An experiment was designed to determine the effectiveness of foliar prebloom boron (B) sprays for thinning 'Kinnow' mandarins (Citrus reticulata). Treatments consisted of a control and foliar B applied at 1000, 1500, 2000, 2500 and 3000 ppm. Leaf tissue B levels were not significant between treatments. Likewise, fruit quality was similar for all treatments. Fruit weight and number were significantly greater for the control compared to the 1500, 2000, 2500 and 3000 ppm B treatments for the undersize fruit. There was a clear reduction in yield as the rate of B applied increased, however, the reduction was not statistically significant.

One red and one white cultivar of winegrapes grown in Southern Arizona was pruned to four different methods. The red cultivar was 'Merlot' and the white was 'Sauvignon Blanc'. The pruning methods were 2 bud spur, 4 bud spur, cane and basal buds only. The basal bud treatment was eliminated for 'Sauvignon Blanc'. The 4 bud spur method resulted in significantly greater yield when compared to the other methods. Fruit produced from the basal bud only treatment resulted in fruit that was significantly greater in pH and acid content. The 'Sauvignon Blanc' cultivar had significantly higher yield with cane pruning with no difference in fruit quality.

Powdery mildew of pecan, caused by Microsphaera ulni, results in discoloration of pecan shucks, but its effects on yield and quality of kernels are not known. In 1999, powdery mildew was observed on pecan shucks by the latter part of June in a commercial pecan orchard near Sahuarita, Arizona. The fungus continued to be active throughout the summer. However, results of a field test comparing diseased and healthy nuts from two varieties of pecans indicate that powdery mildew did not affect nut weight or quality. Whole nut weights, kernel weights, color ratings or percentage of discarded nuts were not significant between paired clusters of nuts that were treated with fungicides and remained disease free and untreated nuts that were infected with powdery mildew. Although shucks may have a high percentage of area covered by powdery mildew, results from this trial indicate that fungicide treatments are not warranted.

Twelve varieties of pecans were evaluated for yield, viviparity, and nut quality. The commercially recommended varieties 'Western Schley' and 'Wichita' produced the greatest yields but also had the highest percentage of pregermination. The varieties 'Cheyenne' and 'Sioux' exhibit great potential for commercial production in the low desert of Arizona.

An attempt was made in 1997 to rejuvenate neglected, mature 'Wichita' pecan trees in a commercial Pinal County grove by applying two types of heading back pruning cuts. The treatments were applied during the dormant season prior to the growing season. The trees were pruned using proven horticultural techniques which included dehorning (cutting main scaffolds to within 2 feet of the trunk) and cutting main scaffolds by 50%. After four years of data, the trees receiving no pruning treatments are producing as well or better than trees to which the pruning treatments were applied. The data suggests that a return to normal irrigation and fertilization practices alone will return neglected, water-stressed trees to normal productivity as early as trees that have been headed-back.

Brown heartwood rot is commonly found in mature lemon groves in southwestern Arizona. Two basidiomycete fungi, Antrodia sinuosa and Coniophora eremophila, have been isolated from symptomatic trees. Similarities between the two pathogens include the following: each fungus grows optimally at 30 to 35°C, neither organism produces a fleshy fruiting body, they colonize lemon trees primarily through branch fractures and other non-pruning wounds, and both cause a brown wood rot in infected trees. A major difference between the two pathogens is that Antrodia forms spore-producing fruiting bodies on infected wood within lemon groves, whereas fruiting on lemon wood infected by Coniophora has not been observed. The rate of wood decay in lemon branches inoculated with Antrodia is at least three times greater than that caused by Coniophora. Wood decay columns produced by either fungus from late spring to early autumn were at least three times larger than those that developed from late autumn to early spring. When inoculated with either pathogen, the length of wood decay columns on branches 10 mm in diameter was numerically smaller than those on branches 20 and 40 mm in diameter. Wood decay on Lisbon lemon branches inoculated with either Antrodia or Coniophora was significantly greater than that on Marsh grapefruit, Orlando tangelo, and Valencia orange. Treatment of lemon branch inoculation sites with azoxystrobin or propiconazole at 20 g of active ingredient per liter of solution reduced the resultant length of wood decay columns by 61 and 77%, respectively, for Antrodia, and 92 and 85%, respectively, for Coniophora. When selected desert plants were inoculated, Antrodia produced wood decay columns on Palo Verde, salt cedar, greasewood, and mesquite branches that were much shorter than those recorded on Lisbon lemon branches. On the other hand, Coniophora produced longer wood decay columns on salt cedar and mesquite than on Lisbon lemon, whereas wood rot on lemon was greater than that on Palo Verde and greasewood. Current disease management strategies include minimizing branch fractures and other non-pruning wounds, and periodic inspection of trees and removal of infected branches, including physical removal of all wood infected with Antrodia from the grove site.

