A portion of Tulare County is placed under quarantine for the Asian citrus psyllid. Sabrina Hill reports.
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Another citrus quarantine is now in place in Tulare County. The action is due to the discovery of six Asian citrus psyllids in the Porterville area back in June. The quarantine zone measures 178 square miles. It prohibits the movement of host nursery stock out of the quarantine area and requires that all citrus fruit be cleaned of leaves and stems prior to moving out of the area.
The Asian citrus psyllid can carry and spread Huanglongbing disease. The disease damages and kills citrus trees. It has been found in only one tree in California so far, but it is important to the citrus industry to keep it under control.
In addition to Tulare County, ACP quarantines are now in place in Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Diego, Imperial, Orange, Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside counties. A total of more than 45-thousand square miles are under quarantine.
A map of the Tulare quarantine may be found at: http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/plant/acp/maps/quarantine/3435ACP_Tulare_20130730.pdf
Residents in the area who think they may have seen the Asian citrus psyllid are urged to call CDFA’s Pest Hotline at 1-800-491-1899. For more information on the Asian citrus psyllid and huanglongbing disease please visit: http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/plant/acp/index.html