Wet conditions are putting almond producers in the path of a rare disease that can cause widespread damage to orchards.
A form of microorganisms known as “water molds” has been under close scrutiny after a substantial outbreak last year, and a UC Davis expert says the species — Phytophthora syringae — is back again.
“It was found statewide — meaning in every almond-producing county — and disease incidence in orchards ranged from 10% of the trees infected to 75%,” Florent Trouillas, a UC Davis plant pathologist whose lab is based at UC Agriculture and Natural Resources' Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Parlier, said in a university release.
An infection does not usually cause a tree to die, it can cause branch dieback. Last year’s outbreak also showed new ways the disease was hitting trees — in uncut tree shoots rather than the areas subject to pruning.
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“This was really the first time we had seen widespread evidence of infection on the twigs,” Trouillas said.
The disease is thought to be spread by heavy winds and rains. Producers are urged to target their pruning activities for 10-14 day windows of dry weather to avoid an increased likelihood of infection.
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