STOCKTON, Calif. — While frigid temperatures blanket the San Joaquin Valley, it can be concerning to growers if the cold continues for an extended period of time.
"When you start talking about chill and especially when you start adding moisture to that. You talk about things like hail," says Bruce Blodgett, Executive Director of the San Joaquin Farm Bureau Federation. "Hail in that kind of inclement weather at the wrong time during bloom, it can be absolutely disastrous for a grower."
Bloom is at the very beginning stages for some varieties of trees.
Two of San Joaquin County's biggest cash crops, like almonds and cherries, depend on blossoms that are undamaged to provide a good, solid harvest.
"You're always concerned when you get weather like this that you could have some impacts to those crops. Last year, we had some rain at the wrong time that affected cherries," said Blodgett.
Blodgett says several nights in a row of freezing temperatures can be damaging to crops.
But, the cold is also good for crops that now sit dormant.
"You need the chill hours. You need the real cold weather in the winter. Trees are mostly dormant right now. They need to get into a deep sleep here and get ready to go for another growing season," says Blodgett.
