Will May frosts threaten the apple harvest – experts answer
6 May 15:32
OPINION
Despite the fact that it’s the last month of spring, some regions of Ukraine are still waiting for night frosts. This was discussed in an exclusive commentary to "Komersant Ukrainian" by weather forecaster Natalia Ptukha.
“Yes, there will be frosts. On the night of May 8, in the western, except for Zakarpattia, and northern regions, there will be frosts with an intensity of 0…-3°C on the soil surface. I emphasize that we are talking about the soil surface, not the air. But there will still be several such pre-morning hours,”
– the forecaster said.
She added that frosts are expected only on May 8.
“Then we expect more clouds. Due to the fact that we are in a field of periodically low pressure, there may be more precipitation. This makes it impossible to have such intense frosts as we had earlier,”
– natalia Ptukha added.
In the context of the current weather, many people are interested in the fate of the harvest of the most popular fruit in Ukraine – apples. It is often apple trees that are particularly affected by May frosts.
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President of the Ukrainian Agrarian Confederation Leonid Kozachenko reassures readers
“Speaking specifically about apples, I don’t think there will be any big problems with them. Because frosts are predicted in the northern part of Ukraine. And we don’t have many fruit trees planted in this area. The main thing is to avoid frosts in the south and especially in the west of Ukraine,”
– comments the farmer exclusively for
However, according to Natalia Ptukha, frosts are expected in the west of the country, so it is likely that the expert will have to adjust his forecast somewhat.
Instead, Kozachenko is worried about the fate of vegetables – according to him, the situation with vegetables is very uncertain. And there are practically no options for solving it.
“Vegetables can suffer greatly – everyone is very much afraid of this now. And, in fact, they are thinking about what to do. There is a way to cover large areas with a special blanket that can temporarily protect the soil. But unfortunately, we don’t have such an opportunity right now,”
– summarizes Leonid Kozachenko.
So, by and large, we can only hope that the night frosts will really only occur on the night of May 8, and that they will be light. Otherwise, we can expect a deterioration in the harvest of certain crops, and thus a rise in food prices.
