Apple production in Estonia is expected to vary between regions and be generally below average due to a cold spring and a rainy start to summer. In Central Estonia, the harvest will be considerably smaller than last year, with around half of the apple varieties not producing fruit.
At Rebane farm in Märjandi, Järva County, operated by Piia and Meelis Tiigemäe, nearly 1,000 apple trees are in production. The couple, who have worked in gardening and field farming for over 30 years, said this year's apple crop will be reduced. "This year's apple harvest will certainly be much more modest than last year's, as the spring frost took away a lot of blossom, while the first half of summer, which was very wet and cold, did its work. There have been a great many pests and apple diseases, and as a result, there are a lot of low-quality apples," Piia Tiigemäe said.
Crop thinning remains part of the routine to allow remaining fruits more capacity to develop. "If it is a cold year, a cold summer, a cold autumn, then fewer apples will ripen quickly," Meelis Tiigemäe said.
Aphid pressure has been high this season, adding to the workload. "We have never seen as many aphids as this year. There are too many of them. But moreover, this year their 'enemies,' earwigs, are also not present. A few wasps were flying around at the beginning of summer, but that was all scarce too," Meelis Tiigemäe added.
Some apple varieties will not bear fruit this season. "But luckily, we still have something to offer our customers. There have been more winter apples and fewer summer apples, as the frost did its work on them during the blossom season. The winter apples bloomed a little later, and there will likely be more of them, so in winter, we will be able to offer apples to our customers," Piia Tiigemäe said. The harvest will also be later than usual, with many apples and other fruits expected to have a more sour taste.
At Rebase Farm's vegetable plots, excessive rainfall has also affected production. The land has been flooded several times, damaging multiple crops. "Luckily, our potato field lies on the higher portion of the field, and not much standing water has remained there, but for example, our onion crop has completely rotted, while the pea crop is damaged; the roots of the plants simply perish from the excess water," Piia noted.
Source: ERR News
