Hungary: Spring frost damage is a threat, apples are in danger I

Published 2024년 5월 18일

Tridge summary

Hungary's agricultural sector, especially apple orchards, is facing increased threat from spring frost due to climate change. Despite a decrease in frosty days overall, the earlier flowering period puts trees at risk during critical times. The Paris climate goals could prevent significant changes in the second half of this century. However, without emission reduction, apples and other orchards could see severe damage. The article also discusses the potential for frost during the apple tree's flowering period, which can cause up to a 50% yield loss without the right protection. The number of days with heat sufficient for flowering varies depending on the first months of the year. The highest yield variation was seen in the last 20 years, with a moderately strong negative correlation over the period for apple trees.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

According to the pessimistic scenario, if we do not deal with emissions, we can count on significantly more frost damage by the end of the century. This will especially affect apples, but it will also affect all orchards in Hungary. Spring frost damage is responsible for 80 percent of crop losses in orchards. Although the overall number of frosty days in Hungary is also decreasing due to global warming, this does not mean that there are not and will continue to be frosty periods in spring. Due to the earlier flowering period, they can occur precisely during this critical period. Until the turn of the millennium, we were a major power in the production of apples and plums, but today, apart from cherries, the amount of other fruit trees has decreased. Apples account for 70 percent of all tree fruits produced in Hungary, but the distribution of the growing areas is not even regional. Because nearly 40 percent of the orchard area is located in a single area, Szabolcs-Szatmár. In ...

Source: Magro