,nutritional studies.

4. Adding a certain amount ofmoney to the CRDF fundingpool, specifically for ACP/HLB-related proposals. TheCRDF would handle theentire review process andcontract for funding (i.e.,50/50 cost-share of projects tobe decided by the CRB andCRDF Boards).

Left to right: Harold Browning (CRDF COO), Jim Gorden (CRB Board member), TomTurpen (CRDF Program Manager), Tom Jerkens (CRDF President), Etienne Rabe (CRBChairman), and MaryLou Polek (CRB VP of Science & Technology) discuss mutualissues faced by California and Florida.

mong those touring the nursery were (l. to r.) Don Roark, Peggy Sieburth, Richard Bennett, Jim Gorden, Joe Stewart,ienne Rabe, Earl Rutz and MaryLou Polek.


13/35

4Citrograph Fall 2013

The ability to detect the Asiancitrus psyllid on a citrus tree canbe difficult, even for a trained

e, but knowledge of how to spot theangerous pest is undoubtedly valuableindustry members in the San Joaquin

alley. For this reason, education wase primary goal of a recent field tripking 45 growers and pest control advi-

rs from the valley down to Riversidend San Bernardino Counties.

The group led by the Citrus PestDisease Prevention Program with

pport from the California Depart-ent of Food and Agriculture (CDFA),nited States Department of Agriculture

USDA), Citrus Research Board andalifornia Citrus Mutual visited resi-ntial and commercial locations wheree Asian citrus psyllid had infested trees,

nd also learned about the cooperativeocontrol program efforts for using a

tiny parasitic wasp called Tamarixia ra-diatato control Asian citrus psyllid.

For many, this was a first chance tosee the menacing yet tiny Asian citruspsyllid with their own eyes. No largerthan one-eighth of an inch long as adults,and just tiny orange dots in the nymphalstages, the Asian citrus psyllid feeds oncitrus leaves and can infect plants with

the fatal citrus tree disease Huang-longbing, also known as HLB or citrusgreening disease. Nymphs and eggs canbe found on the tender, newest growth,and adults often can be seen feeding onthe underside of leaves with their bodiespointed up at a 45-degree angle.

Alan Washburn, grower liaison forRiverside County, helmed the tour,showing infestations throughout the re-gion and warning central valley growersto not let the psyllid take hold in theirregion. Additionally, tour participants

learned tap sampling techniques fromMagally Lique-Williams of CDFA,heard from Dr. David Morgan at theCDFA Mt. Rubidoux biocontrol facilityabout rearing Tamarixia radiata, learnedabout biocontrol research and upcomingrelease plans from Dr. Mark Hoddlewith University of California, Riverside,and spoke with Dr. Greg Simmons and

Dr. Raju Pandey at the USDA Tamar-ixia field-rearing cages.

The tour was supported by chemicalpartners in the challenge to save Califor-nia citrus. Appreciation is expressed toSyngenta, Bayer and AMVAC for help-ing underwrite transportation costs ofthe trip, with special thanks to Syngentafor covering lunch. To stay up to date onfuture similar educational opportunities,sign up for the Citrus Alert e-blast atCitrusInsider.org.

Getting a first-hand look atpsyllid infestations

Growers and pest control advisors tour the valley

an Washburn, grower liaison for Riverside County, guided eld trip attendees around a block of untreated grapefruitees in a residential area of Redlands, pointing out the live Asian citrus psyllids feeding on the trees.

Top: Armed with hand lensesand cameras, eld trip attendees

examined leaves for the Asiancitrus psyllid, nymphs and eggs,

memorizing the visuals so they canbetter spot them on their own trees.

Bottom: Lab technicians about torelease Tamarixiainside the USDA

eld-rearing cage.

Right: Seeing Asian citrus psyllidinfestations in person was an

eye-opening experience for manygrowers and pest control advisors

who attended the trip.

Left: At CDFAs Mt. Rubidoux facilit y,Asian citrus psyllid and Tamarixia

populations are cultivated andstudied in protected enclosures.



14/35


yan Knight

Solar has been commercially avail-

able since the late 1970s, but onlyrecently has it become economi-

l. Todays combination of incentives,

oducts and finance tools makes solar a

ofitable partner for the citrus industry.

