GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Some Michigan fruit growers took a hit to their crops earlier this month with freezing temperatures, while others are still assessing any possible damage to their bushes and trees.

 

On May 5 the Michigan Farm Bureau issued a news alert that the following Sunday could produce a late frost and cause damage to buds. Growers were monitoring thermometers and standing ready to take protective measures to minimize the impact of killing frosts to peach, apple and cherry trees.

According to a May 9 report from local Grand Rapids television station WZZM 13-ABC, fruit growers experienced temperatures as low as 20 degrees on May 8-9. Blueberry growers in Muskegon County were reportedly using in-field sprinkler systems to apply protective ice to their bushes.

In a separate interview last week, the Michigan Apple Committee’s Diane Smith said growers were still assessing whether there was damage to their crops and how much. Apple growers have many methods of combating low nighttime temperatures during bloom, that begin with where trees are planted and extend to frost fans and other ways to keep the orchards warmer, Smith said.

She explained apple trees have ways of protecting themselves naturally from catastrophic losses of fruit – for example, they can produce more blooms than are normally needed during optimal temperatures, so they can afford to lose blooms and still produce fruit.

Regarding row crops, USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) crop weather specialist Scott Matthews said the service doesn’t track crop progress until 45-50 percent of it has emerged. That means for now it’s tracking the progress of winter wheat and oats, he said.

“Conditions for winter wheat are definitely worse than they were last year on a national level,” Matthews said. “The winter wheat condition definitely went down for Illinois and Ohio in the most recent report.”

He added that percentage of corn planted had been down from the average, but has caught up in the past couple of weeks. “It was very wet for a lot of April,” he pointed out.

According to NASS’ most recent crop progress report ending May 14, 18 listed states had planted 92 percent of 2016’s corn acreage. In Illinois, that figure was 75 percent; in Indiana, it was 56 percent; in Kentucky, 68 percent; in Michigan, 30 percent; for Ohio, 49 percent; and for Tennessee, that figure was 89 percent. For soybeans planted, 18 states had planted 95 percent of 2016’s acreage.

In Illinois and Indiana, that figure was 23 percent; Kentucky had 18 percent; in Michigan that figure was 11 percent; for Ohio, 19 percent; and for Tennessee, 19 percent. 

 

Also according to the report, Michigan had 93 percent of its 2016 sugar beet acreage planted as of May 14.

For the winter wheat condition, the report listed Illinois’ crop as 45 percent good, 7 percent excellent, 27 percent fair, with the rest either poor or very poor. In Indiana, 52 percent was listed as good, 15 percent as excellent and 27 percent was fair.

In Michigan, 57 percent of the crop was listed as good, 13 percent was excellent, 21 percent was fair; in Ohio, 61 percent was good, 17 percent excellent, 20 percent fair.

Also, Ohio was the only state in this region listed under the oats planted category, with 89 percent of its 2016 acreage planted as of May 14. Its crop was listed as 50 percent good, 12 percent excellent and 34 percent fair, with the rest being either poor or very poor.

For the week of the NASS report, Illinois had 1.9 days suitable for fieldwork for the week ending May 14. Indiana had 1.8; Kentucky 4.2; Michigan 4.9; Ohio 1.7; and Tennessee 5.1 days.

According to the report, crop progress and condition tables for corn and soybeans were expected by the next report that released earlier this week.