Jan 6, 2016

Warm winter puts Georgia crops at risk

Georgia growers fear losses for the pecan harvest and early blooms for blueberries and peaches if temperatures don’t drop soon. Heavy rains in December drowned pecan orchards, and the warm winter weather is shortening the chill period for blueberries and peaches.

Here’s more from the Albany Herald:

Growers had anticipated harvesting about 130 million pounds this season but now hope to take in 80 million pounds — an estimated $100 million shortfall.

The warm weather has bedeviled blueberry and peach growers, said Charles Hall, executive director of the Georgia Fruit & Vegetable Grower’s Association.

Blueberries and peaches require periods of cooler weather — 45 degrees Fahrenheit or lower — to create healthy blooms, Hall said. The number of necessary chill hours differs among berry varieties, Hall said, but none has had enough.