The recent Millennium Block Field Day in Fort Pierce, Florida highlighted two citrus varieties that show promising tolerance to HLB, also known as citrus greening. The new cultivars also produce ample fruit yield and juice. 

The varieties were highlighted at the 20-acre Millennium Block at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Indian River Research and Education Center (IRREC), which evaluates various fresh fruit varieties and rootstocks.

According to Flavia Zambon, UF/IFAS assistant professor of horticultural production at the IRREC, the two standout varieties are a grapefruit-orange hybrid called Triumph, and a pummelo-hybrid named UF-914. 

"The red flesh of the UF-914 fruit bred by UF/IFAS Professor Fred Gmitter resembles a grapefruit, except for its thick rind, characteristic of pummelos. It produces market-ready fruit," Zambon said.

Triumph is a white seedy grapefruit-orange hybrid showing “exceptional tolerance to citrus greening (HLB)”, with a full dark-green canopy reaching the industry's juice quality and yield standards. Zambon said that they expect to insert Triumph into the breeding pipeline to produce seedless fruit, which is highly desired by elite markets domestically and in European and Asian markets.

At the field day, attendees were able to taste the fruit from the trees and chose UF-914 as the winner based on its superior flavor, appearance, and texture. The event drew a crowd of citrus growers, researchers, and administrators from UF/IFAS and other citrus research organizations.

"Florida's citrus industry is in a tight spot right now. We will use a multi-prong approach to solve the citrus greening problem: trees that can withstand the disease, treatment for psyllids (the invasive insect associated with citrus greening), breeding, and other factors," said Trevor Smith, director of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry, who attended the field day. 

"The Millennium Block is an excellent example of multiple agencies working together for a common cause: to find varieties that will produce high-quality fruit in the conditions we find ourselves in today," Smith added.

Featured photo by UF/IFAS

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