We all know the sun is essential torming it is the fundamental powerurce for the growth of our outdoorops. But few today realize that solarwer can also help bring these crops

om our orchards and fields to thebles of our consumers.

No industry is better equipped tovest in and benefit from solar-ovided electricity than agriculturalowers, packers and processors. Vastots of land, large roofs over processingcilities, tremendous power consump-on involved in irrigation and distribu-onall make the agricultural industrynatural partner with solar. Each piece

the solar puzzle aligns with the fun-mentals of the citrus business.Many business owners, agricultural

d otherwise, are not new to the ideainstalling a solar electric system at

eir facilities. Many may have consid-ed installation at some point in thest ten years, only to conclude that theumbers didnt add up to a competitivevestment.

Times have changed. During thest decade, the cost of installing a com-ercial solar system has dropped byout 75 percent. It is now common toe systems being installed for less metimes far less than $3 per watt, de-nding on the type of installation. Thest-incentive return on investments is

now reaching a minimum of 15 percent.Additionally, the recent expansion

of Californias Virtual Net Metering

(VNM) laws under Senate Bill 592 allowcustomers to strategically install a singlesystem that has the ability to offsetelectric consumption for any meter ontheir contiguous piece of pro perty. In thepast, customers had to install a separatesolar system for each individual meter.This was inefficient and costly. But now,a single system installed on, for example,a free stall barn can be used to offsetthe electric consumption of a processordown the road and a well pump in theback corner of the property. This policychange provides the freedom to installthe most economic system possible,while cherry picking the most expensiveenergy to offset.

Lock in lower rates for the next 25years

The convergence of these factors haschanged the economics of solar power.The original goal of investing in solarelectricity was to hedge against thecost of future utility power rate hikes.

Now the goal is to fix the cost of solar-provided electricity at equal to or belowcurrentutility power rates for the next 25years. This strategy provides immediatepositive cash flow, and minimizes theinvestment risk. The result? Significantlylower operational costs, and peace ofmind knowing there will be no increasewhen the next set of utility rate hikesrolls around.

Commercial solar electric systemscurrently qualify for a 30 percent Fed-eral Tax Credit and accelerated five-yeardepreciation with 50 percent first-yearbonus depreciation. This is similar to

solar installation is to construct a newsolar shade structure or carport withsolar on top. While expensive, these areextremely space efficient and providethe dual purpose of keeping cars andequipment cool and employees or visi-tors happy. In any installation scenario,solar provided electricity is competitivewith the grid right now.

Solar financing: new, flexible optionsToday, there are two fundamental

categories of solar electric systemfinancing: those that immediately af-fect the balance sheet and those thatrequire no capital investment, leavingthe balance sheet or debt ratio as is. Theformer refers to simple cash purchaseor bank loan options that directly affectthe companys bottom line the day theinvestment is finalized. These options

offer the best return, but also dig intooperating capital. Financing options thatdont affect the balance sheet includePower Purchase Agreements (PPA)and Property Assessed Clean Energy(PACE) financing.

A PPA is a lease structure where

one purchases the actual energy pro-duced by the solar system at a prede-termined rate, instead of purchasing thesolar system itself. A leasing companyowns and operates the system and takesthe tax credits that come with it.

PACE fnancing is essentially a

loan that is paid back in the form of aspecial tax assessment on ones prop-erty. The difference between this anda typical loan is that PACE adds nodebt to the bottom line, as the propertytax assessment itself is what repays thePACE bond holders. The investor inthis scenario still owns the system andreceives all available tax incentives. Thetrade-off for not increasing the debt lineis paying an effective interest rate aboutdouble that of a typical bank loan.

The best financing option varies by

customer. How can one know which isthe best option for them?

Case study: a customized approachA chilling facility owned by Ed Kelly

in Watsonville, California, recently was

assessed by Ag Solar. In this case, thesolar system size was limited by theamount of available roof space. Theresulting system would offset about 50percent of his electric consumption. Thefacility typically holds produce between7 a.m. - 7 p.m. daily from May throughNovember, but is cooled to the required34F 24 hours a day, since the cost ofbringing it from ambient to operatingtemperature cost more than keepingthe temperature stable during operatingmonths. Kellys usage pattern meant hisenergy consumption was spread almostequally throughout the different time-of-use periods defined by PG&E (andcharged accordingly).

