The Palatka news and advertiser. [volume] (Palatka, Fla.) 1908-19??, 1916-02-11
THE PRESENT STATUS
OF CITRUS CANKER
in FLORIDA.
( X X KxxxK TX X X X X X TX


X IN FLORIDA. y;
KxKKKKMK X X X X X X Xxx I
A considerable number of requests
have been received by the State Board
for the publication Of statement as
to the extent to which citrus canker
has been found in the State and what
progress has been made in it's eradi-
cation. At recent meeting the State
Plant Board gave these requests care
full consideration and authorized the
Plant Commissioner to issue a state
ment of this kind.
While the seriousness of the pres
ent situation should not be minimized
it is, nevertheless, one which neither
the Plant Board nor the fruit growers
of the State need feel ashamed Of
The policy of the Plant Board is to
make a true and accurate statement of
the canker situation from time to time
in order to set at rest unnecessary and
injurious rumors and reports. The
Plant Board also fully realizes that
the growers of the State, as we'll as
those contemplating investments in
Florida, are entitled to a frank and
open statement of the conditions with
reference to this disease.
Counties And Properties Infected.
Up to the present time citrus can
ker has been found in only twenty
one of the fifty-one counties of Flori-
da, namely: Baker, Bay, DeSoto, Hills
boro, Lee, Marion, Pinellas, St. Johns,
Seminole, Suwannee, Brevard, Brow
ard, Dade, Escambia, jefferson, Pas
co, Palm Beach, Santa Rosa, St. Lucie
and Walton. The infections in the
first eleven counties mentioned were
traceable to nursery stock shipped
from the Griffing Brothers Nursery at
Macclenny prior to the time of the dis
covery of canker in that nursery and
prior to the enactment of the Florida
Plant Act. The infections in the 9TH
err counties named have been traced to
other sources.
/ Of the 10 counties which are the
heaviest producers of citrus fruits,
canker has been found in 5, but this
is no indication that the disease does
not occur in the other 8, as funds
have not been available for even
cursory inspection of them.
/ Citrus canker has been found in 378
properties of the State, and there
have been thirty-eight foci, or centers
of distribution.
/ The number of infected trees plant
ed in groves and found infected up to
the present time is 1896. These have
all been burned, and along with them,
with the owners consent, 47277 other
grove trees which have been exposed
to infection, but which had not shown
visible canker at the time they were
destroyed, making a total of 57,66S
grove trees on account of disease, the
great majority of them being four
years. of age and younger. AS there
are from 100000 to 100000 trees.
according to different estimates, in
the citrus groves of the State these
figures show how effectively the dis
ease has been limited in its spread.
Up to the present time 146,123 nur-
sery trees have been found infected.
These have been destroyed and along
with them, with the owenrs' consent,
2,1S5.634 nursery trees which had been
exposed to infection have been des-
troyed, making a total of 1881 1874
nursery trees destroyed, including
seedlings. 1t should not be thought
that the destruction of these trees
will affect the price of citrus nursery
stock or cause any scarcity of the lat
ter. The records of the Nursery In
spector show that there are approx
mately 20,000,000 citrus trees, of
which fully half are already budded,
now in the certified nurseries of Flori
da alone. The precautions now
thrown about citrus nurseries are so
thorough that there does not appear
to be any possibility of infected trees,
or trees exposed to infection, being
shipped out of Florida nurseries in
the future.
Out of the 37S premises on which
canker has been found ga premises
have been declared "clean" by the
Plant Board, and the guarantees i'm
posed by reason of the infections have
been raised, except that the replant-
ing of citrus trees in the infected
properties is not yet permitted.
Of the "a premises declared "clean"
by !n' Plant Eoard three Rave since
shown infection, but the circumstances
were such that it was not possible to
determine whether these were second
airy infections or infections from out
side sources. All three occurred in
Dade County. From 81 properties,
therefore, eradication of the disease
is thought to have been complete.
Disease Generally Spread in Two
Counties.
In only two counties of the State
have there been areas in which citrus
canker became widespread. One of
these was Dade County, where the
great bulk of the work of the Plant
Board against citrus canker has been
done. The progress made against the
disease in Dade County is we'll illus
trated by the record of infected trees, !
beginning with June, 1915, during
month 6S3 infected trees were found !
Prior to this time there had been 4 |
monthly increase in the number of
infected trees found. In July the
number dropped to 500 and in August
to 34S, at the season when climatic
conditions were most favorable to
rapid spread of the disease. In Sep |