Frost Damage Reported From France To Ukraine; Growers In Canada And Northeast Also Suffer; + Australia To Shiver Into May, Defying BoM Predictions

The true extent of the losses won't be known for weeks, but they look extensive. "We are trying to save the flowers."

Frost Damage Reported From France To Ukraine

“We are really at the critical frost threshold for apple trees and pears” said Mathieu Tissot, producer of the Tissot orchards in Haute-Savoie, France following several below-freezing nights.

Tissot orchards produce 1,600 tonnes of apples and pears each year, but recent frosts have threatened that yield. For the past week or so, record cold has hit.

"We had three nights including a very significant night where we went down to -2.3C (27.9F),” said Mathieu, "the critical frost threshold for apple trees and pears".

Mathieu said gusty winds have helped his buds to some degree (wind reduces the formation of frost from radiative cooling), but now the breeze has died down and the cold has intensified. "We had to start the fight again last night," he said.

In scenes repeated across France, wind machines are being used to propel hot air around orchard and vineyards. "We spend every 8 to 10 minutes in the same place to allow the plant to dry," explained Mathieu.

More traditional 'frost fires' have been lit up and down the country.

Below is footage of a vineyard in Chablis:

“Vineyards in Chablis (France) are lit up at night to combat frost. Torches are being lit in the fields these last few nights to combat the heavy frosts that are being recorded in several French regions.“ — Meteored on X

The true extent of the losses won't be known for weeks, but they look extensive.

"This period of cold calms the sap and we are afraid that the fruit will fall naturally. We will [know the damage] within two weeks, we cannot have it immediately. We are trying to save the flowers," said Mathieu Tissot.

Not confined to France, this week's crop-wrecking freeze is sweeping Switzerland, too: