Javea Grapevine 187 2016 Six | Page 91

a frame at the desalination plant as well as general maintenance of pipelines. This transfer is dependent upon adequate supplies being available for Xàbia consumers. Xabia is hoping to obtain long term commitments from neighbouring municipalities, not just to act as a back stop for summer seasons. For full story see: Javeamigos years. The first fruits to be authorized to export to China have been peaches and plums, Spain is the first country in the world authorized by the Executive Beijing to send peaches. From Las Provincias Spanish peaches and plums for China The Department of Agriculture and Valencian Institute of Agricultural research is investigation why some orange trees are losing their leaves and yellowing in the Plana Baixa and other citrus growing areas. The Chinese Government has sent officials from the Ministry of Agriculture to Spain review the conditions of production, harvesting and packing of stone fruits, to organize the fulfillment of the established phytosanitary protocols and prepare the first shipments to that country. Last April the governments of Beijing and Madrid signed an agreement that opens the doors of China to stone fruits (peaches, nectarines, plums) as they have already been doing for citrus for some Investigation of unexplained defoliation of orange trees Having ruled out high concentrations of salt in irrigation water, pathogenic fungus, and excessive fertilisation, investigators think that the might be due to ailments in the plant’s physiology or cropping patterns rather than pathogens. They are still investigating.