USDA expanding use of wasp to fight citrus greening in Calif.

The fight against a disease threatening California citrus got a boost Tuesday when the U.S. Department of Agriculture said it would expand efforts to breed and release a tiny parasitic wasp, a natural enemy of a pest that spreads the incurable ailment, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Federal agriculture officials in recent months have tried to contain the spread of huanglongbing, also known as citrus greening, a disease that has infected and killed thousands of citrus trees in Florida and now threatens the $2 billion citrus industry in California.

Huanglongbing is spread by the Asian citrus psyllid, a tiny pest that has proliferated rapidly across the U.S.

Read more from the Los Angeles Times.