Farmer Josh Oulton is directing over 750 liters of water per minute onto his peach crops at his Greenwich, Nova Scotia farm. Using advanced equipment to counter the recent dry, hot conditions, he remarked, "Basically, it's like a sprinkler on your lawn, but this is a lot of water. We are trying to put three inches of water down on these peaches."
Oulton mentioned that farming demands patience and skill in managing weather extremes, saying, "It gets extremely dry, or extremely wet." Across the country, he notes, "dry seems to be the name of the game, and in Ontario now, they seem to be dry up there."
If the irrigation continues, Oulton feels confident about growing a variety of crops on his 1,000-acre farm. "We grow nectarines, peaches, and plums, and we try apricots. We can grow anything on this land here in the Annapolis Valley," he stated.
Adapting to extreme weather conditions, Ian O'Brien, who sells and delivers local vegetables, highlights the challenges: "Leafy vegetables may be potentially vulnerable to the heat," though "the dry heat is good for plums and cherries and peaches."
Oulton is focused on ensuring the water supply to safeguard his crops and his family's farming operations, amid wider concerns about how extreme weather could affect crop availability and pricing.
Source: CTV News