The effect of Roundup on lemon trees was evaluated by repeatedly spraying 0.5, 0.75, 1, 1.25, and 1.5 lb. a.i./acre on the bottom 20 to 24 inches of the tree canopies over a three year period. The Roundup applications caused significant leaf injury in the sprayed area of the canopies and there was also significant defoliation of branches at the higher Roundup rates in all three years of the study. In 1996, flower and fruitlet counts were not affected by the Roundup applications and the 1998 data were inconclusive. However, flower and fruitlet counts in 1997 in the sprayed zone of the canopy were significantly reduced by Roundup and the effect increased with increasing Roundup rate. The 1996 and 1997 yield data indicated that Roundup applied to the bottom 20 to 24 inches of the tree canopies did not significantly affect lemon yield. The preliminary data suggest that accidental drift or misapplication of Roundup on to lemon trees when spraying weeds on the orchard floor has no short-term effect on grove productivity.

The effect of Roundup on lemon trees (Citrus limon) was evaluated by repeatedly spraying 0.5, 0.75, 1, 1.25, and 1.5 lb. a.i./acre (corresponding to 0.5, 0.75, 1, 1.25, 1.5 quarts of Roundup Ultra/acre) on the bottom 20 to 24 inches of the tree canopies, over a three year period. The Roundup applications caused significant leaf injury in the sprayed area of the canopies and there was also significant defoliation of branches at the higher Roundup rates in all three years of the study. In 1996 after three Roundup applications, increasing rates of Roundup had no effect on flower or fruitlet production in either the sprayed or unsprayed portions of the tree canopies as judged by the counts collected from branches in each canopy zone. Similarly, in 1997 after five Roundup applications, and in 1998 after nine Roundup applications, increasing rates of Roundup had no effect on flower or fruitlet production in the sprayed or unsprayed portions of the tree canopies. Spraying Roundup on the bottom of the tree canopies did not reduce total lemon yield per tree in 1996, 1997 or 1998 at any of the application rates. In all three years of the study, increasing Roundup rates had no effect on the yield of the first or second ring picks or the percentage of the total crop picked on the first harvest date. Increasing Roundup rates also did not affect fruit size at any harvest date in 1996, 1997 or 1998. Similarly, increasing Roundup application rates did not affect fruit quality at any harvest in 1996, 1997 or 1998. Thus, there was no relationship between the rate of Roundup sprayed on the trees and yield, fruit size or quality in all three years of this study. The three years of data collected in this study indicate that accidental drift or inadvertent application of Roundup onto lemon trees when spraying weeds on the orchard floor has no significant effect on lemon tree productivity.

‘Volkamer’ lemon (Citrus volkameriana Tan. and Pasq.) seedlings were inoculated with either of five communities of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi collected from either citrus orchards in Mesa and Yuma, Arizona or from undisturbed Sonoran or Chihuahuan desert soils. Plants were then grown for four months under low or high irrigation frequency treatments such that soil water tension reached about -0.01 MPa (moist) or -0.06 MPa (periodically dry), respectively. Plants grown in moist substrate had greater shoot mass than plants grown in periodically dry substrate. Plants inoculated with AM fungi from the Yuma orchard soil had significantly less shoot and root mass, higher specific soil respiration rates, and lower photosynthesis rates than plants treated with inoculum from other soils. Plant phosphorus nutrition did not limit growth. These data show that growth of ‘Volkamer’ lemon seedlings can be substantially affected by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal communities in moist or periodically dry soils.

Several different approaches are used with respect to land preparation prior to replanting citrus in Arizona. A study was initiated to examine the effect of cultural preplant practices on the survival of Phytophthora in citrus orchard soils. In June, 1998, a 2-gallon volume of soil was collected from eight different sites within a mature lemon planting on a sandy soil in Yuma or a lemon planting on a heavier soil in Mesa, AZ. Each initial sample was pre-tested, found to contain Phytophthora parasitica, then thoroughly mixed and distributed into six 1-qt plastic containers, which were subjected to different environmental and cultural conditions. The soil in each container was tested for the presence of P. parasitica 1, 4 and 9 months after initiation of the study. The preliminary results of this ongoing study are as follows. Detection of P. parasitica was lower in non-irrigated as compared to irrigated soil. P. parasitica was not detected in non-irrigated soil subjected to a mean temperature of 38°C (100° F) for 3 months. During the 9-month period of time, detection of P. parasitica in soil planted to alfalfa was not reduced compared to soil planted to citrus. Of the treatments examined, dry summer fallow may be the most effective method of reducing the population of P. parasitica to below detectable levels; however, these preliminary findings must be validated by additional planned tests.