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New App Helps Stop The Spread Of Citrus Diseases

Is your backyard citrus tree failing?  The U.S. Department of Agriculture has developed a new iPhone app that can that can probably help you identify the culprit.  Rebecca Blue is the USDA’s undersecretary for marketing and regulatory programs which developed the free “Save Our Citrus” app.

“With this you find information about what you’re on the lookout for and also how you can report it if you find anything fishy on your citrus tree in your backyard. It’s an easy way to report it and make sure we can get someone out to look at what’s going on and make sure we’re making citrus in Florida safe,” she said.

There’s also a USDA “Save our Citrus” website

Blue was on a 2-day tour of Florida’s citrus-growing region which coincided with the annual Citrus Expo in North Fort Myers where she met with growers and people from related industries.   

Florida produces 63 percent of the nation’s citrus crop – it’s a $9 billion industry in the state, employing 76,000 people. 

Valerie Alker hosts All Things Considered. She has been a Reporter/Producer and program host at WGCU since 1991. She reports on general news topics in Southwest Florida and has also produced documentaries for WGCU-TV’s former monthly environmental documentary programs In Focus on the Environment and Earth Edition. Valerie also helps supervise WGCU news interns and contributes to NPR programs.