Little Cherry Disease Pt 1
With today’s Fruit Grower Report, I’m Bob Larson. The USDA is getting pressured to find answers to stopping the spread of Little Cherry Disease and its impact on growers in the Pacific Northwest and beyond.
U.S. Representative GT Thompson of Pennsylvania was in Washington state recently with fellow Republican Dan Newhouse for a visit with Northwest growers …
NEWHOUSE … “So, we talked to leaders in the fruit industry about the impacts we’re seeing to cherry growers and the orchards in Washington.”
What they learned, Newhouse says is not good …
NEWHOUSE … “This is truly a crisis. There is very little research that’s been done on Little Cherry Disease. So, there’s little that we know for sure that can be done to stop the spread of the disease and treat any orchards that currently have it.”
And right now, Newhouse says there is but one possible answer …
NEWHOUSE … “The only option we have now is to destroy the orchard, let it sit idle for two or three years and then replant. And there’s no guarantee, but if you do that, then it won’t spread back into new trees.”
Otherwise, Newhouse says it’s bad news …
NEWHOUSE … “This could be a truly devastating thing for our entire cherry industry. And, it’s a crisis that we hope, through research, that we can avert.”
Tune in tomorrow for more on the push for answers to Little Cherry Disease.
