BY STACY SOBOTKA
A cold snap two weekends ago had local farmers scrambling to protect their crops.
Robert Tritten of MSU Extension reported last week that temperatures in eastern Michigan went below the freezing mark, in the mid to upper 20s.
“All the region has experienced several mornings with freezing temperatures that have affected fruit flower buds on many crops. The coldest temperatures of the past week were this past Saturday morning, May 9. Many of our MSU Enviroweather stations recorded temperatures that dropped well below freezing much before midnight and temperatures remained below freezing to well after sunrise. I have had many reports from fruit growers with temperatures in the 25 to 27 degrees Fahrenheit range. Many strawberry growers saw temperatures at ground level being 19 degrees,” he said.
Buds on tree fruits have been hit significantly, according to Tritten.
“I am seeing a good amount of damage on flower buds in tree fruits. Overall, I see crop loss for tree fruits in the range of 40 to 60 percent. There wasn’t much freeze damage to small fruit crops. Recall that we also had cold temperatures on the morning of April 22 that also saw some damage to fruit crops,” he said.
Abby Jacobson of Westview Orchards said there were some damaged buds.
“We still have a good number of buds that survived,” she said. “Yes, we did lose some to the freeze, but we were blessed to have a lot of buds to begin with.”
Tritten reported that strawberry growers were quite busy over the weekend.
“The freeze event of Friday night and Saturday morning was most unusual; most growers started to frost protect around 9 or 10 p.m. on Friday evening and continued to run irrigation to 9 or 10 a.m. the following morning. Thick ice formed, many seeing over an inch of ice on flowers and leaves, thicker than they can ever remember,” he said.
Strawberries at Westview received a water boost during the freeze and are on schedule for picking in June. “They look good for what they’ve been through,” said Jacobson.
Westview Orchards is open during the pandemic and it is now offering curbside pickup on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Free delivery is also offered on purchases of $18 or more for those who live within a 15 mile radius.
A complete list of baked goods, fruits and vegetables is available on their Facebook page.
“Just try to visit one or all of us as much as you can to support the community as we try to support the community as well,” Jacobson said.
Over at Youngblood Winery in Ray Township, careful planning helped the Youngbloods dodge a bullet during the freeze.
“It looks like we escaped completely unharmed. I was very worried. I’m looking at my buds and everything is starting to green and open up,” said Jessica Youngblood. “I think only one of my six varieties may have some damage on the primary beds. These are cold hardy vines. We’re fortunate.”
This past weekend Youngblood Winery planted 6,000 Itasca vines with the help of volunteers.
Their online shop has been updated and curbside pickup is available.
More information may be found on their Facebook page.
