Freezing Weather Puts Spring Fruit Crop At Risk

    Temperatures plummeted to their lowest level of the winter so far in North Lake County early Monday, with northern areas reporting as low as 25 degrees before sunup on January 24. The cold snap left bird baths frozen, rooftops and windshields sheeted in ice, and tropical plants damaged.
    Area agriculture appeared to escape the cold mostly intact, with only the spring peach and blueberry blossoms at risk from low temperatures. Area peaches are currently in bloom, and blueberry crops could be even further ahead, causing concern as more cold is expected this coming weekend.
    “Pittman might have gotten smoked,” said Mike Graham of Graham Farms, which operates peach orchards throughout the area, with a tract on Ravenswood Road being most at risk. Graham was evaluating his trees on Monday, and was confident that, mostly, blooms were looking OK.
    Area fern interests were reported to be running sprinklers early Monday to keep frost off leaves that will soon be packed for Valentine’s Day, and citrus appeared to be unscathed, with most growers not running sprinklers early Monday, a sign that the cold wasn’t expected to be too cold.
    For citrus, cold weather can be bonus, as it can help shape flavor of fruit still on trees, and cold temperatures result in sap pulling back toward the center of trees and ‘hardening’ them against further potential damage.
    Long-term forecasts indicate another freeze could be coming this weekend, with temperatures again expected to be in the upper 20's over the weekend in northern and low-lying areas.