The solar system proposed forKellys facility was a flat-roof mountedsystem using a typical racking system,410 kw-dc in size, predicted to produce

626,000 kwh per year and offsetting justunder 50 percent of his electric con-sumption. The system would be installedfor $1,151,500 ($2.81/watt) before anytax incentives were applied. Kellyscurrent average cost of utility-provided

Figure 1: A space-efcient installation on a series of barns.

Figure 2: A ground-mount installation mounted ush to t he slope of an otherwise unusable hill side.

the credits fossil fuel energy producersget. The 50 percent bonus depreciationwill expire at the end of 2013, but the

result of these combined incentives arevalued at close to 60 percent of the totalsystem cost over the first five years ofthe systems life, and this is before tak-ing electric savings into account. Thecombination of reduced costs to installsolar, great tax incentives and recentadvances in Virtual Net Metering poli-cies make the present time well suitedfor agricultural professionals to investin solar electricity.

Solar installation basicsThere are two main types of solar

installations: rooftop (Figure 1) andground mounted systems (Figure 2).

Rooftop installations are generallythe less expensive option. The absolutecheapest, best-case scenario for install-ing a rooftop system is with a stand-ing seam metal roof: solar panels aremounted directly to the standing seams,eliminating the need for a racking sys-tem. Flat rooftops can be installed witha ballasted system, which minimizes

the need for roof penetrations and al-lows design flexibility: the panels aresimply weighted down on the roof withconcrete blocks. Flat rooftops can alsouse a racking system, which requiresmany roof penetrations, but these aremore space efficient. These flat rooftopinstallations are almost identical in costand are in the middle range of solarinstallation costs.

Ground-mounted systems are to-ward the upper end of the solar installa-tion cost scale, but can result in the mostspace-efficient and production-efficientsystems. The most expensive type of

The neweconomicsof solar inagriculture


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ectricity is 11.9 /kwh, not taking intocount the demand charges, which can-

ot be guaranteed to be offset by solarectricity. Assuming five percent annualcalation (according to Understandingalifornia Electric Rates, a study byoom Energy in 2009), the levelizedst of utility-provided electricity overe next 25 years (the guaranteed lifes-

an of the solar system) is 22.7/kwh e metric used to measure the potentialofitability of installing a solar electricstem. The goal of installing a solarectric system is to fix the levelized cost

solar power equal to or below therrent cost of utility provided power,

nsuring positive cash flow from the daye system is turned on.

x financing options:1 Cash: Purchase the entire system

p front with cash.2 Partial Loan: Make a 30 percentown payment on the system and fi-ance the remaining 70 percent with apical bank loan, based on the assump-on of a 20-year term at five percentterest for comparative purposes.

3 Full Loan:Use a typical bankan for the total system cost (assume-year term, five percent interest)

4 Partial PACE: Make a 30 per-nt down payment on the system, and

nance the remaining 70 percent with

$0.000

$0.050

$0.100

$0.150

$0.200

$0.250

$0.300

$0.350

$0.400

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

CostofElectric

ity($/kwh)

Year

LCUPvs.LCSP

LCUP

LCSP1LCSP2LCSP3LCSP4LCSP5

LCSP6

typical loan options. For companies notin a position to take on a lot of debt, butwho still have a healthy tax appetite,the no-money-down PACE Option 5 isa great alternative: it involves very littleliability and works well for a companywith a conservative investment strategy.

The PPA option is for companiesthat want a solar electric system, but alsowant to be fiscally hands off: they lackup-front resources and have no need forthe tax incentives.

Beyond economics a jump onsustainability and net zero carbonfootprints

The economics of solar are compel-ling enough to make the decision to gosolar easy, but theres more to the story.Everyone is familiar with the growingmomentum in organic and sustainable

farming, and solar electricity should beintegral to this trend. The super con-glomerate Walmart already encouragesits suppliers to grow produce in the mostsustainable way possible. According toone of Walmarts main suppliers, sustain-able production will result in a cheaperproduct and will ultimately raise theirmargins. Many additional large grocerycompanies will follow this pattern.Getting a jump on ones sustainabilityportfolio provides a marketing advan-tage and helps secure business for yearsto come.

