Fruit growers have a few short nights ahead of them. Heavy frosts are coming and they can damage the blossoms of the fruit trees.
Temperatures will drop to around freezing in the coming nights and even to -5 degrees in the weekend.
no fruits
Fruit growers in Limburg therefore have to pull out all the stops to protect their blossoms. Flowers that freeze to pieces will no longer bear fruit and as a result the night frost can be a threat to the fruit harvest.
Also read: Winter expected early April
ice cream
“We are doing what we can do,” says fruit grower Wim Notermans from Noorbeek in the Nieuwsshow on L1 radio. “I wet the strawberry tunnels and then covered them with plastic.” Its apple and pear trees can be more difficult to protect the fruit grower. “Because I’m on a higher area, I can’t irrigate because the groundwater is too deep. I prepare myself, but can only watch.” Irrigating the blossoms in fruit trees creates a layer of ice and protects the fruit. “I do use a biological agent that should protect the blossoms of the fruit trees better against frost.”
Full bloom
The greatest danger threatens the plum and cherry trees, says Notermans. “They are currently in full bloom and can withstand the frost less well than apple and pear trees.” Notermans does not have plums and cherries himself, but says his fellow fruit growers place braziers between the trees to shield their harvest.
Due to the beautiful weather of the past few weeks, the trees look beautiful. Notermans therefore expects a good harvest if he survives the night frost period well.
Read here the extensive weather forecast from Meteo Limburg for the coming days.