I saw a variety of citrus during a recent trip but the CCPP does not have this variety in its collection. How can I legally get some budwood of this variety to produce trees for my property?

The only legal way to import a new variety of citrus into California is through the CCPP. Contact the CCPP and indicate your interest in the new variety. The director of the CCPP has a permit from the United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, which allows the importation of citrus budwood from anywhere in the world. CCPP can then arrange for budwood of this new variety to enter into the CCPP quarantine facilities and undergo complete testing for diseases. If the budwood is found infected, then the CCPP will take the necessary steps to clean up the variety before it is release for the propagation of field trees.

Why does it take so long to get a new variety of citrus released from the CCPP?

In order to release a new variety of citrus in California, the California Department of Food and Agriculture requires that it be free of all known bud transmitted diseases. This requires that the newly imported budwood must be tested for diseases and if any are found, then the variety must be 'cleaned up' before it can be released. The time required to perform the tests for disease takes at least 6-9 months. If 'clean up' is required, this adds at least and additional 2-3 years to the process. Most of the additional time required during the 'clean up' phase is simply time waiting for the growth of the plant material. The method we use to free the new variety of viroids is called shoot-tip-micrografting. This procedure is performed with the aid of a microscope and requires the removal of approximately 0.15 - 0.2 mm from the growing tip of the infected material and the grafting of this tip onto a seedling rootstock growing under sterile conditions in a test tube (see 'Therapy Methods for Clean-up' under ABOUT CCPP on this website). Once this new graft has grown to sufficient size (sometimes several months), it may then be grafted onto a larger rootstock growing in the greenhouse. This second graft must be allowed to grow for up to a year or more before there is sufficient material to perform the necessary testing.

Can anyone obtain budwood from the CCPP?

The CCPP does try to make budwood available to anyone requesting it. The program's principle clients, however, are licensed California growers and nurseries and researchers at the University of California, because financial support for CCPP comes from them. After all of California's budwood needs are met then the CCPP will consider other requests. Newly introduced varieties are generally not distributed outside of California for the first 3 years after release, so that California growers can have first access to them. See the budwood section for budwood charges and ordering instructions.

Links

UCR Department of Plant Patology

Citrus Research Board (CRB)

UCR Citrus Variety Collection

USDA –ARS National Clonal Germplasm Repository for Citrus and Dates

AgNIC/INFOMINE Subtropical Horticulture Site

Questions and Answers to Citrus Management

UCR Department of Nematology