Imagine the picture that can bepainted for customers: a completelyorganic product produced with zerocarbon footprint. In the constructionworld, this concept is called net zeroenergy, but the agriculture industry isreally the business best primed to em-brace and propel this concept. With thehelp of virtual net metering, solar energycan now be utilized not only to grow theproduce, but also to pump the water to

feed it, power the facilities that processit, and eventually power the vehicles toget employees to work and to deliverproduce to consumers tables.

Environmentally conscious andprofitable: where does one begin?

What is the next step to learningabout specific solar investment oppor-tunities? Some solar companies offercustomized help. For example, at no costand no commitment, Ag Solar will site,size and analyze each of the finance op-tions described in this article specific toan individuals business. Their goals are

to educate todays agricultural profes-sionals on solar and illustrate how op-erating costs can be drastically loweredwhile appealing to the users clients andconsumers.

Ed Kelly, owner of the chilling facil-ity in Watsonville, describes the solaropportunity perfectly:

I always want to be as environ-mentally conscious as possible, but notat the expense of negatively affectingthe profitability of my business. WhenI first looked at solar ten years ago, thenumbers simply didnt pencil, but I haverecently installed solar on my homeand am seriously considering a systemfor my chilling facility. Now I am evenstarting to think a Tesla plugged in underthe solar carport that powers my chillerwould look pretty cool.

Ryan Knight is Vice President of Sales

for Ag Solar Builders Solar group,where he designs grid-tied solar electric

systems. He als o does commercial en-

ergy consulting for the Monterey Energy

Group, a mechanical engineering com-

pany that focuses on building energy ef-

ficiency and renewable energy systems.

gure 4. Levelized cost of utility power vs. levelized cost of solar power

the PACE function. Assuming a 20-yearterm paid back in the form of increasedproperty tax payments.

5 PACE: Use PACE for total costof the system. 20-year term, increasedproperty tax payments.

6 PPA:Negotiate a Power Pur-chase Agreement (PPA), based on theassumption of a 20-year term and usingat a rate of 13.5/kwh.

See Figure 3 for side-by-side com-parisons of the economics of each option.

See Figure 4 for a long-term com-parison of the levelized cost of solarpower under each of the six financingoptions to escalating costs of utilityprovided power.

Weighing options and circumstancesAs usual, it pays to have access to

cash: the investment value of the cashpurchase option is about $500,000greater than the next best investmentoption. But not everyone has the cash.For a facility with some capital leeway,the most practical route is Option 2.The 30 percent down payment will berecouped within the first year, as soonas the tax credit is monetized, and isessentially used to buy down financingfees by avoiding paying interest on 30percent of the total system cost. Option4, the 30 percent down PACE option,

also buys down the financing fees, butis better if ones debt line is largelydepleted, or there is a need to keep thedebt line free and clear.

Option 3, the no money down loanoption, is good if one is cash poor but stillhas a healthy tax appetite and the capac-ity to take on debt. This is the third mostvaluable investment option and remainsextremely practical. Current interestrates and healthy relationships betweenthe agricultural community and its bankscould yield even better results for these

Figure 3. Side-by-side comparison ofsix solar nancing options

Option LCUP** Down LCSP*** 25 YearPayment Investment

Value

1 $0.227 $1,151,500 $0.043 $2,524,800

2 $0.227 $345,450* $0.077 $2,054,200

3 $0.227 $0 $0.091 $1,182,500

4 $0.227 $345,450* $0.109 $1,590,3505 $0.227 $0 $0.138 $1,189,850

6 $0.227 $0 $0.135 $1,234,000

* These down payments will be recouped within 12 months,as soon as taxes are paid and the 30% percent federal taxcredit is monetized.**LCUP is an acronym for the levelized cost of utility-providedpower. LCUP is dened as the average cost of power overthe next 25 years assuming ve percent annual escalation ofutility power prices.***LCSPis an acronym for the levelized cost of solar providedpower. LCS P is dened as the cost of solar provided electric-ity over the 25-year warranted system life, including all costs(system cost, nance fees, maintenance) and incentives (FederalTax Credit and Depreciation) associated with the system.

