Severe cold weather and hailstorms during mid-October have caused considerable frost and hail damage on certain stonefruit, top fruit and grape farms in South Africa’s Western Cape hinterland and the Little Karoo.
Damage is severe in some areas, with some growers losing their entire harvest.
But the impact is generally localised and not likely to have a significant effect on the total South African harvest.
The Deciduous Fruit Producers’ Trust has confirmed that in the Koue Bokkeveld, a region that produces stonefruit and top fruit, there had been some damage to Angeleno and Southern Belle plum orchards. It is still too early to tell if apple and pear orchards in the region have been affected. Some of the early table-grape farms adjacent to the Hex River Valley have sustained severe frost damage.
Producers receive a premium for the earliest fruit of the new season and many of the newer varieties bud early in spring, at a time when frost damage is a risk. “On this occasion the temperature dropped so suddenly that attempts by farmers to irrigate in order to prevent frost damage were not successful,” said Opperman.
This will not have a large impact on the South African deciduous harvest in its totality, but it spells hard times for producers in certain areas, with some farms around Ladismith, in the Karoo, losing between 70 per cent and 100 per cent of their apricots and peaches.
Carl Opperman, ceo of Agri Western Cape, said: “The Karoo regions received the most damage, and these areas grow product mainly for dried fruit. Apricot growers sustained the worst damage to their crops and, with other stonefruit types, it seems that the effects of the hail and frost have largely been restricted to the early varieties.”
The government and agricultural organisations are investigating the possibility of providing aid to affected areas.
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