Stem and Fruit Canker of Dragon Fruit in South Florida

Red dragon fruit

Dragon fruit, also known as pitahaya, pitaya, and strawberry pear, is a group of vine-like, climbing cacti. In south Florida, production of dragon fruit has been steadily increasing since the 2000s, and growers in Florida consider dragon fruit as a potential alternative fruit crop to avocado and citrus, two economically important fruit crops largely impacted by laurel wilt and huanglongbing, respectively. This new 4-page article focuses on the symptomology and epidemiology of stem and fruit canker, a prevailing disease on dragon fruit. Suggested management strategies for the disease are also discussed based on recent studies conducted in south Florida. Written by Cheng-Fang Hong, Shouan Zhang, Romina Gazis, Jonathan H. Crane, and Jeff Wasielewski, and published by the UF/IFAS Plant Pathology Department.
https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pp355

FE888 2010 Cost Estimates of Establishing and Producing Pitaya (Dragon Fruit) in South Florida

FE888, a 7-page fact sheet by Edward A. Evans, Jordan Huntley, Jonathan Crane, and Allen F. Wysocki, provides needed information on the costs and returns associated with establishing and operating a five-acre pitaya orchard in South Florida, and assesses the prices and yields that must be obtained to make the establishment and production of a pitaya orchard a profitable venture. Published by the UF Department of Food and Resource Economics, December 2010.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fe888