Keep the psyllid out of your backyard?
Get breaking news and important information about keeping the insect out of California.
What to Look For: Signs of the Insect & Disease
It can take years for symptoms of the disease to appear, meaning inspection for the psyllid is our best line of defense.
- Use a magnifying glass or hand lens.
- Inspect when watering, pruning or tending trees.
- Pay close attention during times of leaf growth, or "flushing."
What does the Asian Citrus Psyllid look like?
The psyllids develop from an egg through five nymphal stages that look similar, but increase in size after each molt. Due to the small size – even of adult psyllids – inspection is done more easily with a magnifying glass or hand lens.
Eggs are bright yellow-orange and almond shaped, and appear in groups on the newest, most tender, unfolded leaves.
Nymphs are dull orange, have red eyes and produce waxy tubules that direct honeydew away from their bodies. They can be difficult to see because they are small and flatten themselves
against twigs
and leaves.
Nymphs are slow, do not fly or jump, unlike their adult counterparts, and the honeydew they produce causes sooty mold to grow.
Adults are small (3-4 mm or 1/8-1/6 inch), brownish insects that are similar in size to an aphid. They feed with their heads down, almost touching the surface of the leaf.
Because of the shape of their heads, their bodies are lifted to approximately a 45-degree angle.
The Basics of Inspecting for Pysllids
When?
Inspection should be done on a regular basis and especially during periods of active plant growth or “flushing.” Eggs and nymphs are only present during flushing and, while adults can be present year-round, they are easier to spot on the tender leaves of spring and fall flush.
Where?
The psyllid adults and
nymphs are typically found on new shoots, along with eggs,
which are often nestled in crevices of unfolded leaves.
How Often?
Inspect trees monthly and whenever watering, spraying, pruning or tending trees. It’s especially
important to inspect during active growth, or flushing.
How can I tell if my tree has HLB?
Detection of HLB can be difficult, as the symptoms may not show up
for more than a year and the leaf symptoms can resemble other diseases and nutritional deficiencies.
However, HLB leaf symptoms
are unique in that the yellow mottling caused by HLB is not the same on both sides of the leaf.
Later symptoms of HLB-infected
trees include yellow shoots, lopsided small fruit, and premature and excessive fruit drop. As HLB progresses,
leaves and whole branches fall off the tree and eventually the entire tree dies.