2024-05-13 21:00:41
Māra Rudzāte, chairman of the board of the Latvian Fruit Growers’ Association (LAA), said that the frosts that hit Latvia on the night of Saturday and Sunday were not as strong as in the middle of the week, but they still damaged fruit trees and bushes. She noted that the frost was most damaging to the blueberry and cranberry crops grown in the bogs.
She also noted that, unlike the middle of the week, the frost period was shorter on the weekend. Over the weekend, there was an hour or two of frost at night, and up to eight hours in the middle of the week.
Ieva Kamerāde-Sniedze, crop consultant of the Latvian Rural Consultation and Education Center (LLKC), said that in Latgale, as a result of last week’s frost, fruit trees froze and blueberries were severely frozen. She noted that fruit trees and bushes can be protected from frost by raking, spraying and water drops, but this is only possible if the temperature does not exceed minus six degrees. In the middle of the week, the temperature in Latgale was from minus six to minus eight degrees and in some places even reached minus 13 degrees, so this method of moistening did not provide the desired results.
Kamrāde-Sniedze expressed that it is more difficult to judge about crops, because many have not yet germinated. If the crop has not sprouted, frost cannot damage it. She said that in some places the cabbages were slightly damaged, but not completely frozen, as well as the orchards were damaged by the frost. The frost has also damaged the fields of winter crops, which are currently suffering and bent. Frosts winter barley and winter wheat, strawberries, cherries, pears and early apples, as well as ornamental crops such as lilies.
On the Vidzeme side, it froze this week, but winter wheat and summer wheat did not freeze. On the other hand, Kurzemi was hardly affected by frost. She explained that it will be possible to detect the real damage when the weather is warmer.
Andris Skudra, a crop cultivation expert at LLKC, said that during the weekend, as a result of the frost, rapeseed and wheat froze and the leaves started to turn yellow. The summer crops that were sown earlier and have already sprouted, as well as the winter rapeseeds, also froze. The ant added that it is difficult to judge the extent of the damage at the moment, but it looks like the frost period will be over.
2024-05-13 21:00:41