While the title of this article may seem like an alphabet soup of complex acronyms, it’s actually a nod to Dr. Sandra Guzman, assistant professor of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Smart Irrigation and Hydrology at the UF/IFAS Indian River Research and Education Center in Fort Pierce.
Guzman conducted research on the possibility of individual protective covers becoming a recognized best management practice and released her findings at the 2025 Florida Citrus Show in March. Best management practices are more than just good ways of doing things, they are proven and recommended techniques for improving water quality and balancing agricultural productivity with environmental concerns.
Although very early in this trial, Guzman’s preliminary research results are echoing what we have been observing in real world application — Tree Defender IPCs indeed have a beneficial impact on water conservation.
Water quality? Check.
Agricultural productivity? Check.
Sounds like a best practice to me.
This is important for several reasons, the most important being the recent passage of the 2025 Florida Farm Bill, which allows for the expanded use of BMPs by small farmers.
In addition, if Tree Defender IPCs were validated as BMPs, the designation could possibly open the door to a significant amount of potential grower cost-share opportunities, not only for water conservation but also water quality. This would further establish Tree Defender IPCs as economically beneficial tools for growers, even in the absence of HLB.
That last phrase gets me very excited. We spend a lot of time talking with growers and those in the citrus industry extolling the protective qualities of the Tree Defender. We have research they definitely prevent HLB infection in young to maturing trees, promote better fruit quality, higher brix levels, and now recent data shows possible recovery of some younger HLB infected trees.
What we may not say enough (but probably should, based on these preliminary research results) is that Tree Defender IPCs are not only great for protecting the tree, they’re also great for the whole planet!
Bio: Scott Thompson is co-founder of Tree Defender, Radical Ag-Tech, and Care Planet Technologies. He is a Central Florida native with a background in agribusiness, food manufacturing, and bioscience.
This column is sponsored by Tree Defender, and the opinions expressed herein may not reflect those of CFAN or of its advertisers.