Especially the spring put a heavy stamp on the growing season of 2025. With an average of 63 millimeters of precipitation, spring was the second driest since 1906. At the same time, it was also one of the sunniest springs ever measured. The combination of intense sun and little rain caused evaporation to increase rapidly and resulted in a significant precipitation deficit early on. The Netherlands also counted a record of 207 mild days with a maximum temperature of 15 degrees or higher. This extends the growing season, but also increases the pressure from diseases and pests. Due to the persistent drought, the risk of wildfires also increased and the emissions from these fires reached a record level. Nationally, the precipitation deficit in the summer half-year reached a maximum of 268 millimeters, good for a place in the top 10 driest years. Regionally, the differences were large. The biggest outlier is in Zeeland, where the precipitation deficit was more than twice as high as in ...