California is freezing while Australia is burning up. It's a hard life in the citrus business at times...
http://www.centralvalleybusinesstimes.com/stories/001/?ID=13797
Central Valley citrus growers brace for cold night
December 7, 2009 9:59am
Coldest night of the season expected
Were keeping a close eye on it
Growers in the Central Valley citrus belt in Fresno, Tulare and Kern counties will be watching the skies anxiously tonight while keeping an eye on temperature monitors in their groves.
Mondays rains in the Valley are expected to be followed by clearing and an onslaught of cold air from the Arctic.
Temperatures in the South Valley were predicted as of Monday morning to drop to the mid-20s in the early hours of Tuesday, just below the 28 degrees where navel oranges and other citrus can be damaged.
Were keeping a close eye on it and making sure our growers are aware this is a night when they need to be particularly alert, says Bob Blakely, director of industry relations for California Citrus Mutual, an Exeter-based growers organization.
A lot of it is going to depend on how fast the skies clear off tonight. As the storm moves out and the skies clear, the temperature is going to drop, says Mr. Blakely. The earlier that happens, the greater potential there is for lower temperatures.
If the temperatures drop only into the mid-20s and only for a few hours, the wind machines most growers have should be able to circulate comparatively warned air thats above three level down to the ground and keep the fruit from freezing, he says.
Twenty-five is not a temperature that is that uncommon. Its a little unusual to have it this early in the season, says Mr. Blakely. Christmas week is typically our coldest week.
Other methods of keeping groves warm include irrigating, since the flowing water will remain at 32 degrees or above, and burning huge piles of waste.
December can be a harsh month for Central Valley citrus growers. The crop was essentially wiped out by a December freeze in 1998 and was seriously damaged by an early January freeze in 2007.
The 1998 freeze drove thousands of farm workers into the unemployment and emergency food and shelter lines.
Later in the season, citrus has more sugar in the fruit and is somewhat more resistant to cold temperatures.
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http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/12/08/2765247.htm
Heatwave hits citrus crops
Posted December 8, 2009 14:43:00
Updated December 8, 2009 14:42:00
A Renmark citrus grower says the heatwave that hit the region in October and November has wiped out most of his crop.
Norm Hood says more than 98 per cent of his valencia and navel orange crop is on the ground, because the sunburnt stems could not hold the weight of the fruit.
Mr Hood says most growers in the region are reporting damage of varying degrees, and this is going to hit the industry hard.
"The biggest concern I think not only for me but for the whole region is the flow-on effect, because if the volume of fruit is not going to be there, it's got to have an effect on the packing houses, with our exports going overseas, and in turn it's got to affect all the pickers," he said.
"My pickers had a look the other day and they basically said, 'Norm, I don't think we'll be picking next year'."
