Florida citrus growers wade through worst flooding industry has seen
Treasure Coast citrus growers are wading through what they described as the worst flooding event the local industry has ever seen. After record-breaking rainfall , western Indian River County was underwater for three to four days and western St. Lucie County was for five to six days, said Riverfront Packing Co. CEO Dan Richey. After 46 years in the industry, this was the most devastating flooding he has seen — "by far." "For two weeks it shut us down, right at the beginning of the season, when things were looking good," Richey told TCPalm. "Bottom line is we'll lose some fruit. It's definitely delaying harvest and we're not sure what kind of tree damage we'll have just yet." Florida flooding threatens to hurt citrus trees Lingering floodwaters saturate the soil, which can cause citrus roots to rot and harmful microorganisms to grow, according to the University of Florida fact sheet . Damage to trees from flooding is likely if citrus root systems are in saturated soil for three or more days. "We had flooded groves for five to six days," Richey said. "I was out in the grove yesterday, and I was walking. The mosquitoes nearly carried me away." Doug
Indian River County, FL · 13h
