Drought and Tree Fruit Pt 2
From the Ag Information Network, this is today’s Fruit Grower Report. The tree fruit industry is coordinating all its contingency plans for water use in case they are needed during our drought emergency declared by the state.
Washington Tree Fruit Association president, Jon DeVaney says questions about the impact of our drought on this year’s crops are already coming in …
DeVANEY … “I often get people calling from the media asking, well, what does the apple crop look like this year. And I say, well, it’s not even May yet. It’s a little early to say for sure. You can get a sense of what the potential might be, but there’s a whole lot of variables still ahead of us and a lot of things that can happen.”
So, DeVaney says he tells them to check back with him in two or three months …
DeVANEY … “And reminding those folks who don’t live in the uncertain world of agriculture, that you can’t count anything until its completely harvested, and even then, bad things can happen.”
The amount of water, DeVaney says is one thing, but so much more goes into producing our fruit …
DeVANEY … “There’s an additional risk, but people shouldn’t assume that there will be less fruit or that there’ll be an effect on quality. And I think that’s something that the general public tends to assume if they hear drought. And we’ve been making the point that it’s too early to say that for certain and there’s a lot of tools in that toolbox to reduce the likelihood of that happening.”
DeVaney says there are tools in place and while this is a problem for producers, there’s no indication, so far, that there will be any damage to the crops themselves.