C I T R U S A V O C A D O S O L I V E S

2014


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Knowledge of soil is fundamen-tal to a diverse group of users.These include farmland owners,

e agricultural real estate industry andrmers interested in renting or purchas-g lands with productive soil; insurancempanies concerned about flooding

equency; builders and constructionms interested in suitable locationsr roads, basements or houses; as wellgovernment agencies and organiza-

ons concerned with producing foodd maintaining landscapes.

Although there is an extensivemount of soil survey data collectednd made available on the internet bye USDA-ARS National Cooperative

oil Survey, there have been two factorsmiting their wide-spread use: 1) theeb-based interfaces used to combinend integrate the soil survey data areot easy for a non-technical user, and 2)ese interfaces do not support in-fielde of the soil survey information.

SoilWeb was developed by thealifornia Soil Resource LaboratoryUC Davis in collaboration with the

SDA Natural Resources Conserva-on Program as an online Soil Surveynd a GPS-enabled smartphone appli-tion to support on-demand access toil survey information any time and

nywhere with internet or cell phoneverage in the United States (Beau-tte and OGeen 2009; Beaudette andGeen 2010).The application integrates soil sur-

y data with Google Map productsmake it easy for non-technical us-

s to navigate. SoilWeb allows usersfind information about the soil at a

cation by standing at the site with aPS-enabled smart phone or tablet or

y entering an address, landmark ortitude and longitude coordinates forywhere in the United States. The loca-

ons satellite image opens overlaid withllow polygons marking soil map unitlineations. For each of the polygons,

oilWeb provides information about soilofiles, soil taxonomy, land classifica-

device (smartphone, tablet or desktop).Detailed information on various inter-faces can be found on the webpage ofthe California Soil Resource Laboratoryat UC Davis - http://casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/soilweb/.

The soil survey information inSoilWeb comes from a combination oftwo major databases: the broad-baseddigital soil map (STATSGO) at thescale mapped of 1:250,000 for most ofthe U.S., and the detailed geographicsoil survey (SSURGO) at the scale of1:12,000 to 1:63,360. Only STATSGOdata (grey polygons) will be shown forregions that do not yet have detailed soilsurvey data. All agricultural regions inCalifornia have SSURGO data (yellowpolygons). Apart from the interactivemap-based soil survey data, four otherpieces of information can be seen inthe map unit summary page: 1) mapunit composition, which summarizesthe soil component of the queried map

SoilWebOn-demand and easy access to soil survey data anywhere at anytime

Ahmad B. Moradi, Navneet Bilga, Anthony OGeen, Jan Hopmans

unit; 2) cartographic information aboutthe map unit, which includes unit name,map unit polygon and total map unitacreage within the current survey area;(3) aggregated soil map unit data, whichsummarizes the general soil information;and (4) map unit notes. This informationcan be viewed by expanding the MapUnit Data tab in Figure 2.

To explain this detailed information,we bring an example of a soil survey thatwas done as part of a project fundedby the Citrus Research Board (projectnumber: 5100-150). One of the experi-mental sites selected for this project wasan orange orchard located northwest ofOrange Cove, California. Based on theSoilWeb data (Figure 1), the dominantsoils in this orchard are San Joaquinloam (map symbol of 154 and 155) andYetten Sandy Loam (176).

The map unit summary page formap unit 176 (Figure 2) shows that, eventhough the map unit is named after a

Figure 3. Soil prole description for the soil typeYettem Sandy Loam, which is the dominant soil typein the queried area.

tion, hydraulic and erosion ratings, andsoil suitability ratings.

SoilWeb also functions as multipleapplications, including a native smartphone app (iPhone and Android) that

can be downloaded to the phone, text-only interface, a Google Earth interfacethat enables a three-dimensional view ofthe landscape, and the newest version -a web site that can be accessed by any

Figure 1. The orange orchard selected for project 5100-150. Based on SoilWeb,San Joaquin loam (154, 155) and Yettem Sandy loam (176) are the dominantsoils in the orchard.

Figure 2. Map unit summary page for Yettem sandy loam (map unit symbol 176).

We would like to highlight a

few points that seem necessary

when interpreng the soil

survey data using SoilWeb:

1. The scale of the soil survey

needs to be considered, which

is 1:12,000 at best for detailed

soil survey data (SSURGO).

