A reduction in yields of no less than 50 percent is estimated for the upcoming clementine season in Sardinia, due to a significant fruit drop phenomenon that, for about a week, has affected the production areas, both the central-western and southeastern parts of the island.
The reasons for the phenomenon are not yet very clear, although there is reason to believe that there is a connection with the anomalous weather pattern recorded until mid-June, In fact, heavy rainfall, strong mistral winds and high humidity have characterized much of the spring period, compromising the blooms. The absence of significant temperature swings in November, December and January also affected the fruit set.
Fruits visible on the ground
In this regard, we collected two testimonies from local entrepreneurs, from different parts of Sardinia, to better understand the extent of the damage and the phenological state of the plants and fruits. Gianluca Puggioni, a citrus grower from the province of Oristano, refers us that on his farm the damage is close to 90 percent. "I have 3 hectares of clementines in 3 different municipalities, 7-8 km apart, but the situation is the same in all the plants. There is almost nothing left on the trees. The affected varieties are Common, Caffin and Mandalate, with an economic damage of about 40-50 thousand euros. In the case of the orange tree, on the other hand, the phenomenon is definitely less."
On the other hand, from the Muravera area (South Sardinia),
Emmanuel Cattoir, a Belgian-born entrepreneur with about 10 hectares invested in citrus, says: "I basically only annexed the first blossom, the one that then gives us the best fruit, which at the moment is cherry-sized. The subsequent flowerings have not been successful. I have been in this sector for 30 years, but in the last 5 campaigns the climate variable is affecting citrus activities to a great extent. In most clementine crops you can see the flower stems without the fruit, turned yellow on the ground. There are economic losses, but for now it is difficult to quantify them."
It is worth pointing out that the significant dropping is occurring, albeit to different degrees, both in plants where all agronomic interventions have been carried out (pruning, attaching treatments with specific products and constant water regime) and in those that are less well managed.