Huanglongbing: possible threat to Santa Catarina’s citriculture?

Abstract

Abstract - Huanglongbing (HLB) is the most important citrus disease in Brazil. It is caused by the bacteria “Candidatus Liberibacter spp.”, which is spread by the Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri. HLB symptoms are leaf mottling (asymmetric chlorosis in the leaf blade) and yellowing of shoots, and the fruits show irregular maturation, deformation, seed abortion and fall prematurely. HLB was detected in 2004 and currently occurs in the states of São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Paraná. HLB management is based on planting healthy nursery trees produced in greenhouses, inoculum reduction by the removal of symptomatic plants and monitoring and control of psyllid vector. There is no report of HLB in Santa Catarina state, however, D. citri was already detected, what leads to the need of vector and bacteria surveys in citrus production regions.