Texas A&M scientists solve major problems plaguing Valley citrus orchards

Texas citrus is confronting myriad challenges these days, from pests to disease to drought, though two scientists with Texas A&M University have given the industry a fighting chance.

It goes back to 2013, when Dr. Mamoudou Setamou, professor and director of the Texas A&M Kingsville Citrus Center, and Dr. Olufemi Alabi, professor and extension specialist with the university’s AgriLife Extension Service, were going up against the Diaprepes root weevil, which was attacking trees around Bayview and other areas in the Rio Grande Valley.

In a recent interview they explained the threat from Diaprepes, a ground-dwelling insect whose larvae feed on a citrus tree’s root systems while the adults live on the foliage, where they lay their eggs. When the larvae hatch they fall to the ground and penetr