I heard on John Dromgoole’s gardening radio show recently that fruit trees that bud too early will drop their buds, and they won’t produce fruit in the summer. This last winter was certainly warmer than average across the country, and I think that the expected effects of the mild winter and early spring make for an interesting topic to focus on.
The Cornell Daily Sun recently published an article discussing the phenomenon called “The Jumanji Effect.” This effect resulting from warmer winter weather is demonstrated by the premature awakening of hibernating animals, a “baby boom” within animal populations that do not hibernate, and the subsequent impact of these changes for animal species that directly impact the flora and fauna as well as people. This same phenomenon is what can place apple blossoms, for instance, at risk of freezing, making them unable to produce fruit later on. Irregular weather patterns can affect the production of fruit trees in general. This information shared by the University of Rhode Island explains that fruit trees need cold weather “to promote spring growth.” This concern is echoed by other experts.
Fruit production specialists at Purdue University point out that fruit-bearing trees and plants are weeks ahead of their winter dormancy schedule, placing peach trees, grapevines, blueberry plants, as well as apple trees at risk. One killing frost will destroy these crops for the year. Of course, such an occurrence would affect job stability for those that harvest these fruits and affect the availability of fresh fruit and those goods manufactured from these fruits.
While we all may be enjoying the mild winter – warmer temperatures, lower heating costs, outdoor recreation, and the like – the fruit trees and plants, the animal populations, and other crops are mildly confused. At least for this year, we must hope that weather patterns do not return to normal, so we may enjoy the fruits of nature’s premature labor.
Should you find that the a lack of available fresh fruit drives prices up at the store, exceeding your budget, you still have options to keep fruit in your home and in your diet. Choose produce from a local CSA or farmer’s market instead of produce from the grocery chain. And at the grocery store, choose frozen fruit over canned if your fresh produce options are limited. You do not have to sacrifice quality or shatter your grocery budget to enjoy the freshness of the season!
Until next time, eat well.