2. Each map unit consists of one

or more soil types commonly

referred to as components.

Although one of the compo-

nents may be the dominant

soil type in the unit, existence

of the other components

might be considered, depend-

ing on the size of the area of

interest. This is oen impor-

tant for small areas such as

the example orchard in this

study. It is equally importantto consider the percentage

of each component in a map

unit for any scale of analysis.

The map unit composion

percentage is provided next to

each soil type in the Map Unit

Composion Page. For this

parcular map unit (map unit

symbol 176) 85 percent of the

unit consists of the Yeem

series.

3. Although the general charac-

teriscs of the soil in the area

of interest might resemble

the dominant soil type in the

map, there might be consider-

able heterogeneies across

the area of interest, even at

the scale of meters. The exam-

ple orchard in this study is a

typical case that shows a wide

range of horizon thicknesses

that vary across the orchard

(Figure 4). Part of this varia-

on might be due to the tran-sioning from one soil type to

another within the same map

unit. Other possible sources

of variaon are a result of

land leveling and deep llage

during site preparaon that

happened aer the soil survey

was made.


17/35

Fall 2013 Citrograph332Citrograph Fall 20132Citrograph Fall 2013

igure 4. Core samplingocations across theorange orchard, soil

horizons separated forach location, and the soilextural analysis for every0 cm of soil prole deptht location O2-1.

THE ANSWER(From Page 5, Do You Know?)

B. The orangery is thought to have origi-

nated in Renaissance Italy when glass-

making techniques advanced suffi-

ciently to permit large expanses of clear

glass. Source: Wikipedia.

ngle soil type (soil series), there areher soils present in this unit, includ-g Grangeville, Havala, San Emigdio,ujunga, etc. Clicking on the soil type

on View similar data takes us toe soil profile description page, whichntains detailed information aboute soil profile, including a diagram ofe soil profile and depth functions ofil chemical and physical propertieseasured for multiple soil horizonsigure 3).

For the purpose of project 5100-150,soil survey was performed with the aimidentifying soil layering and hetero-neities across the orchard to informitable soil depths for the installationsoil sensors and soil water and nitrate

onitoring. Soil cores were taken to

depth of three meters on a 100m by0m grid across the orchard (Figure. Additionally, soil cores were taken

n a 10 m by 10 m grid to assess the soileterogeneity in a smaller scale. Soilres then were described and analyzedr soil texture in Jan Hopmans lab atC Davis.

Our soil textural analysis and the soilofile descriptions for all the samplingcations across the orchard agree gen-ally with the Yettem soil series that is

ne of the dominant soil types based one SoilWeb data. None of the samplingcations resembles the San Joaquin

loam characteristics, although basedon the SoilWeb information, much ofthe orchard should include this soilseries. This highlights the importanceof verifying soil survey data with fieldobservations when working at plotscales. Moreover, soil preparation uponplanting (deep tillage) likely destroyedthe differentiating characteristics ofthe San Joaquin loam, which containsa cemented horizon. Deep mixing ofYettem, a very homogeneous soil, wouldhave very little effect on its observablecharacteristics.

In conclusion, SoilWeb is a power-ful tool for a non-technical user withonly a GPS-enabled smart phone toaccess general and detailed informationabout the soil underfoot. The informa-

tion ranges from soil horizons, texturalanalysis and soil hydrology to soil chemi-cal and physical characteris tics. Landuse interpretations are also available,including agricultural productivity indi-ces such as the Storie Index and LandCapability Class, erosion hazard rat-ings, drainage class and plant availablewater-holding capacity. Interpretationsare available that can provide directionon farming fundamentals like irrigationmanagement and other field operations.However, more detailed soil studieswith higher spatial resolutions might berequired for more specific purposes such

as soil moisture sensor instrumentationand precise irrigation management.

References:

Beaudette, D.E., and A.T. OGeen.2009. Soil-web: An online soil survey forcalifornia, arizona, and nevada. Comput-ers & Geosciences 35:2119-2128.

Beaudette, D.E., and A.T. OGeen.2010. An iphone application for on-demand access to digital soil surveyinformation. Soil Science Society ofAmerica Journal 74:1682-1684.

Ahmad B. Moradi, Ph.D., is a soil

scienti st; Navneet Bilga is a Junior

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