Warm winter Eastern US could harm apple and berry crops
Unseasonably warm temperatures in December and January and the warmest February on record in the Pennsylvania have advanced fruit tree bud development by about two weeks earlier than normal. That leaves them vulnerable to frost, said Richard Marini, professor of horticulture from Penn State.
“That’s bad news because if these trees are too early and we get a hard frost that kills flower buds, we could lose part of the crop,” Marini said.
“For every day we bloom earlier than the average bloom date, the likelihood of a frost increases,” he said. “So, if we bloom two weeks earlier than normal, the probability of having a frost during bloom is greater than normal.”
Commercial apple growers can’t do much about changing climatic conditions, Marini conceded, but there are a few things they can do. First, and foremost, they must not plant trees in low spots where cold air settles. And they can switch to growing varieties of apples, such as Rome Beauties, that bloom later. That variety blooms a week to 10 days later than the most popular varieties, Gala, Fuji and Honeycrisp.
South Carolina farms fare also worried. Orangeburg County strawberry and blueberry farmer Monty Rast says he is doing all he can to protect his crop from freezing temperatures.
"We do have some strawberries on Cannon Bridge Road and we have had to cover them up during this frosty period," he said.
"We are prepared to protect them. The only thing that would be a problem right now is the berries that are pollinating. The ones that have already bloomed are not seeing any problems,” he said.
Temperatures are expected to plunge below freezing this week and may even set a new low for this time of year.
Rast says blueberries bloomed out prior to this cold snap. "We did not do any frost protection on them," he said. "We might lose 15 percent to 20 percent from the cold."
Rast said the blueberry bushes generally have not done well, as the crop is down about 25 percent from normal. He says the loss could be due to the warm winter.
source: concordregister.com, thetandd.com
