ARCHIVED - Murcian agriculturalists welcome the conditions brought by Storm Filomena

Severe frosts and heavy snow elsewhere in Spain cause serious problems for agriculturalists in different areas

The heavy snow and extreme cold brought by Storm Filomena have caused chaos in many parts of central Spain and in some cases the effects on agriculture have been severe, but in the Region of Murcia the UPA farmers’ union reports that the consequences are, in general, “very positive”.

In much of the Region the rain which fell on Thursday and Friday was gentle and steady rather than the torrential downpours which can sometimes hit the south-east of the country, providing a welcome watering for both fruit trees and vegetables, and the only downside was on higher ground in the north and north-west where snow settled. Even here the effect of the frosts is not expected to be too severe as the main crops are those which are not irrigated, such as olives, vines and almonds, and these plants are currently in their “vegetative phase”.

For this reason the trees are relatively unaffected, and in the case of almonds the current cold weather is beneficial as it delays the onset of flowering. In consequence the colourful sight of the spring “floración” in fruit growing areas such as Cieza is expected to return to more traditional dates this year after occurring earlier in recent times.

In addition, of course, the rain will have helped to bring more water to the reservoirs of the Segura basin, which includes almost all of Murcia as well as parts of neighbouring provinces, and the reserves are likely to continue to increase as snow melts on the higher ground near the headwaters of the basin.

This could lead to a good year for crop farmers in the Region and although the continuing low temperatures this week could still have a negative effect on leaf vegetables and citrus fruit trees, in inland municipalities such as Cehegín many agriculturalists have invested in greenhouse heating systems in order to minimize the threat.

In most leaf crop areas, thermal fleeces have been laid across vegetables susceptible to the frost in order to protect them from the low temperatures predicted for this week.

In other parts of Spain, UPA report far more serious problems as over the last few days farmers have been using their tractors to help clear snow and ice from roads and streets rather than to work their land. The weight of snow has broken the branches from olive trees in many areas and in the south of Madrid serious damage is reported in greenhouses and other infrastructures, while for cattle farmers it has not been possible to ensure that adequate food supplies are reaching their animals.

Similar problems are reported in the regions of Castilla y León, Aragón, Castilla-La Mancha, the Comunidad Valenciana and the east of Andalucía, where cattle roam the mountains and higher ground, while the severe frosts are likely to ruin vegetable crops. In the strawberry-producing province of Huelva, in the south-west of mainland Spain, the low temperatures are causing fruit to ripen later and the disruption of road traffic is making it difficult to distribute those strawberries which have already been picked.