Citrus greening and the Asian Citrus Psyllid
 

Citrus greening is a disease which is spread by only a few insects: the main culprit being the Asian Citrus Psyllid. This pest has been found here in San Diego County, California -- fortunately the disease is not present and the number of individual insects found has been small. A major effort is underway to eliminate the pest so that if the disease does show up it will not have a way to spread. The majority of the county is under quarantine for this pest, including my home and nursery. We have regular inspections for the pest and also monitored treatment on monthly intervals of all host plants for the psyllid. No psyllids have been found on or anywhere near my property (Whew!).

Re: Citrus greening and the Asian Citrus Psyllid
 

Very informing post. I appreciate it. I didn't even know what a psyllid is, but I will look out for them here.

Re: Citrus greening and the Asian Citrus Psyllid
 

Note that asian citrus psyllid (ACP) is one of 1,000's of psyllid-named insects. The local inspectors sometimes bring specimens preserved in clear plastic. Adults appear to be about 1/8 inch max in length.

Here's some public information on the pest: CDFA > PHPPS > ASIAN CITRUS PSYLLID

Re: Citrus greening and the Asian Citrus Psyllid
 

Citrus trees in the southernmost county of Texas tested positive for Citrus Greening Disease earlier this week. The site is roughly near San Benito TX -- which has a latitude of 26-deg N. It is still unclear whether CGD can persist in environments above 30-deg N in the U.S., such as California. In the meantime we're hoping it doesn't somehow get here in an undocumented plant shipment.

Here's a couple of related articles:

Citrus greening found in Texas - News

Orange Juice Jumps to Record on Texas Disease, U.S. Import Probe - Businessweek

Re: Citrus greening and the Asian Citrus Psyllid
 

It was found a few city's away from san benito. It was in weslaco if I remember correctly. But still it is so close to home anyway. Scary!!

Re: Citrus greening and the Asian Citrus Psyllid
 

I doubt Home Depot or Lowes would be selling citrus trees with citrus greening, but from the information I have gathered the patterns on the leaves are not symmetrical so I do not believe it is a nutrient deficiency. Can anyone identify the issue with this citrus tree at the big box store?

Re: Citrus greening and the Asian Citrus Psyllid
 

Notice there are two tags on the trees. One identifies the tree, the other is the registration number of that individual tree in the ACP treatment program. Citrus sold in nurseries are one of the most highly regulated and inspected crops in the U.S.

I see two problems with the leaves in the picture: one is some minor damage from citrus leaf miner, the other (the yellow spotting) is symptomatic of roots being overcrowded in the nursery pots.