The effect of irrigation on development of citrus variegated chlorosis symptoms

•We compare Citrus Variegated Chlorosis (CVC) intensity under irrigation conditions.•Irrigation can be used to reduce the main negative effect of CVC: reduced fruit size.•Our results also explain the higher intensity of CVC where a dry season occurs.

The incidence and severity of citrus variegated chlorosis (CVC) caused by Xylella fastidiosa are higher in the northern region of Sao Paulo, Brazil than in the southern region. This phenomenon is partly due to differences in the climate, especially rainfall, as the northern region tends to be drier than the southern region. The progress of CVC under three levels of irrigation was assessed in a grove located in the northern region of Sao Paulo. Trees (10-year-old Natal sweet orange) were arranged in a randomized complete block in a 3 × 2 factorial scheme with three levels of irrigation and two methods of infection with X. fastidiosa. The disease incidence in branches and the number of symptomatic fruits per tree were evaluated for three years. A monomolecular model was used to describe the progress of CVC incidence for all treatments. Irrigation reduced CVC symptoms in trees, especially the number of symptomatic fruits per tree. Based on this significant reduction, citrus irrigation can be used to reduce the main negative effect of CVC: reduced fruit size. Our results also explain the higher incidence of CVC in the northern region of Sao Paulo, where a dry season occurs.