Southwest Michigan has had some warmer than usual weather this month, and that could be affecting its fruit crops.
Bill Shane is a fruit specialist with the MSU Extension office in Benton Harbor. He tells us when the temperatures get above about 42 degrees, it can cause some fruit trees to begin preparing for buds. If it’s that warm, and then it freezes again, the fruit could be threatened.
“As plants move out of their deep dormancy, they become more and more susceptible to cold temperatures,” Shane said. “So, it’s something that we always watch carefully. The warm temperatures that we have certainly are starting to nudge the plants to more susceptible stages.”
Shane says the most vulnerable fruits are peaches.
“We’ve been cutting buds, and yes, there’s damage out there. There’s a lot of buds out there, a lot of varieties, a lot of locations. Each farm, each variety, each fruit type is a different story in itself.”
Shane says grapes are more complicated and harder to check. Apples and pears are the heartiest, and less of a concern. He’s hoping the temperatures will stay below 42 until it’s unlikely another freeze cycle is coming.
The areas of concern are Berrien and Cass counties, but not so much Van Buren County.
