Citrus Disease Destroyed Billions of Dollars of Citrus over 10 years; A Quick Story with 2 Experts

Summary: The destruction of crops, billions of dollars in damages, and no hope in sight. It’s a good thing this is just a movie, set in the far future.  We should have plenty of time to ensure it won’t happen to us. Should being the operative word if we lived in a perfect world. But it’s not a perfect world. While the futuristic blight in Interstellar is fictional, we have already been facing our own blight in the United States for almost ten years. This is the story of Citrus Greening, which has been rocking the citrus (i.e. oranges, lemons, etc…) industry for nearly a decade. Read on to learn for yourself.<br> Victoria Hornbaker<br> Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Interim Director at California Department of Food and Agriculture<br> https://www.linkedin.com/in/victoria-hornbaker-5658b522/<br> Elizabeth E. Grafton-Cardwell Ph.D.<br> “Research Statement<br> My research and extension program stuies strategies for Integrated Pest Management (IPM) methods to manage arthropod pests of citrus in the San Joaquin Valley of California. We establish or verify economic thresholds for key pests, study the efficacy of natural enemies, maximize the use of biological and cultural control methods, develop pheromone trapping systems, screen the efficacy and selectivity of new insecticides and test pests for resistance to insecticides.  In recent years I have focused on invasive pests such as Asian citrus psyllid and pests of export significance such as Fuller rose beetle.<br> As of June 2006 I am also Director of Lindcove Research and Extension Center in Exeter California. This 175 acre Center supports research projects on citrus breeding, horticulture and pest management.”<br> https://ucanr.edu/?facultyid=843<br> About this podcast<br> The Learning with Lowell; Science, deep tech, biotech, startup, and news podcast has new episodes every Tuesday. It is hosted by Lowell Thompson who started the podcast after suffering through e genetic illness that almost almost saw him die on a number of occasions, but now is managed and doesn’t cause too many problems. Lowell’s goal is to educate people on the different paths you can take to get into a science, deep tech, biotech, or startup related venture as a founder or member of the team. Additionally, Lowell wants to show you who these founders and experts are like as they answer questions about their work, passions, and interest.<br> <a href="http://www.learningwithlowell.com/subscribe-here/">Subscribe today</a>: http://www.learningwithlowell.com/subscribe-here/<br> Subscribe to our <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChstfGtxlrNK6lfmvk4cBpA?view_as=subscriber">Youtube</a>: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChstfGtxlrNK6lfmvk4cBpA?view_as=subscriber<br> <a href="http://www.learningwithlowell.com/5-point-monday-email-subscription/">Join the newsletter</a>:http://www.learningwithlowell.com/5-point-monday-email-subscription/<br> Like and share on<br> <a href="https://twitter.com/lowellwashere">Twitter</a>: https://twitter.com/lowellwashere<br> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/LearningWithLowell/">Facebook</a>: https://www.facebook.com/LearningWithLowell/<br> and <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/lowell-thompson-2227b074/">Linkedin</a>: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lowell-thompson-2227b074/<br>  <br> <a href="http://www.learningwithlowell.com/is-this-the-end-or-just-the-beginning/">Re-post:</a><br> I loved the movie Interstellar. From the very first time I saw the trailer, I was hooked. I could not wait to watch the movie after hearing Mr. Alright Alright Alright talk about how we used to be dreamers and explorers with images of space exploration playing across the screen.  I’m a sucker for space operas and science fiction movies in general. In the beginning of Interstellar, we see how the Earth of the future is different than our own. How there was this “blight” that was wiping out our staple crops, such as corn or soybeans.