Crops
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While it has not been too hot here in the Southeast, that is not true in other parts of the world. For example, the extreme heat in California and surrounding states has caused significant damage to crops such as lettuce, browning the edges and making them unsellable because of cosmetic damage or just killing them…
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While we have had quite a bit of rainfall this summer across most of the Southeast, especially since the beginning of July, other parts of the country have not done nearly so well. This is taking a huge toll on farmers, especially those with smaller farms that are less resilient to lack of water because…
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In previous blog posts, I have discussed the recent heat wave and drought in Europe. But there is another area of extreme heat and drought as well in China. According to Reuters, China has issued its first national drought alert of the year as authorities battle forest fires and mobilize specialist teams to protect crops…
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One of the ways that producers might be able to adapt to the changing climate is by producing new crop varieties that are more resistant to drought, since drought is expected to increase in the future as temperatures get warmer and evaporation and evapotranspiration increase. Plant breeders are looking for plants that have characteristics that…
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While most farmers this year have been grateful for the transition to a rainier pattern after a dry June, it has caused some problems for farmers. Hot temperatures and saturated soils meant an early end to pollination and the early end of the squash and cucumber seasons. The wet soil also hindered harvest of some…
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The heat wave that has been affecting Europe for the last few weeks has had very bad impacts on crops and farmers in the region. In addition to the heat, they have experienced extremely dry conditions there (of course, the two are related), with France experiencing its driest July on record. Here is a recent…
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When I lived in Wisconsin and the summer weather turned exceptionally hot and humid, we always blamed the cornfields in Iowa for the high humidity. In fact, we were right! The Corn Belt puts a lot of water into the air as all those corn plants transpire water into the atmosphere. In fact, if you…