Re: [gardeners] Lemon Trees/Meyer
olin (gardeners@globalgarden.com)
Sun, 13 Oct 2002 13:40:19 -0700
At one time, nearly all of our orange trees were grown on sour orange
rootstock which is particularly susceptible to a severe strain of citrus
tristeza virus that can be transmitted by brown citrus aphids. In recent
years, root stocks are being used that are less susceptible or immune to the
disease. We no longer see many sour orange trees being planted, but there
are still a lot of older orange orchards on the sour orange rootstocks.
Meyer lemons sometimes are infected with CTV.
It is covered under the current "Arizona Administrative Code, Department of
Agriculture - Plant Services Division, Chapter 4, Section R3-4-230, Tristeza
or Quick Decline of Citrus". See
http://www.sosaz.com/public_services/Title_03/3-04.pdf
and scroll to page 20 of 70.
There is also a descriptive article at
http://ag.arizona.edu/pubs/general/resrpt1996/stopping_killer.html .
Last year our local paper carried an article by the formerly popular M.
Stewart extolling the virtues of the Meyer lemon and people were trying to
buy a tree a learned that is was not available and that is was illegal to
sell it or bring it into the state. Could be that the Dept. of Ag. just
hasn't gotten around to looking at the new variety. But unless, or until,
it's approved, it is prohibited.
Olin
----- Original Message ----- From: "George Shirley" <gshirl@bellsouth.net>
> Why? The new variety called Meyer doesn't carry the problem that they
> banned the old one for. The Meyer I grew twenty years ago was round and
> orange in color, the new ones actually look like lemons.
>
> olin wrote:
> >
> >... In AZ ( lots of zone 9 regions and lots of lemon trees)
> > , Meyer lemons are illegal. -Olin