Frost and snow cause damage in agriculture
Published: Saturday, Apr 27th 2024, 10:30
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Last week's cold snap with frost and snow down to lower altitudes is likely to have caused millions in damage to Swiss agriculture. Damage to fruit crops and vines was recorded in the Geneva and Valais regions in particular.
Many crops were already in bloom due to the very warm April days, as the Swiss hail insurance company wrote. The drop in temperature below freezing caused the flowers to freeze in many places.
In the Geneva region in particular, there was severe frost damage to vines due to clear nights, Schweizer Hagel announced. By the end of the week, a total of 370 cases of frost damage to insured fruit and wine-growing crops had been reported, corresponding to an area of over 700 hectares.
"Around 85 percent of the farms insured against frost in Geneva and 40 percent in Valais have reported damage," Gaylor Monnerat, Head of Switzerland, is quoted as saying on the Schweizer Hagel website.
The snowfall down to the lowlands has also affected arable and grassland crops. The stalks could bend under the weight of the snow, which would reduce the crop yield. Damage caused by snow pressure often required two inspections by experts in order to better assess the development of the crops.
The Swiss hailstorms were reported to have caused 800 snow pressure damages, which were spread across the entire Central Plateau and the Pre-Alps. Rapeseed, grassland and cereal crops in particular were affected, covering a total area of over 5500 hectares.
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